Here we are coming up on 13 weeks of quarantine and you, like many other business owners in Virginia are trying to navigate the path of reopening and trying to get that cashflow back to some sense of normalcy.  The bills, for those that got some reprieve, will begin again and may even have a deficit to make up rather quickly in order to prevent utilities from being shut off or getting kicked out of your place.  A lot of people are dealing with these challenges with both the business expenses as well as personally, so obviously you have a lot on your mind.   

Let’s look at some things you can do to help put yourself on the right track.  By now you have gone through the exercise of looking through your expenses and cutting anything that you deemed unnecessary, which hey, it was probably time to do that anyhow.  In any event, let’s evaluate what you are still spending money on, what you cut, and what might make sense to bring back or add into the mix.  Before doing this, it is a good idea to have a cashflow forecast of what the next 3-6 months will look like as well as understanding what your break even is now and what it will be by adding certain things back in.  

You are almost at a point of being able to create a new business plan, which some are doing, to get things back up to speed.  Again, it may have been time to do this and this pandemic has given you the need and time to do it.   Anything that you were unsure if it made sense to be doing within your business, this is a great time to evaluate it and make a decision.  If something is profitable or adds value to the business, it may make sense.  If it wasn’t profitable and didn’t add value to the business, this may be the time to get rid of it.  Evaluate, analyze, plan, and act!

Being a big fan of silver linings, here are a couple that this challenge has presented:

• You were probably due to analyze your current business model
• This is a great time to review your cashflow forecast or create one
• Challenges are when we grow the most, making it through this will make you a better business owner
• You have probably gained additional target audiences through this that will continue

We are here to help you through this process and the time to do this is now!  The great thing is, if you are reading this right after it was posted or a year after, the previous statement is correct.  No time like the present right?

Actions:

• Do a cashflow forecast
• Analyze your spending
• Do a new business plan
• Define your target audiences

**Thanks to SBDC Team Member Cort Maddox for these insightful tips.