Change: How about… Money Matters?
Leverage Other Funding
Some of these utility bill leeches (that we referenced in the money section) have become even more sophisticated of late and apply many of the same principles—notably taking a share of what you save/make—and offer their talents to apply for grants for you. Some are prepared to assist you in taking advantage of government or regional grants. Why not get one of these fish in (are leeches fish?) and get them to tell you without obligation what is available, whether they think it might work for you, and if so how much they’ll charge as a success fee? If it can apply to you and there are many potential schemes out there, with backdated claims and all, you could be due a tidy sum.
You do of course also have government loan finance—be it for regional policy, employment, exports, and so on. And if you had one a while back, are you eligible to return to the trough for another, or more? How imaginative is your bank in financing? Since you last met with the bank, does it now have offerings of inventory or asset finance schemes that could help you that you are currently unaware of?
Remember, there is a maxim that a bank will only lend to someone who can prove they don’t need the money. It has to be substantially true, or interest charged on loans would be sky-high. One way for the bank to feel more secure is for it to seek a personal guarantee from you as further security for an advance. Please resist, because if your business fails, you are not then going to be able to repay the loan yourself because you’ve lost your employment (as well as the business) and the whole thing gets very messy.
Pause: Did you make notes of things in the Action This Today section in the back of this book? If not, please take this opportunity to review the prior pages to identify again any thoughts and ideas you want to follow up on.