The toughest part of owning a business is money management, especially when you’re first starting. Many people who open small business owners aren’t finance graduates. Without knowledge on how to properly manage your money, things can become messy fast, leading to you making some big money mistakes.
If you weren’t taught how to do something and then you combine that with the internet marketing world telling you what you should want for your business, it can start to feel like a game of monopoly. So, instead of having a money management system, you operate on luck and hope you bring in enough, which would explain why 83% of small business owners are living paycheck-to-paycheck.
We need to clear up the energy around these money mistakes so you can make money a lot easier, so you can keep more of your money, and so you can have financial peace of mind because that is really what I want to do for you. Keep reading to learn if you’re making big-money mistakes and what you can do to fix them!
Mistake Number One: Prioritizing Spending Money To Avoid Selling
The first mistake that I see business owners make every day is spending money on marketing strategies with little ROI or Return On Investment. Many women avoid selling, so they turn to marketing.
You’re spending money on these tactics, hoping that it’ll lead to more revenue. But, building an audience on social media doesn’t always equal more revenue, and more revenue doesn’t equal more financial freedom.
There’s going to come a time where your natural sales are going to slow down and you’re going to want to put some marketing behind it. But there are a lot easier ways to make sales than to be caught up in the trendy fads that social media is cranking out for you.
You need to find a way of selling that activates your enthusiasm about your product or service. You need to be excited about it, make it fun. Because if you’re not excited, and it’s not fun, then it will not happen.
Mistake Number Two: Not Establishing Financial Goals That Align With Personal Goals
The second biggest mistake I see people making is not establishing financial goals that align with personal goals. Most small business owners, especially women, start businesses for financial freedom and personal freedom.
Six years ago, when I left my corporate job, all I wanted to do was be able to be there for my kids when they needed me. I wanted freedom. That was the height, the pinnacle of what my small business could do for me.
Initially, I had a hard time setting financial goals for so many reasons, including fear of disappointment. I wouldn’t allow myself to experience disappointment because I had a fear of what that felt like. It was holding me back and making things harder for me to just achieve the next step.
Being distracted took me further and further away from my values, from my strengths, from my personality, but most importantly, those personal goals for why I started the business in the first place.
Life got better and more fulfilling when I was radically intentional about my personal goals and then allowed my financial goals to fuel that. What are the personal goals? What is that going to cost you? Then how do I set a financial business goal to meet that?
Mistake Number Three: Not using The Cash Flow System
Another mistake I constantly see is small business owners not using the cash flow system for their business. You may think you’re ready for a cash flow system or think it’s too soon in your business. But how do you know how much you need to bring in if you don’t have a clear revenue goal that associates with your personal goals?
How do you know how much money you have to invest in growing this business? You have to be able to see numbers and plan correctly for your business to thrive. It’s never too early to start using the cash flow system. It organizes everything, and it helps your business run more smoothly.
This is the whole point of the free Revenue Goal Calculator. It’s a game-changer. The calculator lays the numbers out right in front of you to make your goals that much more attainable. It helps you to see where you are and to plan where you need to be, and how to get there.
Mistake Number Four: Living Beyond Your Means
This is for sure the number one mistake business owners make, whether they’re online or not. Lots of people are attracted to having a small business because it’s portrayed as the path to fabulous riches, fame, Lambos, trips to exotic places, and piles of cash.
That’s not typically the norm. The reality is that 83% of business owners are living paycheck-to-paycheck, especially the ones with the Lambos. Why? Because they are outspending in all places what they’re bringing in.
Living beyond your means is definitely a big mistake. You might not actually know what your means are because you don’t know your numbers. That’s a conversation for you to have with yourself or with your partner. Again, the Revenue Goal Calculator solves this problem.
You have to be able to see numbers and plan correctly for your business to thrive. It’s never too early to use the cash flow system. It organizes everything, and it helps your business run more smoothly. Living a simple life is exciting to me. I love having the time and the space for my mental health, my emotional health, and my physical health. For me, this is an exquisite life.
Mistake Number Five: Hoarding Your Money
At first, this may not seem like a problem, but it is. I see a lot of women specifically hoarding their money in an account. I think this happens because people associate a certain feeling of safety when they see money piling up in an account.
Here’s the reality: cash in a bank account after a certain amount is a total waste, it’s holding you back. Your money is not working for you at all if it is sitting in a bank account collecting next to zero percent interest.
Money that is just sitting isn’t allowing you to achieve the financial freedom and the personal freedom that you want. You’re keeping too much money aside and not using it to either pay yourself or to run your business. This is just as detrimental as overspending.
Your money hoarding probably comes from a different place, but it exists. It’s a mistake that you need to be able to talk about and work through. When you spend some time unpacking your money story, you might gain more clarity on it.
How You Can Stop Making These Big Money Mistakes With The Q4 Curriculum
All of these mistakes can be easily and lovingly addressed within the fourth quarter curriculum in The Bold Profit Academy. This program is designed specifically to help service providers streamline the way they work so you can gain back valuable time and energy while creating your dream income. I know how important it is for you to do your most important work in the world.
If you’re ready to implement Profit First, in Q4, we will have advanced strategies and money projects that you can work on increasing how much you pay yourself, plan for business growth, and set more advanced financial goals.
If you are ready to join The Bold Profit Academy, here’s how it works: Upon joining us, go to the webpage. You can either book a call with me to ask your questions or you can hit reply, ask me anything. You can take a spin through our getting started curriculum where you immediately learn how to prioritize your time for maximum impact.
Everything in this curriculum is action-oriented and implementation-focused because it’s about getting it done in your business. It’s not about the mental masturbation that comes with learning and not being able to take action. This is an action-oriented place. Then twice a month, you have coaching calls with me. You get access to me. I answer questions in the group. This is really all about you being supported and taking these next steps in your business.
With my help, you can retrain your money mindset and learn how to properly manage money and start making a real profit for yourself by avoiding money mistakes. Join us today at The Bold Profit Academy.
