Get Cash Keep Control BLOG

By Stefania Aulicino

Stop selling; start growing! Selling is pushing what you have. Growing is creating a bigger future- a bigger, safer, more profitable future to SHARE.

Lane’s company delivers manufacturing expertise for clients who lack the economy of scale to make sophisticated engineering and equipment investments cost-effective to produce small runs of one-off products.

In good times, outsourced manufacturing is an easy “sell”: Lane produces complicated manufactured parts so his customers can deliver turnkey solutions to their end buyer and earn premium profits.

In uncertain times like today, Lane’s client prospects – typically with revenue of $7-$25 million annually- are slow to make the decision to outsource. Instead, Lane’s prospects focus on keeping their own operation running and their staff employed and end up squeezing their own profitability in the process.

Why on earth would Lane’s prospects hurt their own profits? They fear their customers and prospects will not buy; they see a small future.

How can Lane grow when his prospects are not growing? How can YOU grow when your prospects are not growing?

Don’t waste time with the wrong people who will not change the future.

As an Entrepreneur, it’s your job to declare the future and then move the promise of that future into the present. Invite your three counterparts to participate. Who? Your customer prospects, funding sources and employees.

Rule 1. Seek out decision-makers at your customer prospects who are equity holders in their company.

The future cannot be calculated or analyzed. The future can only be DECLARED.

Declaring the future is the job of the equity owner, the fellow business visionary.

Rule 2. Seek out sources investing their own money who see themselves benefiting from your company’s success.

Reach out to customers who need your solution to their market pain, vendors whose services are components of your solution and other players in your eco-system who value your company’s future. The interdependent players in the same eco-system are the ideal source of “safe cash” for you because your success is their success.

Rule 3. eliminate the vision gap.

As the business visionary, you can see the future, but are you leaving the rest of your team blind? Make the future visible for others by translating it into the universal language of business- dollars and cents. Share with your team your company’s revenue out 10 years in the future, assuming all the resources needed to grow were your own. Share your Optimum Growth Strategy- the one that delivers the highest return with the lowest risk. Now you empower your employees to make prudent decisions day-to-day in line with that future.

When you declare your future, share it, and invite others to participate in it, you attract others and create a synergy where 1+1 exceeds 10! Profitable growth, faster, safer than you ever thought possible.

The future starts with YOU. And that future is contagious! Let’s face it- we entrepreneurs are the solution in this economy (because we are the only ones that can change the future) and we have a big job to do!

Changing the future happens in an instant. Changing the future happens when you declare a goal and take committed action toward it. Its effects are continuous. The future is contagious. Pass it forward and you become a magnet for the big futures of others.

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

By Stefania Aulicino

Sometimes I wonder what is affecting business builders more in this economy: Lack of confidence or lack of cash.

No one spends the cash they have if they are not confident; Not tax payers; not customers; not business.

If you had a job during the great depression- life looked good. If you had a cash reserve, you had choices of great value to buy.

In fact we all know lots of companies that were born in difficult economic times: IBM, Federal Express, CNN, Disney, GE, Berger King. What was the secret? Let me suggest 3:

1. Customers are easier to read: they tell you their pain and are quick to respond to real solutions (or let you know you are not on track so you can take fast corrective action).
2. Your Eco system is a source of safe cash. As industry insiders, this source of funding contributes a powerful market discipline which helps you make only SAFE investments for near term and future growth (they double check you).
3. Business builders who take advantage of the fire sale price of talent, real estate and other business building inputs available in a weak economy are ideally positioned ahead of the pack when the economy turns.(and it will turn!)

What if you had confidence like the person who had a job or cash reserve during the great depression? As a business owner, the parallel today  I’m talking about is non bank debt on your terms and equity that wants YOU in control. 

Let’s take a quick look at what confidence and cash could mean for you (let me stimulate some thoughts as you consider what’s true for you):

What’s working now?

• Existing customers are loyal Our products/service deliver great results
• Our team is very capable
• Market demand is there for our current and new product/services

What would you do with Confidence and Cash on your terms?

