When time is at a premium, how do you find time or even justify the time to sit back or take stock of your situation?

So often, when I first start talking to potential clients or even when I have started working with new clients, they say that they haven’t got time to spend with me, let alone working on the issues they need to be coached and trained on. Of course this is a genuine issue, and one which it is very hard to find a way around, except to say that I know from the last 9 ½ years experience of working with business owners, that the time spent sitting back and thinking through changes to be made, and actions to be taken, is time well spent indeed. In fact I would go as far as saying that putting time aside to plan the next steps will be every bit as financially important, as making a sale, or having a meeting with a new lead.

Talking through an issue with a business coach is invariably hugely beneficial, providing you actually do the things that came out of the discussion. I recently met with one of my clients who has been really struggling with time issues, and even in the short time we spent discussing his most immediate problem, the way forward became blindingly clear very quickly.

Take the time to sit back and analyse all the things you are spending time on, and then see which of those are making money (or potentially making money). Concentrate on those and off-load as many other things as you can, either to your employees, or possibly by outsourcing. Basically if you haven’t got time to concentrate on managing and directing the business because you are too busy doing “stuff”, then you urgently need to address your situation and find ways of changing it.

My son is a very keen cricketer, and for the most part, a pretty decent one. However, as a Dad, although I love to watch him play, I find myself standing beside the pitch half wanting him to bat or bowl, whilst the other half is saying don’t let him do anything which could go badly against him i.e. will he bowl badly and be smashed around the ground, or bat badly and be out for 0? In other words if he doesn’t do anything, then no-one can say or think that he wasn’t any good. I know on some occasions he has actually turned down opportunities to open the batting for fear of “failure”, and given me some excuse which we both know is allowing him an easy way out. When I have challenged him on this, I have asked him wouldn’t he rather have at least tried and “failed” rather than die wondering “what if”?

The same thing applies to many aspects in our lives and our businesses. I know I keep on about doing something, or taking some action rather than waiting for things to happen, but I truly believe that we don’t get many chances in life, so surely it is better to have a go, than forever wonder what might have been. From a business point of view, as in life, you don’t get many chances to try things out, so whilst I am not encouraging wild risk taking, next time you have a good idea (which you have carefully done the numbers on) why don’t you bite the bullet and make it happen. Remember don’t think “what if it fails?” think “what if it works?”

So why not take some chances, so you don’t look back in a few years time and think “I wonder what would have happened if I had done…..!”

How often have I heard people say “I don’t need to do a cash flow because my business is different!” or, “There’s not really any point in doing a cash flow because it is too difficult to predict what will happen in my market!”? But, in reality there are so many good reasons for doing cash flows, that I am quick to put them straight on their opinion.

As no doubt I have said before, the real reason most people don’t do cash flows is because they don’t know how to, so they use one of the statements above as an excuse to avoid writing them. However, for those of you who are still sceptical, let me give you some food for thought.

First and foremost doing a cash flow with forecasted sales targets gives you something to aim for. Of course the targets should be in line with your overall end goals, and they should be stretching but not unachievable. The sales targets need to be made clear to all the team, so that everyone can celebrate the successes, and strive for greater things. Of course I can accept that forecasts are just that, but I can assure you, if you write these figures down, you have a lot more chance of hitting them, than if you just think about it.

Secondly a cash flow allows you to plan for capital expenditure and/or employment of new staff as you grow. Once you have set your sales targets for planned growth, you can then work out when you can afford to pay for new and improved pieces of equipment, or new staff to ease the workload.

Thirdly you can plan your marketing strategy and marketing spend against your sales targets. By working out your clear target market niches, you can then plan how you intend to market to them. This in turn allows you to budget for the expenses incurred.

Fourthly, once you have done your cash flow (or cash flows if you want to look at different scenarios) you can see if there are likely to be any negative months, and if so will you need a bank loan or an extended overdraft facility. If you can present well thought out and logical figures to your bank well in advance of the potential problem times, they are far more likely to help you out.

Finally it gives you control. All too often I work with business owners who have little to no control over their money. As the business grows, and you have less detailed knowledge of some of the expenditure, it is important to be able to check your actual figures against your budgets, so you can quickly see if things are going as you expect, or if there are problems or things not going to plan.

So I hope I have convinced you about how important doing cash flows can be. If you’re not sure how to do one, give me a call.

Before I became a business coach, around 10 years ago, I was always very aware of what other people might think of me, my image or the things I do. And even for a year or two after that I was still extremely conscious of how people perceived me. This could have had a very limiting effect on my business and what I achieved with it, had I not learned to stop worrying about other people’s opinions.

The problem is, if you spend your life worrying about what others think, you tend to avoid risk taking, or going out on a limb, in case people laugh at you. However, this can also mean basic business principles, such as asking for the order, doing seminars, or following up your leads, are avoided because once again you may be afraid of the reaction you get.

As I have grown older I have learnt to understand that it doesn’t matter what the other people think, because I need to do whatever it takes to achieve my goals and dreams. If other people think I am strange because of it, that is their problem not mine.

Now I am not advocating rudeness, or total lack of regard or respect for others, but more an understanding that you should live your life for you and your nearest and dearest’s ends, not just to please others. Too many people never say or do what they really want to, for fear of upsetting people, and as a result stay unsatisfied or even unhappy all their lives.

If you have goals and dreams, you have to work hard to achieve them, and often this may mean doing things which others consider pushy or which make them feel uncomfortable. However, the more you work on these things, and the more you do to make your life and business how you envisioned it, the greater your self belief and confidence becomes, bringing you contentment and security.