Business finance strategies shouldn't make your balance sheet match your lipstick...
We’ve talked about ways to grow your money, but let’s face it – it’s EASY to spend money! Whether online or in the store, there are things peeking out from around every corner saying, “You neeeeeeeed me!” I’d venture to guess that half the time, the expenditures are necessary. The other half of the time, we’re doing more harm to our balance sheet than good. If you find your balance sheet in the red month after month, it’s time to stop matching it to your lipstick and begin matching it to that favorite pair of black go-anywhere shoes.
Business finance doesn’t have to be a headache. Here are five simple ideas for getting your finances in-line quickly and with as little spending as possible!
- Establish a filing system – When you need receipts or answers, wouldn’t it be great to know where to find them? Not only find them, but actually have a system for filing them. That means a personal deadline for scanning or recording receipts following the date of purchase or payment. One simple idea is to establish an “inbox” on your desk and every Friday morning, begin your day by recording the week’s receipts and filing them. Nothing like starting the weekend with a clean desk (Mondays will be MUCH more pleasant!).
- Hire a CPA – Pay someone to manage your money and think about your money for you. You’d be surprised what $500 per year can do for your bottom line. Just like the guy we call to deal with a plumbing problem or to repair the brakes on the car, financial expertise has its place. A good CPA is more than just a “tax man.” He or she is a business strategist who will help you structure your finances and expenditures in the most favorable means possible.
- Make a purchase delay – If you feel compelled to purchase something for your business (or simply for yourself), establish a self-imposed purchase delay. This isn’t about depriving yourself – it’s about giving you the time to think. Say your self-imposed purchase delay is 24 hours and a day later, you decide to go through with the purchase. Then do it! This is a good way to minimize those impulse buys that look great at the time but do nothing but detract from your bottom line.
To truly influence and maximize the power within your grasp, you need to become “one with it.” Huh? Let me tell you a story.
A few years ago, I took an off ramp, circling around to a huge overpass when I hit black ice. Now, most of you reading who live where there’s snow understand what black ice is. It’s ice that is basically invisible.
Well, I hit this invisible ice going about 60 mph when my SUV fish-tailed almost to a 90 degree angle with the road. Going over the side of the road wasn’t an option since it was a 150 foot drop. Cars slowed down and dropped way back behind me. My arms were suddenly sore, even numb, from maneuvering the steering wheel back and forth to keep from rolling the truck.
Then it hit me. I needed to become “one” with the truck. I let myself relax, breathe, and feel the sway and momentum of the vehicle. I moved with it instead of against it. All of a sudden, it became controllable. I was keeping it on the road bringing it into alignment.
Become one with yourself.
Why do I tell you this? Was I scared? You bet! I talk about this because becoming one with whatever is causing anxiety, alarm or discomfort is when you take back your power. Being one with yourself is akin to not only listening to but also hearing your female voice, your intuition. Hearing the message that will allow you to carry forward through whatever is distressing you.
After you are one with yourself, then become one with the other. Now, the other can be another person, an idea or a situation. I became one with the situation caused by the black ice. It happened in a split second. Becoming one with “it” means you need to respect, not agree or approve, with “it.” You seek a way to bring about favorable change or outcome.
For instance, if you are having a bad argument with your lover, become one with him or her, the words he or she is using, and the idea he or she is stating. This brings about a different approach to listening or relating. It will change the outcome simply because you decided to influence it by becoming one with it. The argument is no longer an argument to win but to understand. Not a discussion to force but a conversation to express.
Influence through your inner fluency – your intuition.
When you have pain, emotional or physical, connect with it – become one with it. Use your internal energy to be it. We’ve all read where people have survived enormous hardship by being in concert with it. Be aware of what is in your control while allowing your energy, emotions and being to join with the pain, thereby knowing what is needed to overcome or change it.
Out of this comes your greatest asset – using your intuition, power and favor with becoming one with whatever is there. You can do it – you may already do it but not know it. Bring it fully into your consciousness. Surrender to your natural ability to influence through your intuition or “inner fluency.”
Negativity is contagious. If you disagree then I have some property to sell you in the middle of the Arctic Circle! In my last blog post I talked about the consequences of keeping negative people in your life.
Seriously, what people think of themselves, their circumstances, or you can affect what you think about yourself, your circumstances, or your thoughts of others. It’s a law of human nature. If you surround yourself with sweet you smell sweet.
If you surround yourself with sour you smell sour.
But here’s the difference between negative and positive statements; the negative statements cause the greatest shifts in our thinking and behavior. Not only from good to bad, but bad to worse. Another law of human nature. This has all the trappings of group think.
You see, the opinions of others exert strong influence on your attitudes particularly when their opinions are negative. This impacts your perceptions. When your perceptions are faulty or negative you lose out on life. On the future you are striving to move toward.
So what can you do if you find yourself surrounded by negative people?
Follow these three steps:
- Teach yourself to recognize negative people – the words, the actions.
- Lower (or lose) your toleration of negative people – they are not allowed to cross boundaries – at any time!
- Dis-invite them from your life – immediately!
Now, some of these (or all of these) may sound a bit harsh. Great! The only sure thing to combat negative people is harsh, no-holds-bar action. Don’t be afraid to remove yourself from the noxious effects of their negativity. This is a sure sign of how much you value you.
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