• Let our team know we are safe to ride out the uncertainty in the economy
• Give me the confidence to embrace profit-making opportunities despite potentially longer term cash flow return.
• Stay focused on our visionary growth strategy versus making decisions for near term cash flow.

Fortunately, as a passionate entrepreneur, you have many choices for cash to grow, even in the current economy, once you embrace the secret there is currency in your passion – that’s the source of cash on your terms. That’s not just cash- it’s confidence.

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

By Stefania Aulicino

How many sources of cash are there? Most companies only think in terms of debt and equity. Companies thinking like that may not be getting the cash they want right now:  “The banks are not lending what I need”, “I don’t know people with money to invest in my company”. Thinking about debt and equity as inflexible templates causes too many entrepreneurs to give up their creativity and power such that they stop thinking about their options.

As a passionate entrepreneur, you have many choices for cash to grow, even in the current economy, once you realize the secret: there is currency in your passion. To tap the currency in your passion you must take 3 steps: Package, Match, and Price.

Package:         Your job as an entrepreneur is to package your passion. Passion is the ability to grow by packaging value that others want to buy. Nike began with a passion to develop performance shoes for professional athletes; then created a market for comfortable shoes for the every-day athlete. Today, Nike sells shoes for walking, tennis, basketball and more. Its passion-driven growth gave Nike its own unique currency. Today, abundant funding sources compete to offer cash –in any way Nike wants it!

What is a successful entrepreneur? Someone who understands how to successfully package their solution for a customer in pain at a value exchange that fits the customer’s budget. What is a successfully funded entrepreneur? Someone who understands how to package their passion for a source of cash at a value exchange that fits that source’s risk appetite.

That’s the power of packaging your passion. When you exchange dollars, someone else has set the price. In contrast, when you use your own unique currency, you set the value of exchange; the price- and the terms. It’s not debt- where the bank sets the terms; it’s not equity-where investors set the terms and may often take control.

Packaging your passion for different buyers gives the entrepreneur a myriad of alternatives for cash on your terms. Modified templates yield access to abundant debt with flexible repayment terms and variable interest payments; also available is unlimited equity which wants you in control because they want to share in a future only you can create.

Match:            Packaged passion must be matched to the buyer. How do you do that? Customize. It’s not a “pitch” – it’s a dialogue. A Pitch is generic; your elevator pitch or sales pitch.  A dialogue with someone who knows you directly or by reputation yields a customized match between a prospect’s pain and your solution.

Price:              Pricing is a reflection of value exchange. Not all capital experiences the same risks so not all capital needs the same return. It’s your job to modify the debt or equity template, customized as a win win for both parties.

Value, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. With equity, the highest valuation is not just a good idea, it’s an imperative, confirming you have identified the right investor who sees the same future you do and wants to share in the upside of what only you can create. With debt, the lowest cost is confirmation you have designed the best structure for that lender who sees opportunity where others see risk.

Carly had never reached out beyond the bank to get funding for her 7 year old company until she shared her passion of the future with a college classmate. When Carly customized her passion into a package he could buy, this friend gave her the $150,000 she wanted to accelerate her growth. To protect their friendship, they customized a debt/equity template; repayment in full at Carly’s choice of timing, plus a modest interest premium to market with an understanding the “lender” would be offered the opportunity to invest whenever Carly decided to share stock. Not debt. Not equity. Just Carly’s own unique currency. Realizing she didn’t have to get all the money she wanted from a single source, Carly discovered myriad options for cash- on her terms.

If you are a passionate entrepreneur not yet economically self-sufficient, you are not taking full advantage of your own currency. All it takes is 3 steps: Package, Match, Price. With access to cash to get all the resources you want, the only thing holding you back is you from achieving your full potential is you –and you can change that in a heartbeat.

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

By Stefania Aulicino

Prehistoric man consumed virtually all his waking day hunting for food to just survive. In his more advanced state, Man leaned to FARM. When he no longer had to worry about just surviving, Man liberated his creativity and mankind took a quantum leap forward. What would a quantum leap look like for your company? More revenue? More profit? More delegation, more free time? Bigger net worth? Perhaps a bigger difference in the world- in a way only you can make.

