Side Hustle 101 - AR/AP | Pay Debts Like a Lannister

Side Hustle 101 Series

Starting Your Own Small Business
https://urbanomics.blogspot.com/2018/12/side-hustle-101-start-your-business.html

Running a Small Business
https://urbanomics.blogspot.com/2019/02/side-hustle-101-own-your-business.html
https://urbanomics.blogspot.com/2019/03/side-hustle-101-are-open-for-business.html
https://urbanomics.blogspot.com/2019/03/a-21-savage-look-into-business-income.html

How to Manage Small Business Risks
https://urbanomics.blogspot.com/2018/11/side-hustles-101-risk-vs-reward.html

Small Business Benefits
https://urbanomics.blogspot.com/2018/12/side-hustle-101-pay-yourself-first-with.html

Small Business Diversification
          Keep Your 9-5 Job: 

https://urbanomics.blogspot.com/2019/11/hey-henry-high-earner-not-yet-rich.html

Know Your Worth: 

https://urbanomics.blogspot.com/2020/10/what-you-need-in-life-invest-like.html

Know When You're Speculating: 

https://urbanomics.blogspot.com/2020/10/oh-snapchat-whats-difference-between.html

This past week marked another significant milestone in building a side hustle that earns more than my main hustle (or 9-5 job).  Over the years, I've documented the slow build up of how to start, run, and manage a small business. A key part of this process is managing risk, something I help large corporations all across the world do. In particular I am building a business that helps me diversify my risk. 

My goal is to never be reliant on one source of income. 

My other goal is to add value to people's lives and this world.

I'm well onto my way of achieving these goals as my side hustles are getting close to eclipsing the relevance of my main hustle. Secondly, I continue to build a professional services business that is growing without a website, any marketing or overall push --- remember I have a 9-5 job. I landed my first major contract in San Antonio, Texas and this leads me to my second goal. I'm proud to be an employer --- I'm not just responsible for myself but my business has given someone a job and that speaks volumes. This person is well qualified but with the backdrop of a nation divided, my focus is on hiring people of color, veterans, women (in particular single moms), and anyone who wants to work hard while giving back to others. 

Due to the fact that I have to pay employees and vendors I wanted to quickly discuss how you manage your cash flow, prepare payroll, and make payments. First, I always remind people to understand who you're doing business with and get all terms documented in a contract. Being a risk manager, I review all my contracts and remove terms that ARE BAD FOR MY BUSINESS.

Cash Flow (Sales | Invoices | Receivables)

Sales - Review my Side Hustle series above and knowing your worth goes a long way into negotiating a sale of your product or service. My firm charges at a range where it's a win for my client, my employee, and myself.

Invoices - Next, I'm careful to invoice my customers on time and per the terms we agreed upon.

Receivables - Finally, I'm a hawk on knowing when and IF we got paid for the services we provided.

Payroll

If you have W2 employees, the best bet is to get a good payroll software here to help you ensure that you are deducting payroll taxes according to state and federal laws. If you only have 1099 or Corp2Corp relationships, you can accomplish this with requiring those relationships to invoice you according to a contractual agreement you've established.

Payables

You've seen me write before, I pay people according to the agreed upon terms "Like I'm a Lannister". Yes as in the dubious Lannister family in Game of Thrones, notoriously known for paying their debts or obligations. I keep my employees and vendors happy if I am paying them on-time and of course the right amounts. I've used a few companies this week to help me receive my cash timely and pay people time. I'll list a bunch (which include a few I use):

• Paycom
• Intuit Quickbooks
• ADP
• Paychex
• Gusto
• Your Bank

To keep things simple, for

Cash Flow and Receivables --- I channel The Notorious BIG on the song Get Money. Good contracts and tracking how much and when you're owed will ensure you'll never have to say the following lines: "Guess you could say your the one I trusted / Who would ever think that you would spread like mustard?"  

Payroll - Get help here, you're dealing with the laws. Don't be cheap on getting this right, as there are plenty of online software.

Payables - Paper or Plastic?  Believe it or not checks are the primary option for free delivery of payments to you employees or vendors. NOW you see why this area is ripe for disruption by startups. (hmmm maybe that will be my next startup company). Expect to pay a fee here to deliver payments directly to a bank account (direct deposit) --- but it reduces the risk of lost checks...and saves time.

