Debtor-Creditor Survival in 7 Minutes or So

Last week, I was given seven minutes for a presentation to some smaller business owners. Wondering what wisdom I could impart in that brief period, I created the following outline. They thought I should share it with the blogosphere. I hope you find it helpful.

“Any ass can make a fortune. The trick is keeping it.” ~ The Sage of Centennial

1. Don’t sign a guarantee you wouldn’t want to pay.

2. But, get one if you can.

3. Don’t take payment from someone who does not owe it to you. Get protection if you do.

4. Your transactional documents should provide for attorney’s fee if you need to enforce them. Why should you pay for their making you sue them?

5. Your transactional documents should provide for the highest interest rate permitted by law, if the counter-party fails to pay when due.

6. If you’re selling goods on terms, retain title until paid and file a UCC-1 to protect that interest.

7. If someone says they’re going into bankruptcy, and one month later they’re not, they don’t want to.

8. Use a lawyer, not a collection agency, to collect bad debt. Saves time and money.

9. Don’t ignore papers that look like they’re from a court. You’d be surprised how you can be served.

10. When you initiate a credit relationship, get as much information as you can about the counter-party. The intelligence could be useful later.

11. When a debt goes bad, treat it as a new deal, if you want a successful workout.

12. Bankruptcy is neither a dirty word nor a panacea.

13. If a dispute is the principle and not about the money, consider a different line of work.

Some of these points require negotiating with the transaction’s counter-party. But, “if you don’t ask, you don’t get.”¹ Each of these points could be the subject of their own, separate blogticle (blog + article = blogticle)². We may do that now and again. As always, comments, suggestions, and questions are always welcome.

References