Pay off your debts and grow your business - the Why and How!

The Business Unicorns' newsletter is my weekly free blog where I share with Afro-native entrepreneurs or business owners, tips to grow tangibly, with more security. To work with me to grow your business or project, apply for a free blueprint call here.

--------------------------------------

"I can't pay off my debts from my business yet, and I'm tired of it Donclarte"!

This is what a client in my group shared with me lately. We will explore key financial solutions in this article to help you stabilize your finances and grow your business as well.

Isn’t it true that building a business presents unique challenges, but the most important of them are the financial issues?

Moreover, when you spent a good portion of your adult life working in the corporate space, your money mindset can be so tilted towards managing financial risks, that you can’t see what’s more.

Many of us grapple with the dual burden of trying to establish successful enterprises while also addressing our financial obligations and responsibilities.

In this article, we will explore the specific problems I hear from entrepreneurs or professionals in our community, propose solutions to these challenges, and showcase real-life examples of individuals who have successfully navigated this financial journey.

This is so that you understand what is possible for you and your business or idea too, when you open your mind to learning the right skills.

Balancing Business Growth and Financial Stability

Most professionals and entrepreneurs I talk to, always find themselves in a precarious situation. On one hand, you are driven by the dream of building a successful business and inspiring your children and those around you. However, on the other hand, you must address pressing financial issues in the present.

Here is what some have shared with me:

1. Cashflow and financial issues: I am making some revenue, but it is small, and fluctuating so much, that the irregular cash flow makes it difficult for me to manage my finances and pay off my current debts.
2. No financial discipline: I have lacked financial discipline in my 10 years working at a job. Paying for Lattes and lunches outside, accumulating bad debt, and making some poor investments in other people’s projects, have cost me a lot, and made it difficult for me to invest in my business
3. High Start-up Costs: I have spent more money than I gained from the project so far, so I am wondering if I am capable of growing it.

The N. 1 Thing to do - Maintain A Growth approach to Finances

While the challenges highlighted above are significant, there are effective solutions to help you achieve financial stability and grow your businesses.

I know you desire to make something meaningful and to write an inspiring story through your project, so I am happy to share initial strategies for you today.

If you want to dig deep into them, make sure to join my training this Friday on Exponential Growth Blueprint. Click here to sign up.

In the meantime, here are some strategies to consider:

1. Budgeting and Savings: We start with the common sense strategies that you know. Create a detailed budget that separates personal and business expenses. Allocate a portion of your income to savings and debt repayment, no matter how small it can be. This is common sense, but few people do it. Can you show me a spreadsheet with your personal and business budgets? Every single time that I look into my own numbers with my coach, I realize I have more money than I think. Sources of untapped cash also appear easily.
2. Debt Management: Develop a structured plan for paying off debts. Prioritize high-interest loans and consider debt consolidation or refinancing options.
3. Grow your "Cash" Sales: This is so key, I am not talking about growing just future revenue with prospects giving you promise of contracts. I have witnessed so often entrepreneurs being squeezed financially because some "clients" are not respecting their business engagements. If you have a job, know that your income there is capped. If you already have a business with a small client portfolio, know that there is a risk of some clients never paying you, even after signing contracts. So, how do you manage that? Ensure that you grow your clientele first! And ensure that you have multiple arrangements allowing yourself to be paid cash as early in the process too. Your first job as an entrepreneur is to let the cash come in. You should always be on the lookout to catch new or recurring opportunities and increase your sales week by week. Not in 2-3 months. Now. In my training this Friday, I will share key strategies for you to discover how you can do it.

Of these 3 solutions, the number 3 is the most important one. Let me explain to you why, with a real-life story!

I helped a client of mine who had a product-based business lately. I’m gonna call him Steve for confidentiality purposes. Steve’s business was taking in so many costs to fulfill his inventory and orders. He felt like he couldn’t make any profits or ever live off of it.

After a small analysis, he realized that getting 3 more clients with min. 5 000$ bulk orders, would allow him to make a bigger order of inventory to his suppliers, and to reduce his cost per product. This would allow him to make insane profit margins. His job was now to stay focused on finding these 3 people.

I remember telling him that day: "You cannot tell me that with a billion people coming online every day, you cannot tell me that your three 5K$-prospects are not in there!"

The goal is not to make you become a manager in your new business or project, that would be creating you a second job that you hate.

Your goal is to fulfill the mission of the business or project you are creating.

Growing revenue allows you to:

• hire help for the accounting in the business;
• to reduce business costs, and;
• to attract even external financing, so your business would stop eating up in your pocket!

So, now your turn. What do you struggle with the most, when it comes to gaining financial stability and growing your business? What would you do differently in the week to come?

If growing your client portfolio is in your solutions, make sure to join me next Friday, as I will share key strategies to speed it up for you. Sign up here for the Exponential Growth Blueprint training.