Money Habits of Entrepreneurs

A successful entrepreneur is aware that they need to have a clear purpose, value, and good return on investment for every rupee they spend. Ask any entrepreneur out there about the one skill that is crucial to their success, and the answer you are most likely to get is Financial Management. 

Being an entrepreneur means handling the finances of your business as well as your personal finance. 

person holding U.S. dollar banknote

All of us might not be entrepreneurs, but we can learn from successful entrepreneurs’ proven money habits to extend the value of our economic resources. We’ve put together some tried and tested strategies and some entrepreneurs’ money habits that you can adopt to realize your business and financial goals. 

  1. Have clarity about your financial goals 

Entrepreneurs are clear about their personal finance’s short- and long-term goals and accordingly work towards it. Get a diary and chart out the financial milestones you want to achieve in the next year, five years and ten years. Develop a plan that is clear and realistic to help you achieve those goals. Lastly, do not forget to continually review your plans and goals and adapt as per the situation.  

  1. Organize your personal finances 

Entrepreneurs love nothing more than to watch their money grow! Set a daily, monthly and yearly budget for yourself. Investment in different funds, pensions and have a retirement plan for yourself. 

  1. Adopt a savings mindset 

An entrepreneur knows that a healthy financial lifestyle is crucial for growth. The best way to achieve this is by adopting a savings mindset. The first step towards sticking to this habit is putting away the amount you want to save first and then planning your expenses around the remaining amount. Most of us make the mistake of doing this the other way round. 

  1. Diversify your revenue streams 

Entrepreneurs are always on the lookout for new opportunities and know better than to invest all their money in one place. Diversification means an opportunity for growth. Educate yourself about the different investment options available to you and create a diverse portfolio of financial products. This will help your money grow and will decrease dependence on one stream. 

  1. Master the use of credit 

If there is a battle that entrepreneurs fight daily, it is not to get swamped by the mountain of interest payments. They know better than to spend more on a card than they can pay off in a single billing cycle. 

Start by paying off your high-interest debts first to manage personal and business credit better. 

  1. Be frugal 

Finances and discipline go hand in hand. Entrepreneurs know they need to be stingy with their money, and they are not ashamed to wear this as a badge of honour. This does not mean that you are living uncomfortably – it just means that you choose to focus on the larger picture rather than give in to instant gratification. 

We hope this has helped you understand entrepreneurs’ money habits and how you can adopt them in your lifestyle. It’s not essential to incorporate everything at once, but it’s important to at least start!

As they hit the final IPL shot, let us take home a few key learnings!

India loves nothing more than its cricket. And cricket is best epitomized in the all exciting and our very own Indian Premier League. However, if we spare a thought, IPL is not just a game. The learnings that we can derive from IPL are applicable in multiple facets of life.

Let us see how you can takeaway 5 things that will help us manage your money better.

1. Balance your portfolio

T20 as a sport demonstrates how a team cannot harness dependency on a single player. A winning team is a combination of the right mix of bowlers, batsmen and all-rounders.

Likewise, a portfolio which is diversified across various asset classes is always preferable over one which focuses on a single asset class. Imagine you invest all your savings in that house you had always dreamt of. While you now own the place you stay in, you don’t know how to fund the medical emergency that has suddenly cropped up in the family. Hence, it is essential that you map your investments to various goals and create a balanced portfolio.

2. Start planning early

IPL teams start wracking their brains right from the day they have to pick their players: which players should be retained, what would be the best combination in the given budget, is the value of a player worth his cost?

Similarly, an early planning for investing is always worthwhile. Not only does it give us better control over our finances but also gives us substantial time to plan for our goals. It is therefore important to understand every step in financial planning before you actually start investing.

3. What’s hyped isn’t always the best

IPL-1 is a great reflection of the famous catchphrase ‘all that glitters is not gold’. With their multi-million dollar wallets, pundits betted on teams like Mumbai Indians and Delhi Daredevils. The season, however, ended with the shoestring-budgeted Rajasthan Royals taking the trophy home. People thought that a bigger budget meant winning the trophy. But if only it was that simple!

Hype can often be misleading. We often tend to fall prey to herd mentality. However, it is of utmost criticality that you decipher facts yourself and look at all the important statistics with the help of an expert.

4. Keep your calm: Don’t quit on a winning strategy

IPL-2015 – a case in point. Mumbai Indians lost the first four matches of the season and were at the bottom of the table. But they knew they had a winning mix. They chose to stick to their guns and treaded with caution and patience. Result – They brought the trophy back home.

So, if you know that you have a winning portfolio or a winning strategy, don’t quit! Don’t be bogged down by short term fluctuations and focus on the long term.

5. Some advice along the way always pays off

We have often seen the cricketing maestros contributing their bit in mentoring and guiding the players off the field.

Financial planning which is a highly knowledge driven domain, is better done when planned along with a financial advisor. While your current knowledge may seem to be sufficient and adequate, you might not be as aware of the latest developments or specific implications of different instruments and investment avenues. It therefore always pays off to consult an advisor before you take that big leap with your hard earned money.