I’ve developed the concept of the business 4 walls from the Dave Ramsey 4 Walls approach, which makes sense, since I started my practice as a Ramsey Financial Coach. Imagine the 4 walls are the sides of a box, and you will consider the things on the inside of the box more important and needing protection than things on the outside of the box. That is how you need to view your business. You need to protect the things that keep the doors open and keep you able to continue to make money. The inside of the box.

We protect those walls by prioritizing what gets paid when. You control the money. You also decide who gets paid, “how much” because the reality is that many times businesses have to juggle when invoices are paid late, or cash flow is tight. More than once I paid the electric bill in two halves instead in one payment when we first started UNEQ consulting. And it saved our cash flow.

Here are three simple steps you can take now to secure your business 4 walls.

1. Take the bills off auto pay. I am a huge proponent of intentional business money management. I want you to pay your bills intentionally. And limit electronic access to your operating account so you can control all of your money, and pay halvsies if necessary.

2. Prioritize your expenses. Organized into the four walls, you pay the bills in this order:

Wall 1. Rent or internet, and utilities, your access to your buyers
Wall 2. Critical Operating Expenses that are required to keep doors open
Wall 3. Inventory or products to sell or provide services with
Wall 4. Payroll and payroll expenses

This includes paying yourself. And not out of the till, writing a paycheck and withholding taxes. For more on this approach, and calculating your B-Number, grab the free e-book at www.entremoneycoach.com

3. Start an emergency fund. You need to protect your four walls and pay these expenses every month, even if the sales are slow or money is late to the table. This is the quarter where many businesses make a bulk of their earnings. Hold some back for the slower months of January and February. Try to hold back the amount you need to cover your four walls, so you continue to be able to get a personal paycheck in 1st Quarter 2020.

If you take these few steps you will be protecting your business, your ability to make money, and your personal income.