It is all very well preparing monthly accounts in a business to see how well you are doing but that is really only a part of the picture. To get the most out of your accounts, you need to know where you are compared with where you expected to be.

Of course that means preparing a budget each year in advance. That may sound like a chore but it does make you sit down and ask yourself a few searching questions. What type of work or sales am I trying to get? Should I put my prices up/down? Can I reduce my costs? Should I employ someone in to relieve the pressure?

Without a budget we can all lose sight of what we are trying to achieve.