Your Business Angels

Something we need to talk about in time of trouble The Australian Government has temporarily changed bankruptcy law to help protect people who are facing unmanageable debt as a result of the economic impacts of COVID-19. If you’re a sole trader, or operating a business as a partnership, you could face personal bankruptcy if you can’t pay your debts. If you’re in financial difficulty you can now apply for temporary debt protection; this prevents recovery action by unsecured creditors for six months. You can use the time to: Change your habits, stop spending so that you don’t solve on crisis and create another. This can also mean a change of culture. Seek help for those things that may have caused your problem. If you gamble start by getting rid of the betting app. Be honest about your situation with those around, but do not ask them to bail you out if you haven’t changed your spending, financial and monetary habits and culture. Consider negotiate payment plans wit...

How to restart a business Go to the door, put the key in the door, turn the lock, turn the door knob, push the door, step inside the door, close the door, walk in and start. It’s that simple (pardon the metaphor, not every business is a shop front or an office). It’s something you desire and want to do, and if you are determined then the odds aren’t stacked against you. That’s it, right now they are not stacked against you. It’s the same – to keep a business going. OK turnover is going to be down probably a lot now, the future is unknown but we know that we will all get through this so that is enough. There are people who want what you are selling or offering, there are people who love your business and yes will come back or stay with you and there are new markets if you are invigorated and want to chase those markets – Yes walk in, or stay in and start. Landlords must now deal with you and can’t kick you out – how do you deal with them to get the bes...

Watch this space With Virgin Airlines in administration we can watch how the top end of town reconstruct an airline so that it can be still the second airline in Australia and also be far more competitive. You have a sense that this is going to happen because you start to see Qantas start to talk about how competitive it’s going to be and give this new airline a baptism of fire while the head of REX airline has said that the airline would head for another financial disaster unless it was completely restructured including rewriting its enterprise bargaining agreement. In a nutshell Virgin airline went into administration owing billions of dollars. A large amount of this money is unsecured so it seems that a lot of lenders will take a serious haircut. There are a few lenders who have security over planes but in the scheme of things any deal would be better for the lenders than losing everything. Bidders for the airline will be looking at putting just the right amount of mon...

You are finally getting recognition that you exist – it took a pandemic to do so! So, here is the thing, I’m looking for a metaphor to write this blog about small businesses in Australia that make up 62.7% of all enterprises that have finally been recognised by the government. And ironically this recognition comes about because of the pandemic. In the initial stimulus package, self-employed ABN holders were left out of the cash boost which was a refund on PAYG payments. They were also left out when Jobkeeper was first announced. But then with pressure it became clear that the 1.9 million enterprises in Australia run by one person needed support. So piece by piece, day by day, we started to get options for self-employed ABN holders who traded as a sole trader, in a partnership or as a one person company. There is still a way to go because we need to make representation to the government on a bunch of other people who operate a business legitimately pay taxes and have be...

How to Survive a Rip Tide How to Survive a Rip Tide Lessons for Business The term “rip tide” is usually used to describe rip currents, which are long, narrow bands of water that can pull swimmers away from the shore. If you do get caught in a rip current, the best thing you can do is stay calm. It’s not going to pull you underwater, it’s just going to pull you away from shore. Call and wave for help. You want to float, and you don’t want to swim back to shore against the rip current because it will just tire you out. While some researchers recommend floating to the end of the current, advice swimming parallel to the shore to escape. In either case, it’s vital to stay calm and avoid swimming directly against the current. If you can’t break free, yell and wave your arms to get the attention of a lifeguard or other beach-goers. In the last three weeks and probably in the next few weeks you will feel like you and your business are caught in a rip. That’s because there’s a l...

Treading water What is the most important thing to keep yourself from drowning? Getting out of the water—but treading water is a close second! Simply floating in water might look easy, but it’s actually pretty difficult if you don’t have a flotation device, and treading water is an essential safety skill for anyone who plans on spending time on or near the water. People who teach swimming will tell you the main ingredient is staying calm and practising essential skills that keep you floating there no matter what is happening around you. If you can survive the initial riptide this virus has had in affecting businesses the next thing you need to do is to be able to simply float. There is legislation to stop landlords throwing you out of your premises, most finance companies are looking to put your loans on hold, many staff have been accepting of the rationality of their employers and the Australian Taxation Office has been exceptional when Your Business Angels has approached ...

Launch the life boat A rescue lifeboat is a boat rescue craft which is used to attend someone in distress. It can be hand pulled, sail powered or powered by an engine. Lifeboats may be rigid, inflatable or rigid-inflatable combination hulled vessels. Does it matter as long as it arrives in time? https://yourbusinessangels.com.au/launch-the-life-boat/ #yourbusinessangels