“When there’s an economic shock, businesses need to reset and reinvent. Resetting is about cutting back to the core of the business that remains strong, which is often the vision, mission, values and the main products that the business is well known for....
For many business owners trying to survive the Covid-19 pandemic, part of the answer is to give what they have and get what they need using as little cash as possible. Good, old-fashioned bartering and trading, in other words.
This is a reminder that all business planning and budgeting requires guessing the future. Times of crisis mean much higher uncertainty. But we don’t just guess — we guess, then track results, and then revise. Our guesses get better over time.
Whether you hire someone or do it yourself, you want to create three forecasts: an optimistic, best-case one; a realistic likely one; and a worst-case one that imagines what will happen if customers who owe you money go out of business and that this crisis drags on...
Many small businesses don’t create budgets. This is a huge mistake: Budgets provide guidance for short-term obstacles and long-term planning. They provide focus. Without a budget, you have no measuring stick to evaluate your goals and performance.