Why not F.A.R.M. for cash? All it takes is Faith in your passion; Assemble your own unique financing solution; Relationships- Leverage them! And M… I’ll tell you about that latter.

FARMing for cash lets you use the business skills you already have to get the cash you need to grow. Your company’s success to date is a testament to the fact you have the skills it takes.

FAITH is the skill you use to convert a prospect into a buying customer. That’s the same skill needed to convert any individual into a funding source for your company.

You keep in touch with touch with childhood friends- most don’t know what you do, but they trust you! You have earned integrity with the many people you work with in your industry. All these people need to put money to work, and based on the fact they have FAITH that you are a trustworthy place to put money to work, you begin to realize that virtually every one you know is a potential source of cash. In today’s economic environment, just as banks are not lending as usual, and the stock markets are less attractive than usual, much of the money is “outside” the normal system. Lots of people you know have money they want to put to work. And many of these people have FAITH in your passion and would like to fuel it. But, only if you ask them, and only if you Go Direct!

ASSEMBLE is the skill you use to turn raw materials and components into new business solutions. That’s the same skill needed to convert generic dollars into your own unique financial solutions.

The secret to getting the cash you want is to divide your financial needs into small pieces. When you do, ownership control is just not an issue! I call that the Mosaic Approach. Now you can reach out to all the players in your Business-EcoSystem, who see themselves as benefiting from your company’s success (vendors, customers, and even people who may not even know what you do but respect your integrity and have FAITH in your passion and would like to share in your success). When you ASSEMBLE lots of smaller sums of “generic dollars” from different people at different times–only when each is ready– you end up with a unique financial solution- and control. Go Direct! And the benefit is no fees/commission and no time delay!

RELATIONSHIP is the skill you use to charge different prices for the same product/service to different customers (just like the phone company!). That’s the same skill that lets you get the same number of dollars from different people at different costs to you. Cash on your terms. It’s all about Relationship- and how you leverage it. Offer friends 2 to 3 times the market interest rate and they will be happy with a return of principle with interest and the opportunity to help you out. Reach out to those in your EcoSystem whose own business benefits from your success and be creative with commercial relationships- price a geographic exclusive territory for a customer to sell your product with upfront fees, or ask for 180 day terms from a vendor who will profit from the success of your newest product. When you discover someone who really understands your industry and can offer true value to help you achieve safe, profitable growth, then you can exchange small amounts of ownerships (1% or 2 % ).

Based on your unique Relationships of those who have Faith in your passion, you can easily Assemble several hundreds of thousands, even millions of dollars composed of Mosaic pieces to make up your unique financial solution to get cash on your terms. And you can Go Direct! So, what about the last letter of F.A.R.M.? M stands for Matchmaker.

MATCHMAKER is the skill you use to get cash and keep control when your vision requires the deep pockets of professional venture capitalists. That’s the same skill that lets you seek out an expertise you lack that turns your growth potential into profitable reality, when you add the right person in the right seat on your bus.

When you want Venture Capital, you are no longer in a position to Go Direct! to get cash for yourself. Not because of you, but because of the money. For 1 in 10 business owner’s – perhaps like you – whose vision is so great that you need $5 million, $10 million or more, then farming for cash looks more like Agri-business. That takes deep pocket professional investors. But venture capitalist are different sources that the sources you have been dealing with so far. Venture Capitalist are “agents”, investing the funds of others. That’s different from the “principal” investors you approached directly. Principal investors are people you know, who are investing their own funds and making their own decisions. To reach out to agents you need M which stands for Matchmaker. Your Matchmaker builds the credibility you lack with the professional Venture Capital community so that you can get cash and keep control even with these professionals.

F.A.R.M. works for 10 of 10 business owners who need cash to grow their company to its next level of profitable growth.

For 9 of 10 business owners, who need only a few million dollars, Faith, Assemble, Relationships are sufficient skills to empower you to access all the cash you need DIRECTLY, so Go Direct!

