So, there was this business owner sitting at my desk at the edge of desperation seeking another loan. No working capital, little equity and lots of debt. It was a nightmare. The person left with little hope as I pledged to re-crunch the numbers. Unfortunately, the numbers never came together.

That same day, another business owner came to my desk and we spoke for a few minutes. After a short call to credit administration, the customer left with a commitment for a $1 million signature (unsecured) loan at a rock-bottom interest rate.

In our last posting we spoke of “To Do Lists”. To do lists help focus on daily or several days of must do items. To do lists can be effective in getting things done.

At the end of each day your to do list should be reviewed to see what tasks or items were started, advanced to completion or not even touched. Once you have reviewed your progress compare your actions to your short term goals for the week, month or the quarter.

When I was young my friends and I would use a magnifying glass to catch the sunlight to start camp fires. We would prepare a bed of grass with small wood chips on top, and then would use the magnifying glass to focus sunlight onto it. Within a short period of time the intense light would start the grass smoldering, and with continued effort the grass would catch fire.

In our daily tasks we have much to do in our business. One way to help catch things “on fire” is to increase our focus on the tasks at hand. We each have 24 hours in a given day. How we use it is determined by our situation and desires.