15 signs you're winging it with your finances

If your finances aren’t where you want them, it’s a pretty safe bet you’re winging it with some or all of these things that I see in almost every business I talk to.

You're flying blind strategically:

1) You don't have a financial plan. You don't actually know what you need to be earning, what profit your business needs to make, or how much you should be getting into your pension. You're just... hoping it'll work out.

2) You don't work to a budget or forecast. You just get your figures each month and look at them (maybe?)  But there's nothing to compare against, so you can't tell if you're doing well or not.

3) You've got no idea what your year's profit or tax bill is going to be. You'll find out at the end of the year when your accountant tells you…. Or maybe 8 months later!

4) You make your decisions on gut feeling, not facts - just what feels right in the moment. And whilst I’m a big fan of gut decisions, finance isn’t the place to do it!

5) You're not putting enough money into your pension to be financially free, and you know you're not. But you're not quite sure how much you need, or how to afford it

Your cash situation

6) Cash flow is tight. And you don't know why, or don't know how to fix it, so you've just kinda accepted it. It’s just how it is.

7) You haven’t got your taxes set aside so when it comes to paying your VAT and corporation tax it’s always a bit stressful. Or your tax money is all mixed up with your daily cash.

8) You haven’t got that critical 3 months of buffer cash. So if you lost a big client or revenue dropped, cashflow would get scary quickly.

9)You don't know what your tax bills are going to be. There's always that sick feeling when the accountant emails the number.

Your information is letting you down:

10) You don't have the right information to make great decisions each week and month. So you're basically running your business blind, making decisions based on what's in the bank account.

11) Your bookkeeping isn't right or isn't up to date. So you can't trust the information you do have.

12) Honestly you don't really understand your finances (I promise you’re not alone. You look at the numbers and don't know how to read them or what to do to make them better.

Your revenue engine isn’t doing it’s job

13) You can't predict the next 1-3 months revenue with any accuracy or certainty. Every month feels like starting from scratch. And your marketing isn't doing its job. It's not bringing in enough revenue, and you know it, but you're not sure how to fix it.

You don't have the right support:

14) Your accountant and / or book keeper aren’t cutting it. You’re not sure if you outgrew them or if they were never good enough. You don’t know what to ask them for and just don't feel you've got the support you need to actually get on top of this stuff.

You're avoiding it:

15) You avoid looking at your numbers. Maybe because you don't understand them. Maybe because you're afraid of what you'll see. Maybe because you've told yourself "I don't do finance" and that's just how it is.

If some of these are hitting home here’s what to do.

Firstly don’t panic or feel bad.

You’re just a totally normal small business owner.😃

The trouble is, most normal small business owners don’t make enough money and they don’t get the life and retirement they deserve.

The good news, there are simple things you can do to stop winging it, to take control and set a new direction for your future.

And over the coming weeks and months I’ll be showing you EXACTLY how to do it!

The first part of deciding you want a different, better, more financially secure future is to notice which of these 15 signs resonate the most. 

Which feel the most uncomfortable?

That’s going to be a good place to start!

Have a great week!

Serena
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