Probably the biggest complaint I get is how the banks, contrary to belief, are simple not lending any money.

I spoke at length with a Revenue collector last week, her job is to spend every day visiting business owners to collect VAT, PAYE and outstanding tax, everyone she meets says the banks are not lending and on top of that the Revenue are pretty disorganised and particularly local to us here the staff moral at the Revenue is very low, with job losses and very poor job satisfaction…

However, despite some obvious doom and gloom, there is lots of great business to be done out there.  You can borrow some money if you have a really great business plan and if you can tick all the right boxes for the bank, but, it is very hard work.

But above all, the main ingredient is to have a good positive attitude with a written plan and strategy as to how you are going to move forward in 2011.  You may have to make some radical changes, you may have to change the way you conduct your business, but above all you must have a plan…  search our categories on the business help and coaching for more article on this subject.

In the meantime as we ourselves get ready for another busy year, new staff joining our team and moving to our new offices..

see: WE HAVE MOVED

we wish everyone the best for the coming year and if there is anything we can do for you, or if you know anyone that needs our help, all on a fixed fee basis, then please do get in touch kevin@primeentry.com

Thank you

What is the secret for those who are successful?

The exact same reason for failure…

Success and failure depend on exactly the same thought process, what you focus on…

Every day you create more of whatever you focus on.  Whatever you are experiencing in your life right now is what you have been focusing on either consciously or unconsciously – no exceptions.

So how does this apply to running  a business?

Start focusing on what you want instead of what you don’t want.  It is as simple as that.

Whatever you were taught, whatever you absorbed from your parents, teachers, culture, religion, education – all of those different influences – determines what you focus on.

The reason most people focus on what they DON’T WANT instead of what they DO WANT is because of their past experiences.

For example, they have a negative emotional experience.  They lose their money, their business, their mate leaves them, they have problems in their relationships, etc.  That tells them that there is danger out there and they have to watch out for it and be careful because they don’t want to go through the same experience again.  So instead of focusing on what they WANT, they focus on NOT HAVING that experience again.

The problem is that the brain cannot tell the difference if you are focusing on something because you want it, or you are focusing on it because you don’t want it.  It just sees anything that you focus on as something you WANT.  So it just says, “Okay, we can do that. We can create that” (even if it is a negative experience)

The point here is that people are ALREADY experts at manifesting what they focus on.  The problem is they are UNCONSCIOUSLY focusing on the results that they DON’T want.

So what are you focusing on?  Are you always worrying about the problems, like lack of money and lack of rewards, or do you have a clear goal of what you want to achieve and are you focused on the results, the sales targets, the profits, are you excited about your business, are you focused on what you are going to achieve over the next few weeks, months and years, what do you think about all of the time?  If you are unsure, then you only have to look at where you are right now, your past thoughts and what you have focused on are totally responsible for where you are now.

Feel free to leave your comments below..

The Bad News?

Whilst the press and media would like us all to believe that the world is going to end…  I say just stop for a few seconds and just picture in your mind right now how many transactions are going on around the world right now, that’s everything from people in shops paying for goods, credit card transactions, online purchases right the way through to manufacturing, and not forgetting necessities like fuel and food.

It’s obvious that the world has not run out of money, and in my opinion neither have the banks or other financial institutions.   They have simply had their fingers burnt by being too greedy and very sloppy with their past decisions to lend.

If you made a mistake in your business, I would hope you change the way you do things to prevent it from happening again, so the banks have had to change the way they do things also.

The Good news?

I have recently been working with two clients, the first is a start up and we needed to borrow £80,000 to buy an existing business.  the client has no security to offer, they have personal debts with credit cards and a loan, but they do have some experience within the industry.  A full business plan was prepared, we worked to a tight budget and guided them in writing their own plan, whilst we helped put the numbers together.  The lack of security was a big worry and so one of their parents offered a personal guarantee to support the borrowings.

Case #1

The FIRST bank turned down the idea

The SECOND bank said yes but in addition to the security, wanted a further debenture over the debts and equipment

The THIRD bank, not only said yes, but also suggested that rather than take the security of a retired parent, they would offer the scheme through the “Enterprise Guarantee Scheme”, which basically means the Government offer the guarantee (Further details can be found on the business link page here)  In addition to the funding we asked for, the bank manager could see that in the initial period cash flow would still be a little tight, so he offered an unsecured overdraft and is further working to see if the initial finance commitments of credit cards and loans can not be refinanced to make more manageable payments.

Case #2

The second client has been established for about 10 years and the business has been growing steadily since it started.  We were not engaged to raise money, but our task was to create a full business plan, financial budget and cash flow and marketing plan.  All of which took about 6 months to complete.  As a result of this exercise it was clear to both the client and ourselves that the business was primed ready to grow.  The budget and cash flow demonstrated the need to borrow £35,000 to invest in staffing, some re-developing of the factory and some cash to generally take the pressure off with the day to to day cash flow.

We presented to the bank:

• three years full accounts to 31 March 2010
• three months management accounts to June 2010
• a full business plan and a three year budget and cash flow to 31 March 2013

Not only did the bank approve the funding, but they also made some very positive comments about the way the pack of infomation was presented, saying things such as “this made my job easy, I just had to read it and send it for approval” and “I wish all my customers presented a full comprehensive plan like this”

What have we learnt?

• There is plenty of money out there…
• You can borrow some of it from the banks…
  

• If you put together a full business plan
• If you put together a full financial pack showing the past, current and future

Feel free to leave your comments below…

A powerful example of motivation in action, the need to avoid pain is a stronger motivator than the desire for pleasure.   While we can all dream about the future and visualise financial abundance and stress-free living, we are unlikely to achieve success unless we attach psychological pain to not achieving what we set out to do.

