Business confidence, business savvy, organization, and accountability are four very important skills that are needed to achieve financial security.
Once those skills are learned, it is quite easy to create financial security for you and your family. It is important to note that financial mistakes can destroy all of your hard work very quickly. Nobody is perfect. I promise you that everyone makes mistakes. Some mistakes might be unavoidable, especially if you are in financial distress. However, the majority of mistakes that are made by business owners are avoidable, once they know what to look for.
When growing your business and your finances it is important that you work with your coach on two fronts: (1) How to improve business skills and (2) How to avoid or minimize mistakes. Please use the following list to determine if you are making mistakes; and if so, please make the necessary corrections as quickly as possible.
1. Not updating wills and beneficiaries-according to Consumer Reports eighty-six percent of their readers hadn’t updated their wills or other estate-planning documents within the previous five years.
2. Not telling family about financial information In only 30 percent of households did both spouses know major details about the family finances. I recommend that you create a master sheet with all of your account information, passwords and websites and keep that list with your will. Make sure that you update the list at lease one time per year.
3. Not maximizing retirement contributions To achieve financial independence it is imperative that you contribute the maximum amount to your retirement funds. It is also imperative to know the expenses of the funds and to minimize your expenses where ever you can. For eg. mutual funds typically charge a much higher expense than Exchange traded funds (ETF’s).
Under-insuring. The same Consumer Reports article sites that only 36 percent of homeowners had purchased full replacement cost on their homeowners policy. Only 20 percent had an umbrella policy. It is also important to make sure that you have under-insurance or uninsured motorist insurance if you are in a state that offers that coverage. Please check with your insurance agent to determine what is best for your individual situation.
5. Not having an emergency fund. Emergencies can come at any time. To best protect yourself, you should have a minimum of one year’s personal and business expenses in an account. Think of the security that an extra $30,000 or greater would give you. Start slow, just put $20 per week away, it adds up over time. Of course, if you can afford more, then go ahead and put more away.
6. Mismanaging Debt- Debt is the killer of dreams. Incurring credit card debt has been widespread in this economy. If you are in credit card debt, it is imperative to put your cards away and don’t charge anything else on them until the debt is erased. If you can’t afford something then do without it instead of charging it. Try and apply for a 0-balance transfer card and move your debt to that card. Doing this, will allow you to put every dollar repaid towards principal instead of interest.
7. Not knowing how to run an effective, profitable business- If you are in business then it is important to know how to run and mange that business.
As discussed earlier, everyone makes mistakes. The important thing is not to beat yourself up if you have made mistakes, but rather learn from the mistake and correct it as soon as possible. You can learn to run an effective business and you can learn how to avoid or correct financial mistakes.
If you still feel that you are struggling, you will be thrilled to know that Dr. Paul S. Inselman, CEO of Creativecoachingllc.net has formulated a specific step by step process that will help you to become a more powerful business leader. Our clients income has grown on average 150% since 2008. In twelve years, I haven’t seen one business that executed the steps above and that utilized our procedures that failed to grow their business. We take a top down approach that consists of increasing income, decreasing expenses and protecting your assets. Why am I so confident (100% certainty) that these tips will create better growth and a more successful and fun business? Two reasons: (1) I coach business owners just like you everyday and have seen excellent, duplicative results and (2) Every single day I get a call, email or text from an existing client telling me that since they implemented these procedures and suggestions, they have more money than they ever had before; they love their staff; they are having more fun in business; or they had a record day in sales. Or, they had a record week in collections. Or, they had a record month across the board! Please don’t take my word for it. Click here for a free no-obligation consultation and find out for yourself how I can help you grow your business ethically, legally and with integrity; get more free time and have fun again. Get to the next level and beyond. Stop wishing, praying and hoping and take the meaningful step that will get you to where you want to be.