Cash flow in The Self-Employed Man

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GuideRay Okonkwo25 Sept 20266 min

Your January was decided back in July

Slow months don't sink tradesmen. Busy months spent like they'll never end do. How to build a winter you can actually sit through.

Quarterly taxes and the one rule that ends the April ambush

Your rate isn't your old salary divided by forty hours

What to check in the books before you buy somebody's business

The seller's P&L is a sales document. The bank statements are the truth. Start there and work outward.

GuideStartupsRay Okonkwo23 Sept 20266 min

One Hour on Friday Is All Your Books Need

Do your bookkeeping in a fixed weekly hour and you'll always know three numbers that decide whether your business lives.

Ask BRO

Give me something to do with my kids this weekend

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GuideSelf-Employed WomenNina Castellan25 Sept 20266 min

Your side hustle is ready when it's costing you to keep the job

Matching your salary isn't the signal. The real test is a different number, a waitlist and a cash cushion, and most women quit on the wrong one.

GermProof.com — An invisible germ barrier on your skin for hours

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Retirement6 min read

When To Pay Off The Mortgage Before You Retire

The payoff decision isn't really about the interest rate. It's about which account the money comes out of, and what that does to your tax bill.

Poll

What was your first ever job?

GuideReal EstateRay Okonkwo23 Sept 20266 min

What a Property Manager Actually Does for That 8 Percent

The monthly fee is the easy number to compare. The leasing fee, the repair markup and the 11 p.m. phone call are where this decision really gets made.

GuideStartupsRay Okonkwo23 Sept 20266 min

The first year with your name on the van

Most new trades businesses don't fold because the work was bad. They fold because of cash timing, one ugly job, and a rate set by guesswork.

Names.com — The name is the first thing you sell

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GuideBusinessRay Okonkwo23 Sept 20266 min

Rolling reserves, chargeback ratios and the numbers that bite

Two thresholds decide whether your processor trusts you, and one of them isn't the one you think. What the merchant agreement doesn't spell out.

Quiz

Is your money actually in order?

Six questions. No email required, no sales pitch at the end.

GuideStartupsRay Okonkwo23 Sept 20266 min

The hourly number you need before you quote another job

Most small service businesses price off what the guy down the road charges. Do the arithmetic on your own costs first, then decide what to do about the market.

GuideBusinessRay Okonkwo23 Sept 20265 min

Your high-risk processing rate isn't your processing cost

The 4.35% on the quote sheet is the smallest number in the deal. Work out the reserve, the float and the chargeback drag before you sign.

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Pressure-test my business idea

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GuideBusinessRay Okonkwo23 Sept 20266 min

Your processor just shut you off. Work the first six hours.

A hold notice at 6:40 a.m. is survivable. What kills companies is the four days people spend arguing with a support queue instead of moving.

CancerDefying.com — The research, protocols and reading in one place

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GuideStartupsRay Okonkwo22 Sept 20266 min

How to price trade work without guessing

Most trade businesses that fold aren't short of work. They're short of margin, because nobody ever worked out what an hour actually costs.

Poll

How many days a week are you actually training?

GuideBusinessRay Okonkwo23 Sept 20266 min

The four-digit number that decides how your business gets paid

Your merchant category code sets your interchange, your customers' rewards, and whether a corporate card will even approve you. Most operators never check it.