233: How to manage your cash flow – with Stephen King

And this time, I wanna talk about money and how to manage your cash flow. In other words, helping you better track the money coming in and the money going out of your business. Which sounds simple (on the surface) but so many of us get tripped up by it along the way. Why? Well, there might be more at play underneath… so let’s talk about that.

My special guest today is CPA Stephen King and he’s simplifying how to better manage your cash flow. He leads a US-based accounting team called Growthforce and in this episode he breaks it all down for us, sharing tips on how to identify, measure, and track your cash flow wisely. Ultimately, this will help you make better decisions when managing your finances by looking at your historical figures for clues that’ll help you better predict your financial future in the year ahead.

Here’s how. 

My special guest today is Stephen King and he’s simplifying how to manage your cash flow.

We tackle and simplify all aspects of it, including:

• How he defines healthy cash flow as it relates to running a small business. What it is and what it is NOT
• A few practical ways you can manage the cash flowing into your business… and how to improve it
  • 13 week cash flow forecast
  • pay slowly rules
  • managing interest rates on your company credit cards
• The biggest mistake people make when it comes to cash flow and how to overcome it
• What the 3 F’s of collections are and how to tackle the 3 biggest objections you might hear from your customers when you directly ask them to pay their bill:
  • Be Firm
  • Be Friendly
  • Be Focused
• …and ultimately, how to have better financial management overall for your business, even without a degree in accounting.

This entire month, all conversations on the podcast are focused on alignment and integration. And you might be wondering, why are we talking about money and cash flow, then? Well, great question… It’s because for many, the subject of money is still very taboo. 

There are so many hidden triggers and negative money stories that might be sitting in your subconscious right now that are causing you to make poor choices when it comes to managing your cash flow.

The way I look at it, the more educated you are about a subject (like money), the less scary it is… and the more empowered you are, in the long run.

My hope is that today’s conversation sparks something new in you that you can take back to your team this week… Integrate this learning. Examine your bookkeeping best practices. Align with where you want to be in 6 months from now. And see positive change occur. 

You can do it, I believe in you!

Q: Are you ready to learn how to better manage your cash flow? If yes, this one is for you.

It’s time to #DoTheThing!

<What’s catching my eye this week>

• Save your small business with these cash flow strategies – GrowthForce
• Podcast – How to grow 10-20% per year for a decade – Path to Profit Podcast – GrowthForce
• 50 powerful questions to help you reflect – The Institute of You
• May 2022 monthly forecast – All About Balance – Lena Stevens – The Power Path
• Mary is offering 50-minute 1-1 brainstorming sessions for those looking for ideas on how to pivot their businesses

Links, books and apps mentioned:

Book: Profit First: Transform your business from a cash-eating monster to a money-making machine – Mike Michalowicz

Book: Start with Why: How great leaders inspire everyone to take action – Simon Sinek

Podcast: Path to Profit: Lessons learned from growth-driven business leaders – Stephen King – GrowthForce

Podcast: How to lead your team through big change, featuring Scott Miller – The Simplifiers Podcast

Podcast: How to squash your limiting self-beliefs – The Simplifiers Podcast

About Stephen King

Stephen King – From startup to working with Fortune 500 executives, Stephen King brings a unique combination of vision, foresight, and experience to help small businesses run better, grow faster and make more money. 

Regarded as one of the accounting industry’s top thought leaders, he’s currently serving as President & CEO of GrowthForce, one of the nation’s largest cloud-based accounting services.