A businessman just sent me a message asking if he should continue his struggling business. Here’s my reply, for the benefit of those who might have the same question.
1) Numbers don’t lie. Sometimes, just by looking at the numbers, we will know if we should continue a business or close it down. You can determine thru the numbers if your debt is still manageable.
2) Leverage. Borrowing money to sustain a business is sometimes necessary, but if your collateral is your house, then you may be overextending yourself.
3) Failure is not a person, it’s an event. Failure is not you. Sometimes its ok to quit. The old saying that “Winners never quit and quitters never win” is an adage that may sound nice, but is not true. Winners quit all the time. They just quit the right things. Statistics show that successful entrepreneurs have a failure rate of 3.8 times before they become successful.
4) Is your business still giving you peace of mind and heart? If it is from God, even though it is difficult and have many problems, there will be peace.
Options you can take:
1) Continue the business. Compute. Ask yourself: If I were to operate in the next 6 months, based on our profit and loss statement, how much income or loss will we incur?
2) Close the business. Sell the assets to pay off the liabilities. If your assets are not enough, then you should negotiate with your creditors. Bite the bullet now before your debt bloats from interest or other factors.
3) Look for a partner who will finance the business. You have to be transparent to them. You will lose total control of your business; which can be a good thing or a bad thing, depending on your partner.
4) Sell the business. Again, be transparent. You might be selling it at a possible loss. But better to get something from it than nothing at all.
In the midst of all of this, ask God to reveal to you what He wants to teach you. It is in these moments that we can hear from God the most. “Be still and know that He is God.”
One final thought. I’ve heard this from all business people who overcame insurmountable odds and made a comeback. They all said, “Matatapos din yan!” You will be stronger and wiser after all of this. And most importantly, you will be more dependent on God.