Back to: Running a Business

And your business is no exception. It needs a steady stream of cash to pay the wages, cover the bills, fund its growth and hopefully have some left over to return to the owners in profits and dividends.

Yet time after time businesses fall by the wayside because they run out of cash. In some cases these businesses are still profitable.

Cash flow is often called the lifeblood of business because it is the cycle by which money moves in and out of a business. And importantly, it is reasonably predictable and can be managed.

By understanding your cash flow cycle you can predict well in advance when you are going to need extra funds, when things are going to be tight and for how long. What's more, there are some simple things you can do to manage the timing of your cash flow.

Cash flow is just another part of your business that needs to be managed. Get it right and you'll overcome one of your biggest business hurdles. Get it wrong and you could become a statistic.

To help you and your business, we have created a practical series on the key issues surrounding business cash flow.

We're going to keep it down to earth and practical. No heavy theory– just a step-by-step approach to assist small business owners in managing the cash flow issue.

• Series 1: Where does all of my cash go?
  
  
• Series 2: How to avoid running out of cash
  
  
• Series 3: Show me the money!
  
  
• Series 4: Bringing in the money – faster!