Can you pay your expenses?

This blog post is for those of you who are hiring employees, contracting web developers for a project, or moving into co-working office space. In essence, your business is growing and you need to plan for your upcoming expenses.

If you fit this description, then it’s time for you to get to know the 13 Week Cash Projection Report. It’s one of the reports that is a necessity for your business.

With the 13 Week Cash Projection Report you project your weekly cash needs and get insight into how long your cash will last. Note: The “13 weeks” is referring to the number of weeks in a financial quarter.

Should you be scheduled to run out of cash, 13 weeks is ample time to find ways to get extra money coming in or move spending around. Extra money can come in the form of talking to investors, closing another sale, or contributing your own funds. Alternatively, you can extend the life of the cash you do have by delaying projects or cutting future expenses.

Let’s dive into it by taking a look at a simplified version: (Make sure to check out the comments.)

Here’s a Google Doc you can use for yourself: (Directions are inside)

The first time you prepare this report it should take no more than a hour. Weekly upkeep should take you no more than thirty minutes to prepare.

With certain items you may not know the exact amount. That’s ok. Put in your best estimate. It’s ok to be a couple bucks off. As you continue to maintain this report, the accuracy of your estimates will improve over time.

Once again, the 13 Week Cash Projection Report is a tool to help you proactively manage your business, so don’t stress out over the nickels and dimes.

The report is meant to be continuously updated. Meaning, as one week ends, add another week to the end of the report. You need to have 13 weeks in this report at all times to proactively manage your cash flow.

Originally published at facingthenumbers.com on April 7, 2016.