As a business scales, the complexity of its financials escalates exponentially. Strategic financial planning becomes a critical cornerstone of sustainable growth and long-term success. In this in-depth look at financial management, we will explore the foundational elements that business owners must consider to ensure they have a solid financial strategy that supports scaling initiatives.
Understanding the Role of Financial Planning
Financial planning is not merely about balancing your books or preparing for tax season. It is about creating a road map for your business that aligns with your growth objectives. The right financial plan can transform your business’s trajectory, turning calculated risks into rewarded efforts. Successful financial planning considers several key aspects:
Cash flow management and forecasting
Investment in assets and infrastructure
Strategic budgeting and resource allocation
Risk assessment and mitigation
Profit maximization strategies
Essential Components of Financial Strategy
To effectively scale your business, it’s essential to hone in on certain financial components that serve as the building blocks of any robust growth plan:
Financial Planning Includes Budgeting and Allocation
Effective budgeting ensures your resources are being directed towards the most impactful areas. Harvard Business Review highlights the importance of agile budgeting in today’s fast-evolving business landscape, stressing flexibility and responsiveness. Part of this process requires prioritizing departments and initiatives according to their return on investment and strategic value.
Cash Flow Management
Critical to scaling efforts is understanding and predicting cash flows. The Encyclopedia of Business and Finance states that adequate cash on-hand enables a business to pursue growth opportunities. A precise cash flow forecast helps in decision-making and ensures financial stability.
Contingencies are part of Proper Financial Planning
Even the best plans can face unexpected challenges. Forbes suggests that savvy business owners create multiple financial scenarios to anticipate such difficulties and allocate resources to safeguard the business against potential financial disruptions.
Growth Investment
Knowing where and how to invest in your business to support scaling is critical. Investments might involve new technology, expanding your workforce, or enhancing marketing efforts to reach a larger audience. Financial plans must be allocated for such investments without impacting the operational integrity of the business.
Partnering with Experts
Seeking guidance from seasoned professionals like Jason Spangler can make a striking difference—Jason’s business coaching services foster growth by focusing on financial management and decision-making. With expertise across various industries, his advice is tailored to each business’s unique challenges and opportunities. The free eBook and 30-minute strategy call he offers could be a turning point for many business owners.
Mitigating Common Mistakes
Many businesses falter due to avoidable financial blunders. Jason’s approach surfaces these common areas of concern and provides strategic solutions to overcome them, such as:
Establishing a clear sales system or exit strategy;
Improving hiring processes to build stronger teams;
Streamlining operations for efficiency.
The services Jason offers are confidential, ensuring that your business’s intimate financial details are handled with the utmost discretion.
Conclusion: The Path to Financial Mastery
Embarking on the journey of scaling your business is a bold move that requires equally bold financial strategies. By mastering the essentials of financial planning—budgeting, cash flow management, contingency planning, and wise investments—you can elevate your business to unforeseen heights. However, the complexities involved in such strategies often suggest that a partnership with a knowledgeable coach could be an investment, leading to greater profits, a dynamic team, and more personal time for you, the business owner.
The world is full of negativity. News of death, war, riots, and road rage seems everywhere. You notice this whenever you turn on the news or go to the store. Why not combat negative people and ideas with a good dose of positivity? You can do it with some simple but compelling steps.
Let’s talk about the power of ONE. It starts with ONE person that can make a difference.
Consider Maurice Hilleman, not a household name but his contribution to medicine has touched nearly every person reading this article. A microbiologist, he is responsible for developing over 40 vaccines – He is thought to have saved more lives than any other medical scientist of the 20th century.
The power of ONE starts with each of us. Are you ready to make a difference in your sphere? Here are the 9 baby steps toward bringing light into a darkening world.
9 Tips to Pass On Positivity
Make Smiling a Part of Your Wardrobe: As you prepare in the morning, remember that the best item you can wear is a smile. Everyone looks good with a smile. They are contagious. As you smile at others, you will notice more and more putting on their smiles. That’s a profound fashion statement.
Give Compliments Freely: You know how good you feel when someone tells you they like your new sweater or you look like you are losing weight. Please pay it forward and share a compliment with others. This includes telling a loved one how much you appreciate and love them.
Ask “How Are You?” and Mean It: “How are you” is often used as a friendly gesture. Many people don’t wait to see what the response is. Try looking your co-worker in the eyes, ask them how they are, and then listen to the answer. By doing so, you show you care.
Be On the Lookout for the Silver Lining: People often get stuck in negative thinking and cannot find positive things. Instead of focusing on the half-empty glass, look at the half-full glass and find the silver lining of each case.