For 1 in 10 business owners, who need deep pocket venture capital money, empower yourself with the skills of a Matchmaker.

Don’t HUNT for cash to grow your company. F.A.R.M. for cash in any economic environment and get cash and keep control to achieve your company’s quantum leap.

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

By Stefania Aulicino

Just imagine what you could do with cash in the current environment. Thought the only cash available now is vulture money? Money that wants control? Think again!

Stop hunting and start farming for cash in the current environment.

Prehistoric man spent most of his waking day hunting for food. In his more evolved state he learned the value of farming. Besides controlling his own source of food, he freed up time which could be spent in other pursuits. Why not apply the same logic to sourcing your own growth capital. Economic self sufficiency is the result of farming vs hunting for cash.

Let me offer 3 ways to farm for funding sources

1. Seek out those who share your passion
2. Divide your financing needs into small pieces
3. Personalize each funding

1^st : seek out those who share your passion. You’ve been planting seeds for years; now is time to harvest. Notice you did not plant just one kind of seed. You know people who understand your industry; you know people who have no clue what you do, but they trust you; others respect your reputation and trust you even though they may not have ever met you personally because they “know” you through your trade association or your successful customer relationships.

2^nd Divide our needs into small pieces In your circle right now are people who can offer you small amounts- $10,000’s; as well as individuals who could offer you $100,000’s. In aggregate- the people you know right now- personally, approaches millions of dollars of growth funding- cheap. With farming you get to go direct- you don’t need an intermediary- which means no commissions, no fees, no delay. And it’s a win win. These are individuals looking for places they can trust to put their money to work, and you are already uniquely positioned as trust-worthy with them. Farming means you have alternative people to harvest, when they are ready. In today’s environment there is more cash going outside the traditional systems looking for trustworthy places to invest.

3^rd personalize each funding And what about control? When farming (vs hunting) you are harvesting only people who share your passion- these are people want YOU in control! Each funding source does not want the same thing. That means different interest rates or different equity amounts for different sources. Just because you are offered $100,000 from someone who really understands your business (an angel) and you decide their industry expertise and contacts warrant an exchange of 2% equity ownership does not mean the next industry expert you meet who offers $100,000 should get the same 2%. More likely another industry expert would be happy to accept less ownership, factoring in the credibility factor of the industry expert who preceded her so the next $100,000 is worth 1%- even if it is just months later. Alternatively, someone else with $100,000 to put to work could be happy to LOAN it to you, on a flexible basis- with no principle repayment until you are ready! With today’s low interest rate, you could even offer 2 or 3 times bank or CD rates and still have cheap money.

Now you have 3 ways to farm for funding sources

1. Seek out those who share your passion
2. Divide your financing needs into small pieces
3. Personalize each funding

Don’t HUNT for funding sources; FARM your own funding sources. Go direct and avoid commissions, fees and delays. The result is economic self sufficiency in all economic environments- even the current one.

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

By Stefania Aulicino

If you invest to grow in this recession- who will benefit? Your customers, who get innovative solutions to address their pain; your vendors, who get to sell more of their own products that go into your solution; the supply store that delivers cartridges for your printer and packaging materials; your IT vendor who keeps your web presence healthy so customers and prospects can find you; the restaurants in your neighborhood which nourish your team so they have the energy to implement the growth your company can achieve. That is just the tip of the ice berg.

Creating products attracts customers; customers generate revenue; revenue drives growth. And growth, in any market – creates value. Once you realize your growth creates value, you can sell that value to anyone and get cash.

As an entrepreneur, you rely on yourself to create your own products; to create your own customers; why not create your own funding sources. The operative word is create. As an innovative company, you don’t “look” for new products- you create them; you don’t “look” for new customers- you create them by educating them about the benefits only you can deliver. Now apply this same logic to creating funding sources out of people you know: the very players who benefit most from what you do best- customers, vendors, the supply store, the IT consultant and many more.

Why would these players contribute to your future? Why would each be willing to contribute small or even very large amounts of cash which together make up your financial mosaic, composed of lots of different sources of funding, which make it possible for you to build the products and consume the services that benefit them? Because they are all part of your eco-system. And, your company eco-system is a source of safe cash.

