Right now, the business owners I speak to are panicked.
I hear from them that they don’t have control over their financials. Perhaps, they have been delegating bookkeeping to an admin on their team. And when times are good, they don’t worry about reviewing reports.
I hear from them that they don’t have control of their future. There is no set date for when the country will reopen. Many wonder what their new normal look like.
I hear from them that they’ve lost control over their incoming revenues. They’re not open for business or doing very little. Their clients may be canceling contracts or unable to pay their bills, and their lead funnel may be dwindling as people prioritize saving overspending.
But there is a secret I share with my clients that I would like to share with you, too. You can control your outgoing cash. You can control your cash flow.
I recently had a conversation with a business owner who had many of the fears and doubts outlined above. The fear was powerful and palpable, and it was blocking him from seeing the facts. Going into COVID-19, he didn’t have an understanding of his finances, so when doors closed, he assumed the money was gone. And that made him operate from a place of fear.
To get out of that fear mindset, he participated in my financial education webinar, which helped him get a 360-degree view of his current financial picture. He then did a one-on-one SWOT session with me to analyze his financial strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats.
This SWOT session is where the truth comes out – the good, the bad and the strategy. We tell ourselves so many stories that it can be difficult to see what is really happening. And when it comes to cash flow, clarity is key.
Based on our session, it was clear that he did indeed have money. What he didn’t have was revenue. And when I presented the cash flow forecasting model, he could see the possibilities of not running out of money.
That meant that what we could control was his outflow of cash. My advice was to:
- Contact his bank and inquire about loan deferrals on business debt
- Ask his landlord about a rent deferral
- Talk to his vendors to see how far they would bend to help slow down money going out
- Follow up on invoices that were set to come in soon from his accounts receivable
Those four ideas exposed tens of thousands of dollars that are now available to float his business until he could be funded with the PPP loan.
The bottom line is this: the conversation changed from a fear-based, reactive mode of “I don’t have money” to I have money and can control the outflow.
You too have money and you too can control the outflow. I invite you to schedule a consultation with me today to explore your financial situation, find your cash and break free of fear.