1. Shoeboxes are for shoes, not business records.

Pardon my candor but, you will never have a successful business if you don 't systematically track your income and expenses, who owes you money, and who you owe money to. This is absolutely crucial. You don't have to have a big expensive computerized system, although a computer program like QuickBooks certainly does a beautiful job. You can keep track of everything with a pencil and paper if you like. But, you've got to track basic information in a systematic manner. Without this vital information your business cannot flourish and your cash flow will always keep you up at night.

2. Getting your customers to "show you money".

The best way to get your customers to pay what is owed is to remove every possible excuse for nonpayment. Don't extend credit unless it's absolutely necessary. Establish credit policies to help determine who will get credit. Get an invoice into bill payer's hand as quickly as possible after work is done or product is delivered. Don't be afraid to send a letter or statement or make a phone call reminding your customer his bill is due. Never be rude. Always be firm. Focus on preserving relationship. If a customer has a legitimate gripe about your business do whatever you can to fix problem.

3. Budget is not a four letter word.

Repeat after me, "Budgets are our friends." Seriously! A budget is a plan. It helps you stay focused on what you need to achieve. For example, you can use your budget to help you achieve sales goals, determine how much you need to spend on advertising, how much you'll need for materials, and if you can afford to pay overtime. Having a budget for your business is difference between piloting a plane with instruments or flying blind in a fog.

4. A customer in hand is worth two in bush.

My very first customer is still with me. Over life time of our relationship, she will be worth at least tens of thousands of dollars. Actually, she's worth far more than that because she refers business to me regularly. It's easy to get caught up in search for new customers. But, never forget ones you already have. What other services or products can you offer to them? How can you get them to refer their friends and colleagues to you? You can build a successful business around a small number of customers by providing them with excellent customer care and a range of solutions. Loyal customers are money in bank, they're easier to work with, and it's less expensive to keep them happy than it is to find new customers.

5. The most powerful number in your business.

If you know only one number in your business it ought to be your Breakeven Point. Your breakeven point is moment in time when your income equals your expenses. If your income is higher than your expenses, you have a profit. If your expenses are higher than your income you have a loss.

For those of us who are still in process of making New Year resolutions, my suggestion is to give high priority to financial aspects. Here are some resolution ideas that may change your financial future over course of time.

Saving

Lets make one thing clear! What ever amount of money you make it’s probably never enough! The way our consumer psychology works is our demand increases along with our income. This makes saving really a problematic task! Some people do have inborn ability to save willingly, but most have to force themselves. If you are one of these people, who find saving a difficult thing, you should consider methods described below.

•Commit to yourself that each month you will set aside minimum ten percent of your income for investment purposes. •Make a strict habit of depositing 10 percent of all your incomes directly to your saving account. •No matter what happens, don’t give up.

You might argue that your income is not enough to make any kind of savings. Believe me, once you try putting away 10 percent of your earnings, you will see that this really does not have any serious impact on your budget. So your first resolution is to save ten percent of all your incomes month after month. There is hardly any point to save if you don’t put your money to work for yourself! So, once you resolved to save, you need to invest your money wisely. Credit cards and other consumer loans

According to New York Times through out last decade use of credit cards has increased dramatically. The number of people having credit cards raised about 75 percent from 82 million in 1990 to 144 million in 2003. However, debt burden that they carry had grown 350 percent from US$338 billion to an astounding US$1.5 trillion. In 2003, according to same report, average household carried a debt of US$ 7,520 in comparison to US$2,550 in 1990.