When things are going pear shaped, the motivation to avoid pain kicks in and sharpens our minds to what needs to be done.   This is true of every area of our lives, from losing weight to relationships to finances: If you see a photo of yourself and don’t recognise the person with six chins and bulging belly, you are likely to be motivated to stock up on salad and walk straight past the biscuits and crisps when out shopping.   If you come home and find your partner with a suitcase in the hall, you might feel motivated to work on ways to improve your relationship.   If you have logged in to your business bank account to pay wages and find no funds are available, you might feel motivated to chase outstanding payments from customers.

Don’t get too comfortable

The most dangerous time for losing sight of our dreams is when we become ‘comfortable’.   You might be three months into your healthy eating plan when you have lost a stone and are feeling good about yourself. You still have another stone to lose but the pain of seeing the six chins is a distant memory, and that cake looks sooo good…. Uh Oh!

You might have gone to a few couple’s counselling sessions and have put effort into spending quality time with your partner and they seem to be happy again now, so it probably won’t hurt to book that trip away with your mates, even though it’s on your anniversary – you will make it up when you get back….Don’t do it!

You may have spent three months working hard on collecting in your debts from your customers and have a fat balance in the bank. You can breathe again! No need to keep badgering everyone for money so you relax and let your reserves slowly dwindle away, until the tax bill you forgot about suddenly bites you on the backside… Oops!

And so the cycle goes on, moving away from pain, becoming comfortable, and then slipping back towards pain again. Sadly, 95% of the population live their lives this way; losing the same stone year after year; moving from one bad relationship to the next; wondering if they will be able to pay their bills from month to month.

To become one of the few who achieve real success in life you must absolutely refuse to settle for the mediocre.   I am not just talking material success here, but lasting happiness and fulfilment. You must have the highest expectations of yourself and feel horror at the thought of getting to retirement age and wishing you had pulled your finger out and really done something with your life.

Fast forward to the future

What do you want to remember when you are ninety? Will you be sat in your rocking chair reflecting on a murky stream of joyless days, stressed at work, coming home and flopping in front of the telly?  Will your cupboards be stocked with Slim Fast as you attempt to lose weight for your great-granddaughter’s christening?

Your rocking chair scene is your ultimate destination, and you can affect the quality of your experience by the choices you make today.  By continuing a cycle of pain-contentment-complacency-pain, you are likely to end up in an eternal queue for the hot Port-a-Loo with your finances, relationships and health always just a short distance from ‘stinks’.

Once you get past the inertia of living a middle-of-the-road existence, you will find your dreams and goals have a magnetic field of their own, but you need to get close to them before they really pull you in.  Wouldn’t you rather be remembering the risks you took, the challenges you faced and the fears you conquered?

What has been the biggest thrill in your life so far? How could you achieve something even bigger and better?

Decide right now what you want really want out of life. If you have tried and failed in the past, ask yourself what you can do differently this time.  And, most importantly, decide that your journey will be enjoyable.  You may have to step out of your comfort zone to reach your goals but that’s no reason to be unhappy. Listen to your emotional navigation system – if you are on the right course it will feel good no matter how much effort you are putting in.

“Success is not the result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.”
–Reggie Leach

Light the blue touch paper today!!!

Written by Vicki La Bouchardiere – www.venture-coaching.com

I often ask, “What’s the plan this year? What are you trying to achieve?” and I get a mixed response, including:

• “We will keep going and see what happens!”
• “Cut my cloth, cut back on some costs”
• “Look for something else we can do along side this”
• “I need to get more organised and stay in control”
• “I want to expand and increase my sales and profitability”
• “I’m not sure, things look bleak…”

A mixture of responses…

The big message I am telling everyone is:

Planning, planning, planning – if you keep doing the same thing and expect a different result then surely that is madness!

You must identify what it is you are trying to achieve, and write it down. Only when we write something do we truly think about it. A financial plan must then be drawn up, as well as a budget, and then a cash flow projection.

What is a business plan?

A business plan is a written document that describes a business, its objectives, its strategies, the market it is in and its financial forecasts. It has many functions, from securing external funding to measuring success within your business.

What is a budget?

A budget is a set of projected figures for sales and costs and is usually based on when sales are made and when costs are incurred. The report should predict the future profitability of the business, showing seasonal or peak/low activity trends. The budget in conjunction with the business plan should identify the viability of the future success of the business.

What is a cash flow?

People often get cash flow and budgets muddled. The cash flow in simple terms is a prediction of the future bank statements of the business. This is a report that is a by-product of the budget and takes account of time delays between when sales invoices are issued and monies received and purchases made and bills paid. Simple dramatic effects can be demonstrated in the cash flow report with scenarios such as the difference between giving customers 40 days credit or 20 days credit, it could mean the difference between going over your overdraft limit or nor being overdrawn at all!

Useful links

The Business Explorer is the brainchild of Ian Thurgood, a chartered accountant who is also an expert in strategic planning and skilled in raising finance for future growth. Having been involved with local businesses for over 30 years Ian now feels the time is right to introduce the concept of the freelance finance director to clients old and new.

Venture Coaching provide full life coaching packages for personal, business or corporate clients. Whether you’re looking for direction in your personal life, to push your business forward or to build your staff into dynamic working team, Venture have the expertise to help you achieve your goals.

What is your plan for this year? What are you trying to achieve?

If you are unsure, or haven’t thought about a plan, or just need some guidance, send me an email to kevin@primeentry.com with your thoughts and questions. At Prime Entry we have a wealth of knowledge within the team which we can use to help you work out what you want to achieve, and then put plans together to help you achieve it.

For more information, contact us.

Kind regards,

Kevin Whitehouse
01747 826989
kevin@primeentry.com