Malcolm Forbes Quotes

The fact is that one of the earliest lessons I learned in business was that balance sheets and income statements are fiction, cash flow is reality.

If you only take money in the bank and never put money in the bank, you'll go broke.

For business owners, there are many important documents to learn to read. One of the most important is the profit and loss statement, known as the P&L, and the balance sheet.

No matter what business you're in, business is business, and financing and money are critical. I would have made a lot fewer mistakes if I had more schooling in that area.

Whenever we can, we tend to use debt to fund deals, as Aspen is very cash generative, so it doesn't make sense to issue equity. Over time, we can eliminate debt.

If you're running a business for the long term, the last thing you should be doing is borrowing money to buy back stock.

You have to manage money. Particularly with market economies. You may have a great product, but if your bottom line goes bust, then that's it.

It all started in Michigan. My dad got a job in Michigan, so we all moved up there from St. Louis. I kind of hung out in the summer and had nothing to do, so I sort of got into acting. And then I was going to Grand Blanc High, doing the acting thing and hoping it would pan out.

The Profit and Loss Statement tells you a lot about how your business is doing. It can also help you to determine ways that you can go about saving money so that you get to bring more money home! Basically, the P&L statement measures all of your income sources verses all your business expenses for any given period of time.

My major task was to keep us solvent.

You can make great money in a utility type of business by borrowing cheaply and lending sensibly but that's not what's being done.

With the world changing fast, we needed capital for investments. There's only so much bandwidth in your own balance sheet.

Don't ever let your business get ahead of the financial side of your business. Accounting, accounting, accounting. Know your numbers.

I don't think there is anything unusual about a business losing money in certain years.

Most entrepreneurs come up with a product, or they come up with an idea and they think they can be successful with it. But if they don't know the financial side of their business and understand credit and working capital and what it takes money-wise, you can't be successful. The product is just a product.

The first aspect of a business that you need to make it work well is money. Once the money aspect is flowing, you can freely work on other aspects.

I remember hearing, back in the day, so-and-so got a deal, and bands are spending the money. Some of them live in the old days, where money is coming in and budgets are endless, but bands have to pay that back. Some bands just don't realize that.

I took business and economics courses. More than anything, I learned the proper steps and the things that need to be outlined. You have to keep your books: how much money you made, how much money you're spending, what you profited, and what you're gonna need for expenses.

Cash flow is a problem for a small and developing company, and the lack of it is the reason why many small businesses fail. Ensure that you have enough money in your bank account to make you able to carry out daily basic needs for your business.

A small business can survive for a while without making a profit, but if its cashflow dries up, the impact is fatal.

Never take your eyes off the cash flow because it's the life blood of business.

We were always focused on our profit and loss statement. But cash flow was not a regularly discussed topic. It was as if we were driving along, watching only the speedometer, when in fact we were running out of gas.

Control your cash. Stick to your core business. Know your numbers.

Money in the bank is like toothpaste in the tube. Easy to take out, hard to put back.

Entrepreneurs believe that profit is what matters most in a new enterprise. But profit is secondary. Cash flow matters most.