Sound Business Advice
As part of the Woodbury School of Business Entrepreneurial Breakfast series, John Richards offers students and community members advice on how to fund their businesses, and he also extends other valuable business guidance. Courtesy of Shane Maryott
John Richards, an associate professor of Entrepreneurship at BYU spoke to a group of business-minded people at the Alumni House on June 10 as part of the Woodbury School of Business’s Entrepreneurial Breakfast Series.
Tapping into engaged learning with sponsors Bank of American Fork and the CPA firm Hawkins, Cloward & Simister, the Woodbury School of Business presented the second breakfast in their series.
Richards spoke to the group about “Funding Your Business.” He touched on a wide range of topics, including everything from balance sheets, income statements and capitalization tables to ratio analysis.
Ratio analyses are an “important barometer [or] measuring stick of how well you are doing,” Richards said.
Richards used the analogy of hanging a paper plate on a tree 200 yards away and tying to shoot at it with a pistol. This demonstrates what using financial plans in business can do.
“You could shoot at it a hundred times and never hit the paper plate,” Richards said. “If you have a rifle with a laser on it, you will hit it every time.”
According to Richards, there are two critical business mistakes. The first is a failure to determine the type of company being operated and who owns what in the company. The second is failure to plan financially, especially where cash flow is concerned.
While not everyone is a business person, all can learn from this pearl of wisdom.
We all have 24 hours in a day; this is a “non-renewable commodity,” as Richards said. When it is gone, it is gone. Learning to use that time wisely will allow for the highest productivity.
After attending the breakfast, entrepreneurial student Gavin Sullivan said there is “a lot more I need to learn before approaching investors.” He also learned about the important role financial statements have in business.
The breakfast series will be held on the first Thursday of each month through the end of the year at the UVU Alumni House and cover various topics in business. For more information, go to www.uvu.edu/woodbury/entrepreneurship/breakfast.html