Listen to Others: People want to be heard, especially under strain and stress. Offer your time and ears to sit down and listen to someone struggling. Sometimes that is all it takes to help someone feel better and more positive.
Make Someone’s Day with an Act of Kindness: Random acts of kindness go far in encouraging positivity. Pay for someone’s drink at the coffee shop. Open the door and let another customer enter the store ahead of you.
Play Some Uplifting Music Music enhances our emotions. Find some commercial jingles from your childhood and sing along with your friends. If you are feeling down, enjoy some cheesy 80s songs or a polka.
Use Social Media for Good Scroll through your social media feed for too long, and you can quickly become depressed. Resist the urge to put your negativity into the pool. Instead, post some positive quotes or pictures that will make others smile. Share happy stories.
Be an Encourager People who struggle through a tough spot in life need a cheerleader. Encourage a friend or family member to keep their chin up and continue moving forward. Let them know you believe in them.
POSITIVITY – TAKE ACTION – 3 Fast Action Steps You Can Take
Decide today to stop spreading negativity. Enhance this choice by choosing one tip to focus on this week. You might start by smiling more. They are free for you and priceless to others.
Go through your social media contacts, looking for those who tend to be the most negative. Decide who you can unfollow or unfriend, and do so. Removing access to toxic people will help you stay on the path to a more positive mindset.
Think about the last time you spoke to your mom, dad, sister, or other family members. If it has been a while, call them and share how much you appreciate them being in your life.
Commit to Make Your Space Better
Are you ready to join me in bringing Positivity into our sphere? Would you be willing to send a message? Cut and paste this message into this email link HERE. “I am positive I want to make a difference – You can count on me – I am all in.”
Would you like more positive tips for your personal development or business growth? Visit my YouTube channel for some great videos.
When our business grows unchecked, it will spill over into our personal lives and take all it can. Far too many business owners find themselves in this situation. The business knows no boundaries and is now taking the time that was supposed to be for friends, family, and fun.
An entrepreneur never starts with the idea that ‘I hope my business will become all-consuming and cause me to sacrifice my personal life to make it successful.’ Yet, many of us find ourselves there.
Countless entrepreneurs have heard some version of these words before, ‘You are always working, no need to choose. It is either the business or me.‘ My own version was while Director of Information Systems full-time AND running a computer retail storefront business. I did commercial networks for small businesses—printer setups, networks, and mail servers, and sold personal computers and upgrades. This was back BEFORE plug and play (yes, I am THAT OLD). At the same time, I ran an Internet Service Provider for our community. My business asked me to stay up Tuesdays and Thursdays nights after my full-time job so that we could be together. What did I do? Of course, I said, ‘Sure, whatever you need.’
Then that fateful day, I heard those words, “You are always working; you never are here to see the kids and me. I could care less about the business; I want to be with you. Something has to change. You decide.”
Common Thread
At some point, we all get there. I continue to hear some version of this all the time from my clients:
The business has things that I have to do, and only I can do them. I know my family needs me, and do I want to spend time with them.
I am growing this business for my family. It pays our bills and gives them the lifestyle we have. Sure, I’m missing my kids’ practices or recitals, and if I am honest, I feel like a bad parent. It won’t always be this way.
One day I realized I was making good money, but I spent so much time making it I couldn’t enjoy it.
And, of course, there is the facade of being present. Which is actually physically present with their family, but mentally they’re still working in their heads or checking the phone for messages about the business.
I Might Be Part of the Problem
That is the first step, admit you have a problem. No one is perfect. Most business problems are found in three areas, TIME, TEAM, and MONEY. If we are honest, most of us business owners are looking for the time, energy, and mental presence to be with our spouses and children. However, we want time off – a chance to recharge and find our ‘happy place.’ We want to enjoy the wealth their business provides.
The other reason I say you might be part of the problem is that business problems are personal problems in disguise. No offense, but we all have areas we can improve, and personal improvement will make us better business owners.
In the journey to build a better business – a business that will give you the quality of life you desire – you will need to work on yourself.
Where To Start? Look to the 3 A’s: Acumen, Activity, and Attitude.
Acumen is about knowledge and skill-building.
Most business owners never got formal business training. Instead, we do what we love, and it became a business.
We started out as one person doing what we are good at and love doing. Next thing we know, because we are good at it, we now have 5 employees and not slowing down.
So part of becoming a better owner is to gain some knowledge about business and to learn the skills necessary to run a good business. This part is the easy part.
