the number one reason businesses fail cashflow problems here's three ways to make that not happen to you remember this framework cashflow first cash stock first is get paid first then provide your service don't provide the service and then pay the difference is if you own a landscape business you want to get the money before you mow the lawn that's oddly kind of rare it's a recipe for disaster if you have to then collect payments and people don't pay you the second is reoccurring revenue get one client to pay you continuously over time most small businesses do not have subscription models they do not have multi month and multi-year payment models you are going to be different because that makes your life a lot harder three is a diversified client base if you have one to ten big clients and you lose a few you're in trouble when they leave my rule is no single customer makes up more than fifteen percent of the revenue of any business so get paid first make recurrent revenue diversify your client base that's how you build a business it's a cash flow business not a cash sack business