Tips From The Knack

Business Entrepreneur: The Knack– Among the morsels of business wisdom you will find here:
Numbers run a business. – If you don’t know how to read them, you’re flying blind.—Start tracking them by hand as soon as you launch your business.
A sale isn’t a sale until you collect. – A receivable is like a loan. Make sure your customers are credit-worthy.
When your short-term liabilities exceed your short-term assets, you’re bankrupt. – Keep track of how much you’re going to collect and spend in the next twelve months.
Forget about shortcuts. Run a business as if it’s forever. – In the long run, your shortcuts will prove to be detours on the road to achieving your goals.
Cash is hard to get and easy to spend. – Make it before you spend it.
You have no friends in business, only associates. – You can laugh and cry with your employees, but neither you nor they should forget that it’s a business relationship.
Gross margin is the most important number on the income statement. – Don’t make the mistake of focusing on the top line.
Identify your true competitors, and treat them with respect. – Their opinion of you will play a critical role in determining your reputation.
Culture drives a company. – The boss’s most important job is to define and enforce it.
The life plan has to come before the business plan. – You need to figure out where you want to go before deciding how to get there.
The Knack [Business Entrepreneur]