I often get asked how I managed to invest in my business a few years ago when I had no clients and was starting over. I know this kind of situation often feels like a ‘catch-22’ for many new entrepreneurs.

Let me put a disclaimer in here right away so that you know I am not a financial planner – but I have had great mentors. And that’s why I have been able to get it together, grow my business and live a really fabulous life-style right now.

Here are a few things I did that I believe are really smart – and that helped me to grow my business and make money.

1)      I HAD A JOB.
After my first year in my new city, I was miserable. I had taken my business off the shelf after a 5-year period and just believed that I could ‘make it happen’. Well, that didn’t work. I was broke, frustrated and miserable. So, I took a job. That job became my ‘bank loan’ – a way for me to make money so that I could step back into my business, have cash flow and funds to get the business up and running again and get the help that I needed. Many of you are depleting your resources – your savings account, your retirement funds, living off your partner’s income – instead of stepping into your business as an independent and running it LIKE a business. Get a part-time job, if need be, to get some cash flowing and get the funds you need to grow a business.

2)      GET A GREAT FINANCIAL PLANNER.
This was one of my best decisions – and it was a referral by another trust source, my realtor. I worked with a financial planner to manage the money I was making – she had walked in my shoes and knew what it felt like to start over again – and she is a huge success in her industry. That’s the kind of person I like to be with and learn from. Ever have one of those moments when you say to yourself: “I never thought of it that way?” Well, she was full of those great one-liners. She taught me to think of money as a tool – and use it accordingly. As a result, I know exactly where I stand financially – and have plans in place to manage my monies going forward. Same holds true by working with a book-keeper and an accountant.

3)      INVEST IN A BUSINESS COACH.
That’s the next best thing I did. I hired a high-level marketing coach to help me with my messaging and marketing. I was an expert in my own field but I didn’t know how to get the word out effectively. I invested in the coach right away, did the work and before long, I had great clients and money in the bank. Every entrepreneur needs a business coach – to help you lay out a plan, work the plan, hold you accountable, and succeed.

4)      KNOW YOUR NUMBERS.
One thing I learned right away was to track my numbers daily. Now, you’ve got to know how disappointing it is at first to record, on a daily basis, $0.00 coming in! But we all start somewhere. Tracking your numbers daily, and your revenue daily, is powerful information – and knowledge IS power. You’ve got to track your numbers when it comes to cash flow, sales, expenses, numbers of clients, etc. This is critical to your success. You track $0.00 for a few consecutive days and that alone will cause you to take action and make some sales calls!

5)      STOP THE SPENDING.
Many new entrepreneurs get caught up in buying all kinds of new programs – audios, CDs, workbooks, books, etc. Stop it. Work with your coach to get some guidance – work with your plan – and stay focused on the plan. All that other information will always be ‘out there’ and available. Stop running after the Magic Bullet. It doesn’t exist. Manage your spending and ensure whatever you buy is in alignment with your plan.

6)      CREATE ‘WEALTH BUCKETS’.
This is something I learned from my business coach and has served me well. I have Wealth Buckets for a number of different things – most importantly, my Emergency Fund. I have a wealth bucket for Savings, Business Expenses, Events, Professional Development, Vacation, and so on. Money should not be left sitting in a bank account – it needs to be ‘assigned’, distributed accordingly and used wisely. I also have a bucket for ‘Fun’ – imagine that? Do you?

These are just some of the basic things I have learned about handling my money as a start-up. I would not have known a lot of this if it were not for the proper guidance from my coach. And I trust that you don’t either – so, get help – get guidance – get going – and get growing. It’s fun to make money and create the lifestyle that you want.

What tip is most useful to you right now?  We’d love to hear! Please share your thoughts.