Activity is about behavior. It’s about taking action and getting things done.
Hiring a team. Training your employees. Doing the marketing and making the sales. Creating a plan. Tracking results. Developing systems. Being a leader.
This part isn’t that hard either, although it often helps to have someone hold you accountable for doing the things you said you would do!
The third part is where business and personal collide.
Attitude, or as I prefer to call it, “mindset,” is what will make you or break you as a business owner.
Mindset is about thinking differently and seeing your business as an entity separate from yourself.
A proper attitude is about leaving your comfort zone and confronting your challenges head-on.
Mindset is about shifting your identity from the person who is good at “doing the work” and taking on the role of business owner and team leader. It’s about having a positive attitude, setting goals, and then doing what it takes to achieve them.
Many personal issues and challenges can get in the way of this third very important ‘A’ – Attitude.
Fear is a big one—fear of failure, success, and looking foolish.
The ego is another big one. I do not want to ask for help, am not willing to admit not knowing something, or admit making mistakes.
Complacency. Are you settling for OK when you can have great? Are you willing to do the work to achieve Great?
Is it time to set boundaries for your business and get some FREEDOM back in your life? Let’s have a FREE conversation about how to take the steps necessary to make that dream come true.
You probably already know how having an unwavering belief in yourself improves your work life or even helps you be more confident in your everyday life. But were you aware of how much this self-belief improves your relationships with others?
Think about these things:
Belief Means You’ll Be More Genuine
When we lack belief in ourselves, it’s easy to adopt a persona, especially when around people we’re hoping to impress. But how do others around you like the ‘fake’ you? Sooner or later, the reality always comes out, and when it does, your partner will feel betrayed. Even in non-romantic relationships, trying to be something you’re not is a sure recipe for disaster.
You’ll Contribute More to the Relationship
When you lack belief in yourself, you tend to let the other person make all the decisions or carry the weight of maintaining the relationship.
While some people don’t mind taking the lead, this does lead to an unbalanced relationship which can even turn into codependency if you’re not careful. The question is, do you want a caregiver or a partner?
Confidence is Sexy
Ask anyone what they notice first about a person, and the answer which comes up more often than any other is “Confidence.” When you see someone who has belief in themselves and knows who they are, is comfortable in their own skin, and seems to have a clear view of where they’re going, you’re just drawn to them naturally.
Belief means there’s Less Baggage
People who have belief in themselves don’t need to carry the opinion of others around with them anymore. For example, if your ex put you down, you don’t care because you know you’re worth more than this. More importantly, confidence frees you up to fully enter into new relationships with others without those old expectations or negative emotions tripping you up.
You’ll Argue Less
If you get into a disagreement with your friend or lover, you’ll be less apt to take things personally and more willing to work through the problem. An important bonus? You won’t be so caught up in the other person’s opinion of you to where you put up with abuse or leave the argument crushed and broken. People with unwavering self-belief know when to walk away from the fight altogether.
You Will Be Respected
Finally, when you have a strong sense of belief in yourself, you have a strong feeling of self-respect, which goes along with it. When others see you treat yourself as worthy of this respect, they are more likely to treat you with respect as well.
As a side note, relationships of every variety always work out best if you have a strong feeling of self-worth. The rest of the world already knows confident people are people worth knowing. Now, so are you.
Our mindset plays a paramount role in our everyday lives. An improper mindset will doom every endeavor before it ever starts. Do you need help adjusting your mindset? Would you like to learn more? Check out our coach, that could help you on your journey toward your success.
Often times business and personal lives share commonalities that we can use to improve both areas. This is one topic that spills over into both realms. It is true that most people don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care. Many of us can use a good reminder that our business is something of a family, and we would do well to treat them with respect and compassion and be supportive.
Do you feel like you aren’t supportive enough of your friends? Or maybe of your significant other? Being supportive in any relationship is an essential part of maintaining that relationship. This is especially true in a romantic relationship. Below are a few ways to work on being more supportive in your relationships to ensure you keep them healthy and strong.
Supportive Means Check-In Frequently
When you think of being supportive, remember that everyone has that one friend they haven’t heard from in a while. But the phone and the internet work two ways. Don’t be afraid to message or call your friends to check in. After all, they may need support and have been too busy to reach out to you. You never know until you check. And even if you live with your significant other, it’s essential to ask how their day was because they may not volunteer information that is bothering them until you ask.