Let me use an analogy. Visualize a terrarium. A terrarium is a mini indoor garden in a jar. All it takes is a thin layer of soil at the bottom of a fish-tank like container and a few plants. Water it once; put a lid on it with a few air holes; now you have a terrarium- a closed system that will sustain those plants for a long time.

That little fish-tank terrarium with a few plants is a subsystem of a much larger eco-system; our planet is its own eco-system. Likewise your company’s eco-system is made up of complementary and symbiotic business players. Your company’s little eco-system is a subsystem of a much bigger economics system- the global economy.

Why will your company’s eco-system players be responsive to your request for funding to help you grow? The reason – even in this recession- is their own economic self interest:

• No one wants to miss the opportunity to link up with a rising star
• Your success is their success
• They want to participate in a future only you can create.
• Best of all it’s a safe investment.

Everyone has to put their money some place to protect their principle. But they prefer to get a return. Players in your eco-system understand your ability to create safe, profitable growth better than their alternative choices. You see, the money in your eco-system, like the water in your terrarium, never leaves the eco-system. Your eco-system is a closed system. That makes the players in your eco-system sources of safe cash for each other.

Why? Because each player shares the benefits of success of the eco-system. More importantly, each shares the pain of failure of any of the links in the eco-system which causes them to naturally want to help each other.

If a customer does not do well, vendors suffer; if vendors don’t’ do well, the supply store and IT consultant don’t do well. There is an incentive for all players in a given eco-system to pursue a common good for their own self interest. That is why I say your company’s eco-system is source of SAFE CASH.

As an entrepreneur, you create your own products; you create your own customers; so why not create your own funding sources? Divide your financial needs into small pieces and seek out players who understand your unique ability better than most to drive value. Access Safe Cash from those who operate in your own eco-system.

Stefania Aulicino is founder president of CapitalLinkUSA which ensures business builders secure resources – cash and talent- that share your passion. You have your choice of how to get Cash And Control: We do it for you with the Turnkey Cash and Control System or we offer you self learning tools with online Cash And Control System products. www.CapitalLinkUSA.com

By Stefania Aulicino

To profit from today’s unprecedented economic conditions, here are 3 secrets learned during prior recessions:

1-
Use your own unique currency

2-
Get credit for your future today

3-
Pursue the future you really want

As entrepreneurs you have a unique ability to create a future that does not exist- it’s you that creates value, profits from change, thrives where others can’t survive. Principle 1 That makes your future a unique currency, one which others want to share. Your passion to address the pain of your customers with solutions drives revenue; revenue drives growth and growth is your unique currency. And when your future is bigger than your past, your future is an appreciating currency. Use it with customers, vendors, bankers, employees, strategic alliances and you have your own eco system of safe cash where all participants benefit from the success of each other. Wayne got turned down by the bank for $1 million to expand his plant to do $25 million in 5 years. When he did, I asked Wayne what future he would create if he won the lottery and all the money was his. His answer was $100 million, and that is the future that created his unique currency. I used that currency to help Wayne attracted $10 million for his $3 million revenue business. So how did Wayne do it? Not based on his past! It’s all about your future.

So how do you finance a future so much bigger than you past? The answer is Principle 2 get credit for that bigger future today. Scott wanted to grow his company but he thought that $3 million of equity would cost more control and ownerships give up than $1 million of equity. But that is not true, if you can get credit for your future today. Unfortunately, not all investors can see your future, only an investor who shares your passion. To get credit for your future today, you need a match-maker because entrepreneurs and investors don’t speak the same language. You need someone to help you translate your entrepreneurial vision into venture economics that investors can buy. Scott asked my help and he received 5 term sheets from venture investors for the equity he sought. What surprised Scott was that all of the 5 investors wanted different amounts of ownership for the same number of dullars; the highest valuation was almost 2 times the lowest. So which investor do you think Scott liked best? Yes, it was the investors who offered the highest valuation, but not because of the numbers. Actually, Scott liked him because he was the most passionate and really understood Scott’s ambition. The highest valuation is not just a good idea, it’s an imperative that you have identified an investors who shares your passion and can see your future and is willing to give you credit for that future today- where others only see risk.

