At the opening of a New Year, many people make resolutions involving their personal health, personal goals, and much more. For those business owners dealing with corporation bankruptcy, your resolutions should focus on the business. A failing business mired in debt or lack of sales can be turned around. As the owner and consultant for Turnaround Central, I have the experience and knowledge to help you create those resolutions and stick to them.



Here is a list of 10 resolutions to salvage a failing business from corporation bankruptcy.

1. Begin by opening your accounting books. Figure the amount you have to pay back over a one-year period. As much as we want to turn away from the ugly monster that has become our debt, to get a clear picture of our future we first need to grip reality. Jot down the amount owed to creditors, suppliers, and anyone else. From that number, you can begin to accept the problem and to take action.

2. Find cost savings. If you have been working with a supplier simply out of loyalty, and not because they are offering the best price on the market, stop! To get out of debt and turnaround the business, an owner must stop being loyal to a fault and cut costs. This is your first step in restoring your cash flow.

3. Watch your cash flow. Always know where your money goes. In-house operations can be less costly than outside jobs. For example, do your printing in-house; do not pay a copy center to do this. Find other ways to cut costs.

4. Know your staff's performance. Reevaluate everyone and find out who is slacking off when they should be performing a task. If you have underachievers, fire them. It can benefit you to trim down salary costs while turning around your business.

5. Contact past due customers. Your customers are your business? lifeblood. Without their payments, you may just as well close up shop. Contact them to get outstanding invoices paid, and if necessary, contact a credit agency to collect.

6. Try to refinance your loans. If you have outstanding loans or property mortgages, talk to your loan officer about a better interest rate or term extension to reduce your monthly payments.

7. Reduce inventory. By liquidating the unsold items from your inventory and keeping the number of in-stock items to a minimum, you can shave dollars on your monthly spending and bring in some immediate cash.

8. Reduce costly advertising campaigns. If you don't know what sales an advertising campaign is bringing in, you must find out. You can track it by asking customers to your store or website how they found you. Then if the campaign is not paying out, cut it. Only keep those campaigns that make you money.

9. Cut costly services. Do an inventory of your services and see which ones you can cut or downgrade to save money every month. Land line phones, cell phones and online access are always areas to find additional money.

10. Create a short, medium, and long-term financial goals plan. One long-term goal should be a simple yet comprehensive goal for you to become debt free. Focus on incorporating your newfound money saving methods into the equation and see when you will be in the black.

By following my 2007 resolutions to turnaround your business, corporation bankruptcy may become a distant memory in future years.