Supportive Requires Us to Listen
Being supportive means sometimes you may reach out to a friend and find that they need to vent about some things going on in their life for a few minutes. And the best way you can help this friend or significant other is just by sitting quietly and listening to their problems. Learn to be an active listener and validate them during these times of sharing. If they want advice or help, you can offer it, but even the most put-together people just need to vent now and then.
Help Lower Their Stress
Although you may not solve a problem or situation your significant other may be facing, this doesn’t mean you can’t help lower their stress in other areas of their life. For example, if your husband or wife is experiencing a lot of stress at work, maybe take on a few of their household duties so that when they come home in the evening, they can relax. You can also do something simple but nice for them, such as an offer to draw them a bath or a shoulder massage, anything which will lower their stress, even just for a few minutes.
Conclusion
Being supportive in all of your relationships is no easy task. But you can start by checking in with your friends and significant other frequently, listening to them when they need it, and lowering their stress in any way possible. Not only will this improve your relationship with said individual, but it will also keep the relationship strong for years to come.
“It gets lonely at the top,” or another way, the Chinese proverb goes, “it’s cold at the top (of a mountain) describes the loneliness people in high position experience. As a business owner, you don’t have to be alone. Profusion is here to be your supportive friend in the business world. There are things only people like you can understand. Jason Spanger is one of those people; he has walked to the mountaintop. Let’s walk the journey toward your success together.
Are you wondering, “When is my business ever going to GROW UP?”. That is a great question. Fellow small business owners, we all have this question. Understand that business development isn’t linear, and the answer is – IT DEPENDS. Look at the statistics according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics:
20% Fail in Year 1
50% Fail by Year 5
70% Fail by Year 10
Year 1 –
Consider the Year 1 failures. The business development phase was stuck in Creation Phase. Like the idea was more romantic in nature than solid concepts and lacked many foundational processes to offer stability, and they failed. It would be the business foundation built on sand. It could have been great ideas, just not built on a strong foundation. This business didn’t mature past the Creation Phase.
Business Development Year 5 –
The year 5 category offers some great promise. Most of these businesses would have worked out the missing pieces in their foundation and stabilized things well. The business is growing and showing signs of promise. As the business grows, control slips away from the one-person operation, and chaos grows along with the company. Business owners have staff, products/services are growing, delegation is happening, and money is coming and going.
This phase of business growth has moved into the Chaos Phase. Chaos has its own office space, teams are working but not in unison, and tasks are being completed but usually with tremendous inefficiencies. Cash is coming in and going out so fast that the business’s financial future is in jeopardy and unclear. Cash flow plans, team building, and strategic planning will help provide the necessary elements to help move the business to the next business development phase.
Remember 50% will fail during this time period. This is a tricky time and requires a lot of attention to maintain this growth. The businesses that stay in this Choas Phase are the ones that fail. “Herding Cats” can only go on for so long before things snap and the business owner throws in the towel.
Year 10 –
The businesses that have reached this point are likely those with the greatest resiliency. Some are the stubborn types that can put their head down and ride it out, but nonetheless, the Chaos Phase has always been life-sucking, and many will fold during this time. Like the frog in the pot of water, when the heat is applied, they eventually will succumb to the heat and close the doors.
Those that have put systems and processes in place will be in the 30% that survive this period. They will have moved into the business development phase called, the Control Phase. The business learns to run without them having to intercede in many of the day-to-day transactions. Once control is established, the business owner becomes focused on prosperity and getting freedom for the business. They can work on the business and not ‘in’ the business. Growth, vision, strategies, and financial markers are all areas they can focus on and make an impact on.
Moving through the Business Development Phases
Fellow small business owner, you can do this! The Chaos Phase is the hardest part of the business growth phase. It is like parenting the adolescent. They were cute and cuddly in the creation phase, but then they became these nearly intolerable ‘things.’ Those of you that have been there (I had five kids) you know what I am talking about, and those of you that haven’t been there yet, I don’t want to ruin it for you.
Anyway, the Chaos Phase has things coming at you left and right, and it sometimes makes you think the world is out to get your business and see you fail. I can’t say how long it will last, but I can tell you if you reach out and hire a business coach, you can make this phase shorter and move into the Control Phase more quicker.
Having the help of someone that has been there, someone that can look around at the scenery while you keep your hands at 10 and 2 on the steering wheel of your business, will only make this period easier to endure and help you get control. I would love to be your passenger on the journey to your success.
Would you like to talk about how to get started? Click this link for a FREE 30-minute strategy call to discuss your business and your journey. See if we can take a ride together, no high pressure, just a conversation; bring your cup of coffee – let’s talk.
