Late payments are something that all freelancers and small business owners have to deal with sooner or later.

Not getting paid or having to wait for money to come through from clients can be extremely stressful. And it’s so frustrating. You’ve done all the work and kept to your end of the bargain, so there’s absolutely no reason for your customer not to do the same.

In my experience, there are certain types of customers who tend to struggle more than others when it comes to paying invoices on time. In this blog post, I’m going to run through these different kinds of clients and give you some suggestions for how to deal with each one.

Although you can’t force a client to pay you, there are some things you can do to avoid late payments or deal with them in the right way when you find yourself faced with an overdue invoice.

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As a freelancer and small business owner, it’s so important to dedicate time to your business finances. Keeping on top of them is what will allow you to create a sustainable business that works for you in the long term.

When I talk about keeping on top of your finances, I don’t just mean getting them organised once in a blue moon and then forgetting about them. You need to be able to look at them and analyse them on a regular basis so that you can understand which direction to take your business in moving forwards.

This is why I designed my virtual coworking session, to make it easy for my mentees (and non-mentees) to set aside two hours of their time each month exclusively for their business finances. In part two of this series, in which I’m suggesting how to spend these two hours, I’m dealing with checking in on your pricing strategy and receiving payments.

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If you’re one of the many freelancers and small business owners asking yourself “Why am I bad with money?”, know that you’re not alone. This feeling is something I come across so often among my mentees, and it’s such a shame because it simply isn’t true.

When my mentees come to me, more often than not, they feel overwhelmed by their business finances. They’re unsure where to start in order to get on top of things and find themselves actively avoiding looking at the numbers in their business. They also frequently believe they’re bad with money and, therefore, bad business owners, which couldn’t be further from the truth!

If you think about it, it’s only natural if the financial side of things isn’t our number one priority. We build our businesses based on our skills and passions, so it’s only normal if we focus on these rather than our bottom line. In this blog post, I’m addressing the common misconception that many freelancers and small business owners have of being bad with money, and I’m also sharing how to stop feeling that way!

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We all know that to run a successful business, we need to be able to accept payments. It sounds simple, but sometimes receiving money is easier said than done, especially when it comes to accepting international payments.

Nowadays, it’s not uncommon for freelancers to work with customers in other countries. Even for those who don’t work with languages, the countless opportunities provided by travel and the World Wide Web mean that people and companies are no longer restricted to working only with those in close physical proximity. And with more small businesses than ever before needing to be able to accept international payments, software companies are developing solutions and technologies to help us do just that.

How to receive payments is a topic that often comes up with my mentees, so I wanted to use this blog post to share some of the different options available to you that you might not have considered before. Click here to find out more!

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Setting time aside to work on your finances is a key part of running a small and successful freelance business. When you can’t find the time, you need to make time, because this is what will help you stay on track and take steps towards growth.

Recently, I’ve been running a virtual coworking session once a month to help freelancers block out time in their busy schedules and focus on their finances. We spend two hours working on our individual finance-related tasks, and the freelancers who have taken part so far have found the sessions really valuable.

That said, I know that two hours can feel a bit intimidating. So, in this blog post, I’m suggesting five finance tasks you could think about doing the next time you set aside two hours to spend on your business admin. Part one of this series is dedicated to getting organised with your freelance finances!

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If you’ve been following me for a while, you’ll know that I strongly encourage checking in on your business finances as frequently as possible. Although many freelancers think that nothing could be more important than client work, you really do need to prioritise your figures if you want to create a sustainable business that works for you in the long run.

Assessing where your business is at on a weekly basis will provide you with the information you need to make strategic business decisions and adjust your course of action when necessary.

In this blog post, I’m explaining why I think weekly check-ins are so beneficial, as well as sharing what I look at when I review my business finances once a week.

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When you run a business, the most essential things you need to record are your income and expenditure. It’s so important to be aware of what’s coming in and leaving your account at all times, especially if you want to feel in control of your business finances.

That’s why it always surprises me how few freelancers actually record their income and expenditure on an ongoing basis. These are the numbers that will give you an overview of how your business is performing as a whole.

In this blog post, I’m explaining why it’s important to record your income and expenditure, as well as showing you how to go about it!

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Keeping on top of the numbers in your business is one of the most important things you can do as a business owner. Whether you’re the CEO of a large multinational or the boss of your one-(wo)man band, having a clear overview of the figures and knowing where your business is at is essential if you want to be able to make strategic decisions that will allow your business to grow in the long term.

I always recommend looking at your finances on a weekly basis, but if you can’t manage that, monthly check-ins are a must! They enable you to follow your progress and adjust your course to make sure that you achieve your goals and develop a successful business that works for you.

In this blog post, I’m setting out seven key steps to help you carry out a review of your business finances on a monthly basis.

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