Now you can see you have no excuse not to pursue the future you really want, which is principle 3. Today’s economic environment is challenging lots of entrepreneurs. No, the principles of successful entrepreneurship have not changed. But this global crisis has introduced unprecedented uncertainly and volatility. But there is a positive effect as well: the scope of possibilities has increased exponentially. Today innovation drives value. That puts you in the driver’s seat if you distinguish between traditional growth and proactive growth. Traditional growth is when you look for a fast-growth market, jump in and try to follow its trajectory. In contrast, Proactive Growth is when you identify a problem, innovate a solution and design your own optimized growth strategy. Traditional growth is very risky. You find yourself coping with all kinds of risk factors imposed from the outside, way beyond your control. Today’s volatile and uncertain economy makes this reactive mode of traditional growth overwhelming and exhausting. In contrast, proactive growth actually takes advantage of dynamic market changes as fuel. Proactive growth is built upon what you do best. It leverages your natural skills. For innovative business builders like you, your biggest risk is that of opportunity lost. A sure way to lower the risk in this economy is to grow proactively.

Stefania Aulicino is founder president of CapitalLinkUSA which ensures business builders secure resources – cash and talent- that share your passion. You have your choice of how to get Cash And Control: We do it for you with the Turnkey Cash and Control System or we offer you self learning tools with online Cash And Control System products. www.CapitalLinkUSA.com

By Stefania Aulicino

The topic began with a discussion of how traumatic it will be to lose so many jobs if the big 3 auto makers are not bailed out.

“With so many failing companies where will people find jobs? Not where they were in the past –nor would you want them from there!”

My comment was this: Darwin’s survival of the fittest in complemented by Joseph A. Schumpeter’s “Creative Destruction” – old orders are replaced with new orders.

Losing jobs rooted in the 20^th century is not bad because they give rise to jobs for the 21^st century. It happens all the time.

We don’t need more manual labor jobs for farming when we have farming equipment that can increase the productive capacity per farmer- what’s next?

We don’t need more telephone line installer jobs when you can use cellular communication more efficiently – what’s next?

Technologies create new job opportunities we can’t even imagine yet. And they are jobs more suited for the magnificent quality of the human being- mental and creative capacity, not brute force.

The solution is all about entrepreneurship- as it has always been. The nature of innovative entrepreneurial companies is to come up with new ways to do things. That is where the jobs for the 21^st century come from.

There is no economic or human value in protecting jobs at dying companies that are not keeping up with innovation. Lack of corporate profit is a clear statement that assets are being wasted- both human and capital. We have bankruptcy laws to protect the customers, vendors and investors; we have safety nets for unemployment as people transition from old jobs to new. And yes, these need to be strong for a dynamic innovating economy.

Do we really want to be a country anchored in the 20^th century when the rest of the world is rushing to thrive in the 21^st century?

Just as human life is birth, growth, and death, so is corporate life- it’s survival of the fittest.

While some people don’t like change, we know the one thing that is constant in life is change, so let’s get on with it.

Stefania Aulicino, founder and president of CapitalLinkUSA ensures companies poised to take advantage of the current economy get access to all the resources they need- both cash and talent.

By Stefania Aulicino

As privately held companies, most of us were not tempted with all that. As innovators in our industry, we are too busy building value and now that will come to our aid as the basis for safe money.

Safe money is based on taping your own eco-system. You solve a problem for your customer, and that customer wants you to succeed. Your product/service is built from the components/contributions of various vendors and those vendors want you to succeed. Your employees have talents they enjoy contributing to your company and they want you to succeed. Your eco-system is a web of interdependence.

What is the link between these various elements of your eco-system? They all benefit from your unique ability to create a future that will not exist unless you create it. Your Future is your unique currency. But it is a currency only to those who share in your future who are members of your eco-system. Which is the only place you enjoy working anyway.

