In small business, every dollar in the door counts. But, if you don’t have a solid understanding of your finances you won’t know when to spend, when to conserve, or how your investment of time and great effort is being rewarded (or not) by your business. If, like most business owners, you work really hard to make your business work, then managing your cash flow and your accounts properly is not only important, it’s essential if you want to see profits.
“But I’m not a numbers person…”
I resisted learning the fundamentals of small business finance for the longest time. A marketer at heart I figured I didn’t really need to know. BUT, after a while I released that I was ‘flying blind’ making decisions without a sound understanding of how those decisions impacted the bottom line. I got help. I started to get training on the fundamentals of my business fiancials — budgets, cash flow projections, financial reports. The more I learned the more empowered I was to make decisions about the future of my business.
Learn the essentials of financial literacy
I don’t have a finance degree BUT today I review the company financials on a regular basis (weekly and monthly) and so I know what’s working, what’s not and what makes the most sense for the business to do. I can make decisions QUICKLY, now that I’m not burying my head in the sand.
I feel in control of my finances. But, I didn’t always…
It didn’t just happen. Getting confident took some study and setting up reports that are meaningful for ME and for MY business. Take control of your financial skills and you’ll empower yourself to achieve the goals that matter in your business. I think this is so important that we created a course to help other small business owners take control.
The Australian Businesswomen’s Network’s Small Business Finance Course is a three-part online course specifically designed to give you easy-to-implement ways to take the headache out of financial management (including collecting money faster, budgeting and forecasting your cash flow). Even if you choose to hire a bookkeeper to manage your books, understanding the fundamentals of good financial management will put you ahead of the game.
“The course forced me to take a critical look at the numbers of my business and provided me with the knowledge and templates to start plugging them in myself.”
