Guidelines for cash flow management

Your cash flow is the money you have coming in from revenue and going out for expenses. Good cash flow management will ensure you always have money available for paying your expenses when they are due.

Even profitable businesses can fail if cash flow is not properly managed.

Have you ever been so worried about your cash that you didn’t even check your bank statements for weeks? And when you decided to do it, you found out it is worse than you imagined? Planning and monitoring your cash flow is one of the most important things you can do when you run a business — your business.

How to get to know your cash flow

Well, you have to start with yourself. Is positive cash flow meaningful to you as a business owner? Do you measure it? How much cash flow do you generate each month? Can you explain to each and every man in your organization what cash flow means? How long it would it take for you to find out the answers to these questions?

Cash flow is about good timing!

It is really important for you to understand that the timing of cash income and the financial results come down to the operating cycle of your business. That means you have to plan many moving parts of your business, such as buying or selling with credit, your collection process, the costs of running your business and, of course when you get paid. With ThinkOut, you are able to plan for growth and the related cash outlays in advance, so they do not come as a surprise!

We are sure you are aware of the fact that there are business owners who see growth as the solution to all cash flow problems. Our advice is that you shouldn’t be one of those managers who see their profit going up and don’t bother with cash flow anymore. Business profit doesn’t necessarily mean healthy cash flow.

Make reserves and keep track

If you want your business to grow, don’t settle. And don’t ever think that is going to be easy.

So, let’s start! First of all, don’t let your credit cards max out. Why? Well, because they are nothing but a money pit. Trust our word.

Because we are here to guide you, we can help you plan and keep a prudent reserve on hand in a separate account, so you can cover the bills for a reasonable period of time.

Maintain awareness of your cash flow on a daily basis; extend the cash flow concept to weekly, then monthly, then annually. You can use ThinkOut to help you keep a good credit score by maintaining a positive profile.

Another important thing on the to-do list? Don’t procrastinate! Deal with money and money issues before they become a real problem you cannot control. But if you do forget, don’t worry! We will send you friendly reminders every week.

Say “goodbye” to unexpected events

As a business owner or manager, you have to be prepared to deal with all kind of events, mainly because cash flow problems don’t just happen. So, do some research and figure out what the problem is, what is happening now and what it could be given a certain situation. ThinkOut is capable of helping you plan for any eventuality.

Increase cash flow by empowering your team

You have to find a way to connect the dots. We are designed to make your cash flow management as enjoyable as possible. With us, you can create a good strategy and connect it to its execution. Give some tasks and connect it to your employees’ success. Connect what they do and why to how it adds or subtracts to generating positive cash flow. Then connect it to what it means for them personally.

Another motivator to increase cash flow in your organization is recognition.

By using a collaborative platform, such as ours, you can always track the changes made by you or any other user. You will be able to recognize the successes of your team based on their contribution to reaching positive cash flow.

Engagement & inspiration

Then, you have to engage. How? By asking questions such as “What would happen if we…?”; “How could we…?”; “What if we…?”. Did you notice that the operative word is “we”? That is because you are a team. Everyone’s participation will later provide the answers to their self-oriented questions.

Find inspiration. Now you are aligned. Now you are engaged. Now you are learning. Now you are finding more than one solution. Now you are inspired. And if you are inspired, everyone is inspired. Inspired to make the right changes for the right business. Your business.

New challenges? Always on repeat!

More than that, you will repeatedly return to these principles because success brings new challenges and new challenges need better solutions. Either you refine your financial skills or get expert advice, improved cash flow managing will surprise you with other benefits. For example, you can get very creative with the resources you already have. How far can you go from nothing?

The more aware you are with your cash flow, the better.

This is what ThinkOut helps you with. Need a hand?