Navigating the Turmoil of Cash Flow Management:
Lessons Learnt from My Entrepreneurial Journey

Hello everyone,

Today, I want to share with you the stress, the anxiety, and the sheer overwhelm that comes with managing cash flow when things don't quite go to plan. Whether you're an entrepreneur, facing personal financial difficulties, or running a business in challenging times, this message is for you. Hopefully, sharing my experiences will help you in some capacity.

Welcome back to consecutive day 1622 of my "Diary of a Runpreneur". If you believe in my mission of saving the lives of children by attempting the ultimate ultra-marathon and run-vlogging every single day for a lap of the world, barefoot style, please consider subscribing, sharing, liking, and commenting. The more people we reach, the more funds we raise, and the more children's lives we can save. Thank you, as always, and let's dive in.

Facing the Financial Storm

So, as mentioned in my opening, this is day 1622 of my daily run-vlog, and today's topic revolves around the stresses and anxieties of cash flow management, be it personal or business. It's an incredibly stressful endeavour when your financial situation is not where you want it to be. In fact, financial stress is one of the largest sources of pressure, certainly here in the UK, and likely globally.

Why am I talking about this today? You might think that everything is going smoothly with my business, but that's far from the full storey. Despite our overall success, the past couple of weeks have been some of the most stressful periods of my entrepreneurial journey.

The Revolut Dilemma

Our banking facility, which is with Revolut, has clearly reached its limits for our needs. Revolut is excellent for micro-businesses or small personal accounts, allowing you to open accounts within minutes. However, it's not suitable for a sizeable commercial entity like our social housing group business has become.

A past restriction with Revolut in 2023 disrupted us for five days. We took measures to ensure we wouldn't find ourselves in that situation again by moving money into separate accounts and creating additional business accounts to provide contingency. This worked well for shorter disruptions, but our recent situation has reached 14 days and counting, with the bank suggesting it could take another week to resolve.

This has placed enormous cash flow pressure on our business, which is otherwise very cash-rich. We've built up reserves to protect our investors and stakeholders, but we've been put in a position where our accounts are frozen, likely due to the bank's need for compliance checks related to money laundering laws. Even though we have provided all relevant documentation and legal advice to show we're compliant, the checks continue.

Learning and Adapting

What makes this particularly frustrating is that had we been using a commercial banking entity with sufficient infrastructure, these checks would be expedited. In a commercial bank, compliance checks are done in advance, and in case of any issues, a sit-down meeting with evidence can often resolve matters quickly.

In retrospect, not moving to a more suitable banking facility earlier was a misstep on our part. However, our business growth from a micro-level to a borderline medium-sized entity in just 12 months has meant constant adaptation and changes to our processes and systems, with banking falling lower on the priority list.

Now, we find ourselves essentially living hand to mouth. Money coming in goes straight back out, and we have no operational capital to fall back on. We're in the process of securing a rolling overdraft facility with a new bank, but this takes time, and it's incredibly challenging.

Staying Sane in the Madness

The stress, anxiety, and feelings of being overwhelmed during this period have been intense. The constant worry about upcoming payments and maintaining transparent communication with stakeholders without causing alarm has been taxing. Our situation has probably been exacerbated by the fraudulent activities of another industry provider, drawing further scrutiny on us.

Yet, this experience has reinforced some critical lessons for me:

Acceptance: Certain situations are beyond our control. Accepting this is the first step toward managing stress.

Persistence and Belief: Successful entrepreneurs persist and believe in their mission. I have to trust in our compliance and continue hustling to navigate through this period.

Learning from mistakes: Every mistake or failure is an opportunity to grow. We'll emerge from this with improved contingency planning and resilience.

Positivity and Proactivity: Focusing on proactive steps rather than succumbing to negativity is crucial. There's always a solution; we just need to find the best one for our situation.

Moving Forward

As we embark on yet another week of this journey, my focus remains on developing robust contingency plans for all potential outcomes. I remain optimistic and determined, steadfast in the belief that we will come through this stronger and better prepared for future challenges.

If you have any questions or comments, please drop me a line. I'll respond to everyone. And once again, if you support my mission of saving children's lives through this ultra-marathon challenge, please subscribe, share, like, and comment. The more people we reach, the more funds we raise, and the more lives we save.

Stay positive, stay happy, and I'll see you again tomorrow.

Kevin Brittain