The Breakfast Club for 40-Somethings

Chapter 18 Reality bites

Ben smiled each time he received another message from one of his friends from the reunion asking for an appointment. He knew they could benefit from advice, but even he hadn’t thought all of them would act on this so quickly. He had his EA shuffle his week around so he could fit them all in. No time like the present to act. He knew the longer they waited, the easier it would be to stay stuck in their present ways.

First in his diary was Josephine, and he was looking forward to hearing more about her business and how she had set up her financial affairs.

Josephine arrived at his office five minutes early, looking immaculate as always. She shook his hand warmly and sat down in the chair opposite him. From her poise, it was hard to tell what she was thinking. Ben knew she was used to the pace of corporate life, so he dispensed with the usual chitchat and cut straight to the chase.

‘Why don’t you tell me about how your company is set up — things like ownership structure, debt, free cash flow and profit lines,’ Ben said.

Josephine smiled, and pulled her iPad out of her bag. She was ready for these sorts of questions, and was soon showing Ben her financial accounts for the past few years, an organisational structure chart, and how she managed her cash flow via a sophisticated Excel spreadsheet.

Ben was impressed. She knew her business very well — including its strengths and weakness. It was a very profitable enterprise. He could also see very large chunks ...