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“A good financial plan is a road map that shows us exactly how the choices we make today will affect our future.” (Alexa Von Tobel). When you are looking at your business as a whole, what exactly do you see? What do you envision in the future of your business? Do you have your eyes to the sky and want to have a profitable business? These questions may have obvious answers, but how you get to your end goal is the big question. Financial Management as intimidating as it may sound, can and will end up being your best friend once you figure out exactly what you need.

It is safe to assume that we have all been on a road trip or driven somewhere knew. Prior to setting off to your destination you would have needed to come up with a plan. You would look at the route you are wanting to take; whether it is the short or long way, how far of a distance you are travelling, approximate travel costs, where you will stop etc. The same goes for your small business. You need to plot your destination through your financial management. There are two key components to take into account in your plan.

Short term goals: map out what you need to have accomplished. These goals need to be attainable in a short amount of time. They also help lead you in the direction of your long term goals.

Long term goals: this is what you want to see happen in the long term. These goals are generally a year or more into the future.

Once you have your sights set on what you are wanting in terms of your short and long term goals, it’s as easy as making a plan to join them all together. Without a plan, you are going in blind with no knowledge of where you are at currently and where you can be in the future. If you have your goals plotted out, but then are having difficulties creating proper projections within your business, (because let’s face it math is not the easiest at times), there are many tools out there to help guide you. Whether you take research into your own hands or decide to talk to a professional that is up to what is going to best suit your needs. Knowing that financial management is a large part of success in your business is a step in the right direction to achieve the goals you have and are creating.

For more information or to inquire about financial management, please contact Bitledger at:

780-421-1356

www.bitledger.ca

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“It’s all about quality of life and finding a happy balance between work and family and friends.”(Philip Green). It seems like this quote is a very obvious statement in that we will lose out on some aspect without balance. But how many can say they actually have balance between their work in their small business and home life? It truly is something to be considered as a goal because once you have your small business up and running, that business can completely take over you life if you allow it. That can sound as though it is a good thing because you’re investing all your time in your business which must mean a booming business. But what is that life if we can’t be human and enjoy things outside of work. There has to be an enjoyment in your work or regret and resentment can follow in suit.

What are some things you do in your daily life to help you recharge? Do you spend quality time with family or friends? Maybe you sit down and read a book or go to the gym. Everyone needs to have a little self care especially when you are a small business owner. With the amount of work you need to put in to continuously keep your business moving forward there has to be something to keep you charged and focused. It is not as easy as plugging in your electronic to be at 100 percent again. You have to turn yourself off and give yourself “me,” time. That can be as easy as taking 20 minutes to yourself each day to unwind. It may sound silly but when you lack in balance it is going to affect your business. You will eventually hit what we like to call “burning out.” When this happens you begin to lose your motivation and what your sights are set on. That can have the biggest negative effect on your business and what you work so hard on.

If you work tirelessly how are you ever going to enjoy what starting your business has given you. Specifically allocate some time to yourself everyday to recharge and prevent getting burned out. Your business will thank you for this and so will your mind and body and those around you. You may begin to realize when you have your balance, you are less likely to bring work home with you. This is a huge struggle for most and is why this balance is so important. You are entitled to a life outside of work so don’t throw that away.  

“We can never fall short when it comes to recruiting, hiring, maintaining and growing our workforce. It is the employees who make our organization’s success a reality.” (Vern Dosch). It goes without saying that who we hire in our business is of the utmost importance. There are  many things to look for and each business and business owner will be looking for different qualities. There are no set specifics that one can hire but many to choose and look for. Your employees are a huge representation of yourself as a business owner as well as your company as a whole. It is crucial to take the time to figure out exactly what you need in an employee. Nobody on the outside is able to make this decision for your small business other than yourself because the ones you hire must fit well with your morals, values and goals. When we aren’t hiring for the needs of the company, we then run into problems that could have been prevented.

