In December 1944, Japanese soldier Hiroo Onoda retreated into a jungle on a small island in the Philippine archipelago, to hold off the American and Philippine troops. When the war ended, he noticed a lull in the fighting but didn’t realise the implications. And although he saw several American leaflets announcing the end of the […]
Tag archives: financial management
Lost: $8 Billion
Have you been following this huge financial scandal? A few months ago, 30-year-old Sam Bankman-Fried was on top of the world. He headed a huge crypto exchange called FTX, which allowed customers to trade regular money for cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. He also owned Alameda Research, which traded cryptocurrencies. At his peak, FTX was valued at […]
Terrible financial advice on social media
I’ve come across a lot of advice on social media recently on how businesses can improve their finances during the economic crisis. One expert recommends that you cut back your overheads and pay down debt. Another has 10 ways to keep your energy bill manageable. A third believes you should create alternate revenue streams… It’s […]
The financial pyramid – where does your company sit?
In my last blog, I explained that… “You can’t build an outstanding finance department or hire outstanding people, if you have no idea what ‘outstanding’ looks like.” Because most business owners have never run their own finance department, they can find these roles difficult to recruit for successfully. It’s not just that it’s hard to […]
2 cost-control systems every company needs in place
How do you create habits that stick? James Clear, author of the classic Atomic Habits, says that most people make a critical mistake. Whether their aim is to eat more healthy food, exercise regularly or save more towards their pension, they spend too much time focusing on their end goal. They believe that reminding themselves of […]
Don’t believe these 3 myths
Last week I mentioned I’ve always had an interest in the Tudors. I’ve learned an enormous amount about them… …And I’ve also discovered that some of the things I believed for many years are absolutely untrue! For example, Walter Raleigh didn’t introduce tobacco to the UK in 1586 – a fun fact I had learned […]
The weird secret to Walt Disney’s success
One of the secrets to Walt Disney’s success? While he came up with grand ideas, his lesser-known brother, Roy Disney, managed the company’s finances and kept the business stable. “If it hadn’t been for my big brother, I swear I’d have been in jail several times for cheques bouncing,” Walt once confessed. “I never knew […]
Swiss army knife vs kitchen knife
Recently, one of my readers forwarded me an email they had received from someone called David Perell. I’d never heard of him before, but he turned out to be a pretty insightful guy who writes about the craft of writing. Every Monday, he also sends out an email full of the most interesting ideas he’s come […]
Clients taking longer to pay
One of the trends I’m noticing right now is that companies are having problems with cashflow, particularly in the B2B space. It’s either taking longer for them to get paid, or they’re not getting paid at all. There are many reasons why this might be happening… We seem to be entering a very unstable economic […]
How much should you spend on financial management?
I recently read a post on LinkedIn, where a business owner explained exactly how much he spent on his finance function. In the previous company he owned, he invested just 1% of his turnover in financial management. As a result, he had no budget… no cash flow forecast… no monthly management accounts… no hard financial […]
