There's Only One F in Finance#1 - Time

So, this is it – welcome aboard to the first edition of ‘There’s Only One F in Finance’.?

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This is going to be a monthly newsletter that will talk about all things finance and accounting, broadly speaking, with plenty of mindset and personal growth alongside some silly humour and case studies to learn from.?

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The first order of business is precisely that, though – the topics we’ll cover. As you know (if you know me, that is), I’m all for taking on people’s thoughts and suggestions. So, if there’s a specific part of business finances which you feel should be covered, throw the idea my way, and I’ll try to cover it in future newsletters!?

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This opening edition is all centred on time—the one thing that probably rivals money as the core driver why so many of us start our own businesses and continue to put ourselves through it year after year.?

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But do you know what I see more than ever these days??

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Hardworking people working harder than ever for less time to enjoy with their loved ones.?

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I know I’m a numbers guy, but surely anyone can see that the numbers don’t add up correctly??

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Having been through the process of raising a family and growing a business simultaneously, I get it.??

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It pains me to see people not able to enjoy the precious moments that only come around once.??

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You can’t ever plan when the ‘first time,’ ‘only time’, or ‘last time’ of something is going to happen… missing multiple of those moments because you’re working too hard is a regret you’ll carry with you forever.?

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“But Ben, it’s not that easy, mate!”?

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Again, I get it. And let’s face it, many other people in your life might not – your partner, mates, or family who don’t understand the pressures on your shoulders and how broad they’re forced to become.?

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Sure, it’s the physical time, but the mental time and headspace that seems to evaporate, too.?

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• The 5am wake-up sweats, stressed about cash flow, wages and your own mortgage.?

• The school play you barely watched because you had fires erupting on projects.?

• The dinner times spent worrying about a deal closing instead of engaging with your kids.?

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There’s a reason I only work with family-orientated businesses/business leaders.?

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Because my greatest driver is helping give good people at the helm of great businesses, get more of the commodity most valuable to them – time, not money.?

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It’s the little things that people are able to do with the added hour here or day there that previously seemed inconceivable to them.?

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A few examples which always warm my soul are things like a client finally managing a family holiday for a week... the first time they’d managed this since setting the business up in the first place!?

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And another client now gets to regularly spend a day a week with their family, instead of struggling for an evening a month of quality time!?

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Sometimes it is more work focused though – like a client whose roles and responsibilities we managed to reshape so they only did the bits of work they enjoyed doing and the whole reason they set the business up in the first place which they’d lost sight of recently.?

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Even myself, on a more personal level, had to experience grief this year. And it’s pretty horrible, as anyone who’s gone through it will know.?

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It really makes you stop and reconsider what you’re allocating your limited time and energy resources to.?

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A slightly morbid question but one that always helps me zoom out – “If you tomorrow, Ben, would you be proud of how you spent today, mate?”…?

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Usually helps me step back and reconsider whatever I’m prioritising!?

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But even when you’ve had some time in your day cleared of tasks to do – like working with someone like me, for example – it is only half the battle.??

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You still need to motivation to fill that time with something productive!?

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A good example from me (to show I’m practising what I’m preaching) is this newsletter itself!??

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I’ve delegated some of my more time-consuming tasks and streamlined some processes to ensure I have time to produce this once a month.?

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How did I make sure my freed-up time was productive, I hear you all ask??

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I was introduced to a 3-step simple process:?

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Step 1 – Write down a goal/task/something you want to start doing or achieve.?

Step 2 – List all the blockers or things preventing you from starting.?

Step 3 – Make an action plan to begin removing the blockers until you’re free to start.?

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My question and gauntlet to anybody reading this is to pick something in your mind right now and do step one.?

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It can be something monumental or minuscule – but what’s something you’ve been putting off doing because you’ve not got time to do it??

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Then, once you’ve finished reading this newsletter (and dropped it a like and comment on socials, of course), plan out those blockers and get to work eradicating them!?

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This has been the first of many monthly editions of ‘There’s only one F in Finance’ – a reminder to suggest any topics you think I should cover!?

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I hope you’ve found it enjoyable, and if not – there’s always next month!?

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