Your small business is now taking off and the realization hits that you need some help. Whether it is upfront working with customers, hands on creation or running things behind the scene, you now need to trust someone else to handle a piece of what you have started. This is a huge milestone and in reality it should be treated as such. Hiring out should be taken seriously and deserves a process to ensure you are finding the right person. Of course there are main points to look for in a potential employee such as:

• Positive attitude
• Trusting
• Good work ethic
• Willingness to learn
• Punctual
• Respectful
• Appropriate appearance

Then there are pieces that individually match yourself and your business. These can’t be written out for anyone as they are going to differ in every setting. This is when you as a business owner need to set out and really think about what is going to compliment your business.  Do you need someone who is highly trained in the area you are hiring for? Are you willing to give the time to train someone with minimal knowledge? Do you require someone who is outspoken, can think on their feet and make decisions on the fly or someone who is more cautious. There are so many questions to ask yourself before you start your hiring process. If you can create your list of what you need in an employee and a list of wants, then you are well on your way to begin hiring. The process will be less stressful, you will know what you are looking for and most importantly you will end up with a potential employee who will be a positive asset.

“They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.” (Andy Warhol). Minute by minute, hour by hour and day by day time is changing and people are working to further enhance what we already have. Technology is further increasing as is everything else around us. It can be hard and frightening to reach out and try and learn new things; especially when we are so accustomed and adjusted to what we already are using. With that being said, we need to to listen and be open to the needs of our customers when running a small business in order to keep our customers coming back.

Over a century ago small business owners methods of payments ranged in so many ways. Currency wasn’t just considered the money you had in your pocket. There was also a huge reliance on trade. Anywhere from exchanging of goods and services to your resources like livestock and firewood. Now you take a look at today and our methods of payment are incomparable. We have become a very automated society where at the tap of our card or phone, we have paid for our goods and services. As a small business owner it is important to realize that many of the consumers and customers will be expecting of a business to have these options readily available.

As we keep moving forward, you will see that the use of cheques and cash are diminishing. People are visiting the bank less and less and cheques aren’t as readily used due to the unknown of  a payment being accepted. We are now in an age where online banking is huge. At the click of a button you are able to send payment to a recipient within seconds. This not only is easier for customers but also it gives small business owners the confidence in knowing they will be paid. The use of debit tender and credit cards is also widely used. Business owners need to consider offering such payment options even though there is a cost at providing this service. In order to keep and encourage your customers in coming back as well as encourage new customers it is essential to offer the varieties. Many do not carry cash but always have a debit card. If you only accept one form of payment you are going to miss out on many customer purchases.

This is just one of many examples of how, as a small business owner, we need to keep looking forward with how times are changing and advancing. The best thing you can do is be open with your customers. Ask them what their preferences are and what you can do better to improve the services that you offer. Constructive criticism will take you far in a business and allowing your customers to be heard will further increase their positive experience within your business. As hard as change can be, allowing yourself to be open to the thoughts and new progressions will have a huge positive impact.  

Last week we had an overall discussion around tax time and things you can do to keep the stress to a minimum. Now we are going to see what tax time looks like in a small business. When you think of the term small business, there is a lot of misinformation that is floating around such as:

•         Must make a certain amount of money yearly
•         Have employees
•         Pay into GST/HST
•         Have a business license

The list can go on with the misinterpreted information. None of these facts are true. If you are making an income then you are a small business and the income needs to be claimed during tax time. Whether you are babysitting on the side, walking dogs, construction, etc., these are considered small businesses and must be claimed. Many work under the table, and the problem with this is if someone were to report you or if the CRA were to come across the information it can be considered tax evasion. This is illegal and can have some major consequences. Now in knowing this information it is important to record and claim your income no matter if it is small or large.

When moving forward in completing your taxes, there are differences in how you will claim. If you are incorporated, then you are going to file your business taxes separate from your personal taxes. If you are not incorporated, then you are considered a sole proprietor and will file your business taxes with your personal taxes.

Another good question that may come up when you are completing your taxes is should you be charging GST. Do you make enough to charge that to your customers? Here in Alberta it is important to note that we do not have HST. The regulation for having to charge GST is when you predict you are going to make $30,000 yearly. Even if your income predictions are at that gross amount it is important to charge that GST because as soon as you hit that point you must charge it. If your predictions are low and you are surprised with having the income of $30,000 in a quarter then you must charge GST on the amount that brought you over the threshold and continue to do so. At that point you are going to need to register for a GST number through the government. It is important to note that as a small business making these projections and keeping up with them is needed to ensure you are filing properly. That leads us into why it is needed to keep up with our bookkeeping and accounting that we have previously talked about in blogs prior.

For more information or if you have any questions regarding your bookkeeping, accounting or questions regarding your small business, please don’t hesitate to contact us at BitLedger.