Cash Flow for Creators: How to Transform Your Art into a Career by Michael W Lucas

Author:Michael W Lucas [Lucas, Michael W]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Tilted Windmill Press
Published: 2020-05-04T04:00:00+00:00

Maintaining the Bucket

The Bucket is the heart of your business. Successful professional creators regularly spend time studying and maintaining the Bucket.

The most frequent maintenance is recording receipts. Most often I scan the receipt the same day I spend the money, but when I have an evening meeting, first thing the next morning is good enough.

Monthly maintenance comes when it’s time to pay the credit card bill. I have one credit card dedicated to my business. (It’s in my name, but all expenses on that card are for the business.) When the calendar alarm reminds me it’s time, I go through the credit card statement line by line. Every item has a receipt, somewhere. I find any missing receipts, document them, and pay the credit card bill.

Yes, it’s annoying. Do I have to validate the credit card bill every month? Nope, not at all! I could save those statements until the week before my annual taxes are due and spend a horrific day or two scrutinizing twelve credit card statements, identifying missing receipts, and searching through my email and faded credit card slips in search of proof I paid that expense. It’s my business, it’s up to me. I will say that finding a missing two week old receipt is much easier than unearthing one eleven months old.

Once you record the expenses, go through them. What is your company spending money on? Do you need that? Do you still need that? Are you still paying for some service that you don’t use any more? Do you need everything you bought? Maybe there’s something you should have bought that would save you money? Do you need that much Internet, that much fuel, that much clay or silver, that many aardvarks?

Only then consider the Bucket as a whole. Is it more or less full than at the beginning of the month? During the Long Slow Slog, increasing the Bucket’s balance every month is a victory. You’ll have setbacks, sure, but they’re temporary.

Perhaps the most important lesson I learned during my Long Slow Slog was that my business would not only have good and bad months. It would have good and bad years. If I was to ever make my art my day job, I needed to prepare for economic crashes, pandemics, wars, and other black swan events.

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