SMALL BUSINESS CASH FLOW TROUBLES

And what can one say after that!

Written by Lanky Levy

"Small Business cash flow troubles are the main reasons for failure. The problem when sales are flat is generally a recipe for disaster if you do not have sufficient capital stashed away for just such an occasion. And generally speaking, how many of us do have enough resources to sustain us through those very difficult times.

A fable I was told recently may very well shed some light on one's perception of how to extricate one's self from these anxious-ridden days. Way, way back in Eastern Europe when there were traveling preachers and rabbis, a rabbi and his student were traveling around the countryside, and spent a night in each village, being hosted by the villagers in their extremely meager lives.

The rabbi and the student were equally poor, and were sustained only by the generosity of the people with whom they prayed and counseled. One night they came upon a run-down home with a barn at its side in a valley, at the foot of a hill. The couple welcomed the rabbi and student into their home, gave them a meal, and allowed them to sleep in the barn. The couple told the rabbi, that if it was not for the one cow that they owned, they would indeed perish. The cow provided them with milk. They sold any surplus milk that they had, and also sold the cheese that they made from the milk. In this way, they managed to keep body and soul together. The rabbi thanked them for the meal, and he and the student went to sleep in the barn with the cow.

Before daybreak, the rabbi woke the student and told him that it was time to go, and that they should take the cow with them, before the old couple woke up. The student was horrified and asked why the rabbi would do such a terrible thing, and the rabbi replied that it would all be made clear to the student in good time. So, they dressed and untied the cow, and left the farm. They traveled up a hill, and when they got to the top, the rabbi took the cow to the edge of the hill, and pushed it off the top, where it tumbled down and died. He and the student went on their way. Over the next few days, the student continually questioned the rabbi as to why he had done such a terrible thing to the old couple, and each time was told that everything would be explained to him in good time.

Over the next few years, the student continually pondered the problem of the cow. Eventually, the rabbi and student arrived at the very same farm where they had spent the night that they had taken the cow. But lo and behold, the old shack was no longer there, but high on the hillside was a beautiful brick house. The rabbi and the student went up to the house, knocked on the door, and the same couple welcomed them into the house. They were so happy to see the rabbi and were quick to ask him if he had seen the cow when he had left the barn, because the cow had disappeared.

The rabbi said that they had left the barn while the cow was there, and asked the couple how they had managed to become so successful. When the cow had disappeared, the farmer had no source of income, so he and his son had gone down to the town and obtained work in a saw mill. The owner of the saw mill had no family, and was very happy with the farmer and his son and willed the mill to them. However, the mill owner died suddenly, and the mill became the property of the farmer, who prospered and made a lot of money, which enabled them to build themselves a beautiful house and live comfortably.

The farmer and his wife told the rabbi that if it was not for the cow disappearing, they would not have been so comfortable now.

This, my friends, is the end of the fable. BUT, the beginning of a learning curve for all small businesses who are stuck in a situation of bad cash flow. Do you have a cow that is causing you expense with little or no return? Is it perhaps not time to get rid of the cow and re-structure your business? Not all cows are cash cows! Look around you, examine your finances, get rid of excess baggage, diversify your inventory, perhaps even sell or close down the business and move to a new project.

Necessity will determine how you can best re-establish yourself in an upward curve. Learn from the fables..... my grandfather was the rabbi!"