This 1 Quarterly Exercise Helps Entrepreneurs Survive & Thrive
I’m an organized person. I really am.
But I moved on Saturday. And it’s as if my last house threw up all its contents into my new house.
Now it’s a mad scramble to get everything put in its place while at the same time preventing baby girl (11 months old) from getting into anything that could hurt her.
Let me tell you, there’s nothing quite like moving to get you to reevaluate the things you own.
Why do I have so much crap? I think I’ve asked myself that question a few dozen times during the last week. And the crazy part is I’ve already done quite a bit of purging on multiple occasions since 2004-ish.
You’re looking at a guy who is not sentimental… a guy who has been known to read “girly books” like Cleaning and the Meaning of Life.
Yet still I have too much stuff.
I guess it’s inevitable with four kids.
Once they outgrow their clothes we keep them (the clothes, not the kids) in boxes because… what if we have another kid?
Same thing with old baby stuff. Don’t want to throw it out when there’s a (slim) chance we might have another baby.
Old shoes? Save ’em for camping trips so the kids don’t ruin their new shoes.
And so on.
It’s hard to get rid of useful things when you know you may need to re-buy those same things the moment you part with them.
On the bright side, moving is forcing me to do what every entrepreneur should do at least every quarter: analyzing and eliminating costs.
Cost control is not often talked about, but it’s a critical part of the entrepreneur’s life.
If you can save $500 in personal expenses, it’s like saving a minimum of $600 — because that’s how much you’d have to earn before taxes in order to pay for $500 worth of goods and services.
Ever since last fall, I’ve been on a tear looking for ways to cut costs and save money.
You can’t necessarily control how much business you get in any single month, but you CAN control many of your expenses.
If you haven’t used a business service for a few months, you can probably safely cancel it.
On the personal side, check prices — especially the cost of health insurance. I’m about to switch companies. I’ll be saving upwards of $194 a month.
Alright, back to work… and unpacking. Talk to you again soon.
-Ryan M. Healy
