Money and Vision

Some things just go together and without one you can't have the other. Like honey and bees, money and vision are simply inseparable.

This past week I heard stories of money woes from numerous small business owners. Some distresses I heard include, " I don't have enough customers, people aren't paying me what they owe and I am up at night stressed and worried."   Maybe you've been there. I certainly have and I have discovered that the only sure cure for this ailment is a big dose of vision and strategic planning.

What does vision have to do with money? The answer is, everything. Without a clear vision of what you are creating and where your business is going, you will sink into despair if the money coming in slows to a trickle.

It could be that your business is in a slump and you will fall right into a pit with it unless you have a vivid vision. With a vision you have your passion and direction to go forward.

The more powerful and clear your vision, the more easily it will be to  develop strategies to deal with the situation and your business as a whole. Your financial well being springs from your vivid vision, and it will give you the oomph to do a strategic planning session with the objective to get things flowing again. It could involve making new decisions and focusing on different directions that will re-energize your business. The strategic plan takes the vision and gives it direction.

For example, lets say you  live in California and you envision going on a holiday to  Hawaii.  The strategic planning part would include deciding where you will stay, when you will leave, how long you'll be gone, how much it will cost, who is going with you and how you will get there. Those are all strategic issues that spring from the vision of the trip.

Let's say your business vision is running a health center,  Or maybe you grow flowers and sell them to grocery stores.  You can use the same formula for creating your strategic plan regardless of your business.  Where, how, how much, who and when. The clearer your business vision the easier it will be to do the strategic plan.

If you are like most entrepreneurs and business managers you are often so preoccupied with immediate issues that you lose sight of the bigger picture, however it is the bigger picture that needs to be directing the play.

The challenge is that when you are in this slump you feel so stuck that it is hard to get going. This is when you need help, but you don't want to pay for it because you are worried about not having enough money. It feels like s vicious circle revolving around not enough money.

Imagine you need your car for work. Suddenly it begins sputtering and not starting easily.  You begin feeling like you may not be able to depend on it to get you to you appointments.  What do you do?  Of course you take it to your friendly mechanic because even though you would like to be car-free, in fact you sill need your car. You pay for the car to be repaired because it is essential.

If you own a business, getting help with your vision and planning is also essential, especially if your business is limping along. Take care of your business and it will prosper because vision and money are inseparable.