You see, there is currency in your passion for the future you want to create. All it takes to tap the currency in your passion is Confidence Credibility and Control.

Confidence to share your passion of the future you really want- even in this unstable and crazy economic environment: be the innovative leader you really are.

Credibility comes from receiving “credit” for that future today in the form of safe money- advance payments from your customers, deferred payment terms from vendors, extra investment by your employees- as evidence that they value the future you are creating as members of your eco-system.

Control is the secret to sanity for you during these unpredictable times. It’s never what you plan for that puts your company at risk- it’s what you can’t plan for. There are lots of sources in your eco-system to finance your budgeted expenses= and you must reach out to all of them now. But don’t stop with the budgeted expenses. What about the unknown expense. Like the bank having regulatory limitations that affect your credit line; like your biggest client having toxic “assets” that divert their attention from their real operations. For that, you need a safety net of your own. That’s equity that wants you in control of your future. That too comes from your eco-system. Instead of looking for “outside” capital- invite safe capital; People who know you and your industry who like what you are doing. Principle investors investing their own money, who know your industry, see opportunity where others see risk. They too can give you credit for your future today. And, with fewer safe places for principle investors to put their money- they are looking for new safe havens they trust.

Not only do you- the business owner – build value, but you are the source of value exchange which is the gold standard we need right now. Go ahead. Tap the currency in your passion. And realize that you were always economically self sufficient.

Stefania Aulicino is founder president of CapitalLinkUSA which ensures business builders secure resources – cash and talent- that share your passion. You have your choice of how to get Cash And Control: We do it for you with the Turnkey Cash and Control System or we offer you self learning tools with online Cash And Control System products. www.CapitalLinkUSA.com

By Stefania Aulicino

This is the ideal time for innovative entrepreneurs to grow—yes right now.
You are the most advanced species on the planet. It’s you that creates value, profits from uncertainly and thrives where others can’t even survive.

What about the cash? No problem- uses your own unique currency. What do I mean- simple. Capitalize on your unique ability to create a future that does not exist unless you create it. Wall Street has been focusing on trading value. You – the innovative entrepreneur – have never stopped building value. You use your passion to introduce new solutions to market problems. That is a future that would not exists unless you invested the sweat, became the leader and attracted your own eco-system. You already have the source of safe money inside that eco-system. Because the truth is there is currency in your passion.

Rule 1. Cash-in on interdependence. Flowers and bees are part of an econ system: they need each other to thrive. Reach out to customers who benefit from your solution; vendors who share in your product/service success. Who else gains when you succeed? Those are players in your eco-system: besides customers and vendors reach out to employees; shipping, logistics, marketing resources, IT vendors – no matter how big or small they are, they have the same issues you do; we all operate inter-dependently and our success and their success are intertwined. Remind them of that.

Rule 2. Divide and conquer. Don’t look for all your funding from a single source. You could become hostage to that source. Instead, use the mosaic approach: divide your needs into small pieces—deferred payment terms from several vendors, advance payment from several customers. With each piece you put in place you lower the risk to the next and attract more funding options. Build your Financial Mosaic. Be creative. Now is the time to pay attention to how extensive is the web of your eco-system. Every income source and every expense source is a potential contributor to your eco-system. Ask each how they would like to contribute and be prepared to be surprised.

Rule 3. Protect your confidence. So long as you pursue the future you really want, you are the source of creating value. When you create value you are in control of exchanging value with those who share your passion and will benefit from your company’s success. That makes you economically self sufficient; your ability to create that future is your unique currency. When you get credit for your future today, you can access all the cash you need and retain ownership control too.

Remember. There is currency in your passion. And that’s good news for innovative entrepreneurs because the one thing we have plenty of is passion! When you create value- not just trade it- you can get cash and keep control- even in today’s crazy economic environment.

Stefania Aulicino is founder president of CapitalLinkUSA which ensures business builders secure resources – cash and talent- that share your passion. You have your choice of how to get Cash And Control: We do it for you with the Turnkey Cash and Control System or we offer you self learning tools with online Cash And Control System products. www.CapitalLinkUSA.com