Do you have a budget?

Have you made a budget or a forecast for your business for this year? Whilst talking at Springboard for Success this past Friday I asked a room of businesswomen how many had written a budget. Out of 35, less than 5 put their hands up. This really surprised me; these are women who had taken a day away from their successful businesses to spend time thinking and learning about how to improve them. But they hadn't written a financial plan regarding what they were trying to achieve, or how they were to do it.

It got me thinking about why that might be, when many more had marketing strategies and social media plans in place. I think the idea of writing a budget or forecast, and knowing where to start, is really off putting for many business people. Budgets needn't be scary - nor do they have to be massive documents. A very simple, monthly spreadsheet showing the amount of income and expenditure you expect to make is a great place to start. For those of you using Xero, the budget manager tool is great at taking you through the steps, and allows you to play with putting in percentage increases month-by-month for example.

Try putting aside half an hour in the next week and making a start on your budget. If you need a template, or some ideas on how to begin, give us a call. You'll be amazed at what an effective tool it can become when you want to know what would happen to your profit if you put 10% on your prices, or if you add another person to the payroll for example. Give yourself a financial plan and you'll be half way to achieving your goals in business.