How many people do you know who spend their own money and know you- personally or professionally?
Yeah! A lot!! The biggest mistake Business Builders make is not inviting people whom they know to share their passion.
Do you harbor secret fears that prevent you from sharing your passion with people you know?
Fear you will not achieve your future?
Fear to admit your company needs cash?
Let’s look at those two fears.
1st– Do you fear you will not achieve the future? Guess what- that is not a surprise!
Know any friends who have a career goal? They may or may not achieve it.
Know any colleagues who have 12 month sales goals. They may or may not achieve them
No one expects you to be different. The future by definition is an unpredictable.
The difference is your future is BIG, EXCITING and CONTAGIOUS so others want to participate in your PASSION.
2nd Are you embarrassed to admit your company needs cash? People know the difference between growth and survival; between investment and expense.
If you pay for your child’s education, you are investing in your child’s future success. If you pay for a cruise, you are spending money. Both use cash; one is an investment that has a future return. The other is an expense which does not.
As Business Builders we quickly learn growth consumes cash. The reason you need cash is to make the future you can “see” real. That’s different from needing cash to address yesterday’s excesses or to merely survive.
Cash in the hands of a Business Builder yields its own repayment. Growth funding delivers a product or service which earns a future profit.
If you just wanted to generate cash, all you need to do is stop investing for the future. Just staff for yesterday’s revenue levels. But that’s not you.
You’re a Business Builder so extinguish those secret fears. You’ll find the fastest way to get the right cash is to reach out to those who know YOU, personally or by reputation. People who know you AND spend their own money. People who are principals, not agents who invest the funds of others. Agents such as the bank or venture capitalists or Angel investment clubs. That is the difference between “creating” vs “finding” funding sources.
Principals offer you the biggest return on your passion because they are people who have a basis to believe in you. Principals are Fast, Cheap, Want you in control.
- FAST because they don’t have to analyze. Principals are building on long term relationship with YOU, or your reputation.
- CHEAP because principals catch your passion and assign a lower risk premium to your future.
- Want YOU in control so you can get cash on your terms. Take equity off the table; giving up ownership to get cash is the lazy way to do it. Instead, be simple- like an IOU that you repay as cash flow allows at your discretion, based on trust. Or be creative. Remember, any reduction in an expense is the same thing as cash to pay expenses- such as delayed terms or price discounts as a long-term partner relationship.
Plus, you know them all. It’s just a question of prioritizing and applying your new skill of inviting people you know. Don’t expect to get all the funds you need from a single source – use the Mosaic Approach.
Best of all, you don’t have to pay any commissions or fees for principal funding sources.
As you can see, there is no reason to be afraid of asking your friends to fund your company’s growth. Don’t let unfounded secret fears prevent you from sharing your passion with people you know. Don’t worry about who has discretionary funds; you can’t know that. Ask everyone. “No” is always an acceptable answer but you will never get a “yes” unless you ask.
When you reach out to people you know for cash there is a snowball effect. Once the first one buys your passion, the next one is easier. Perhaps it’s the mounting credibility of the number of people who believe in you. Or perhaps you’re getting more comfortable making your future tangible enough for others to buy it. Either way, sharing your passion with people who know you is the safest way to get the right cash to grow.
Stefania Aulicino, president of CapitalLinkUSA ensures business owns get cash to keep control of a bigger, more profitable company, faster, safer than they ever thought possible- in any economy. Let us help you become a magnet for non equity and equity sources to fuel your growth. Please explore our tools, solutions and consulting options tailored for different growth stages and different budgets: www.CashAndControl.com
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