#sidehustleseries   #paydebtslikealannister   #dontletcontractsspreadlikemustard  #paperorplastic #sanantonio  

Hey HENRY - High Earner Not Yet Rich

Oh no, I’ve got to keep on moving.  So I was in my SUV listening to the Sirius XM service and this song came on by Puff and Mase.  A mood comes over you when you hear certain songs and this song made me feel some type of way. 

First, it served as a reminder that we collectively are not getting any younger so don’t be held down by things in life.  Need proof, this great song was being played on a new station they were debuting: Hip-Hop from the 90s-2000s.  Ha! My favorite songs are now playing on an oldies channel.

Second, it’s a reminder to get your mind, health, wealth, and spiritual core in balance.  I stepped away from blogging for a while because life threw me an upper-cut harder than the ones thrown by Mike Tyson or Floyd Mayweather.  The loss of my father this year knocked me down but his well-lived life and legacy serves as a reminder for me and also hopefully for you to NOT BE HELD DOWN.

Third, live your life to the fullest and build a legacy you can be proud of.  Towards the end of college, I remember setting a goal with a few friends that we wanted to retire by the age of 35. I joke that I am Middle-America retired, I’ll explain shortly.  I recently learned that Wall Street likes to describe many of us as a “HENRY” – High Earning Not Rich Yet individuals. So being a HENRY and coming from a humble background has allowed me to evolve and change my target goal over time. While, I still worked towards the goal of retiring by 35, I realized that I didn’t live for myself anymore. I live to build, provide, and teach my family and friends about the importance of economic security and social awareness so that for generations to come we can overcome the obstacles that life will indefinitely throw at us.  Did I reach my goal?    I can definitively say that I have and now it’s time to lean in and assist you on your journey:

Goal 1: Be Middle America Retired – Remember, your family’s humble beginnings. Start modestly and set a reachable goal: For example, having enough income to buy a home in your parent’s neighborhood with the income from your investments but still having enough saving to never work again.

Goal 2: Debt Free – Eliminate debt from you and your family’s life. Just like Kanye, I’m tryna stay recession free…and the biggest pitfall people have during recessions is usually with debt. My buddy Warren Buffet is a fan of this rule too and DOES NOT like to buy stocks on margin (i.e., with debt).

Goal 3: Savings (6 - 12 months of Salary) – You need savings for life emergencies and they will come. Anticipate car break downs, hospital bills, house repairs, and a cushion against job loss.

Goal 4: Multiple Streams of Income – This is one of the most critical areas if you are a HENRY.  Be ready for what made you a HENRY. Capitalism!! Corporations unfortunately have one master…and that’s the stock market. So if they have to deliver a good quarter or more money back to shareholders…they will cut jobs and close plants and yes that includes the HENRY’s.  Don’t get it twisted, they call it “synergies”. When I buy my competitor’s company…I make money by eliminating all of the duplicate jobs. (What do you think will happen now that Charles Schwab just bought TD Ameritrade?  I heard estimates that up to 30% of the workforce could be cut.

Goal 5: A Balanced Core Gives You Freedom – Focus on family, go on trips, change jobs, start a business wisely, and get off of social media and actually build meaningful relationships. Why because you have planned, sacrificed and have flexibility to do it.

How do you get there, build up your pillars:

· Mental Pillar – Target mental growth through degrees, certifications, and self-learning. Find problems to solve, there is always a need for these items.
· Spiritual – Be grounded in something, when life rocks you…you need beliefs and a community to turn to; Volunteer and give back…trust this will make you feel good
· Financial – Economic security creates the ability to provide for you and your family. Find work that is fulfilling but more importantly solves a problem for others. If you had to advertise your personal skills would I hire you over the next person? Buy assets that appreciate, can be passed along, and that do NOT create additional debt. Diversify your income – do you have a retirement account, investment account, rental income, and a side hustle. If yes, Can’t Nobody Hold you down
· Health – Don’t let bad habits keep you down. A strong core should allow you to hopefully enjoy your hard work for years to come. But remember life is precious, so you must work hard to prolong it