The whiteboard in my kitchen is literally an extension of my brain. I have random notes on there that make sense to me (mostly), but it’s also the checking-in point for the rest of the family. Take Thanksgiving, for example. I write down the name of each dish, when it needs to be made, and when it needs to go into the oven. That schedule coordinates all my activities during the day. Everyone makes fun of me and my whiteboard on Thanksgiving, but you know what? Every year, our Thanksgiving meal is perfect. Everything is planned and timed just so. It all comes together the way it’s supposed to and when it’s supposed to, and the meal is delicious as a result.

Without that action plan on my whiteboard, I don’t think it would happen that way. Every year, as we sit at the table after dinner, everyone talks about how great the meal was, and I use that opportunity to point out the value of writing everything down on the whiteboard. I get some eye-rolling and, “Oh Dad, you and your whiteboard!” but deep down, they know I’m right (or at least, maybe someday they will).

If only business were like that! You take a dry erase board and jot down a few “ingredients” and – voila! – you have created a delicious, satisfying business. Well, I’m here to tell you that there is something like a whiteboard for business. It’s called a budget! I love my budget just as much as I love the whiteboard in my kitchen. When I talk about budgets to business owners, they listen, but they don’t HEAR me. Despite the many benefits of doing a budget, many business owners are reluctant to create budgets. It has nothing to do with a business owner’s level of education, experience or knowledge level. They just don’t do it. And what’s worse is they don’t even want to hear about it! And it frustrates me!

Why wouldn’t you want to map out what you want your business to do in the next year or month? Why wouldn’t you want to track your expenses? Why wouldn’t you want to create goals? I know, it’s one more thing to do and you’re busy enough. But, if you’re going to go through all the trouble of making Thanksgiving dinner, why not plan it out so it’s perfect and you can enjoy it? Likewise, if you’re going to own a business, why not try to make it into the best business it can be?

A budget is like the whiteboard of your business. You can look at it and get answers. Only instead of learning when to put the potatoes in the oven, you can see if you have enough money to hire that account coordinator or invest in a website redesign. My clients will tell you that I am fanatical about budgets, and I’m fine with that characterization. Granted, Excel is my favorite piece of software, plus I am a goal-oriented person by nature who loves charts and graphs. But I also know from my experience as a business advisor that a good, solid budget that everyone follows can work WONDERS for a small business. And I also know that NOT having a budget can ruin a small business.

Start building your budget now.

Click the “Get It Now” button to learn more. The ebook comes with the ebook, a Budget Template Excel file, and videos walking you through how to build a budget for your business. Then you will have a clear direction to make all the decisions you need to make this year.