Most founders avoid the numbers because the numbers can be scary. Then the numbers become emergencies. The way out is a 15-minute habit: pull the real figures, write them on one page, and look every month.
Once you know the math, the fear goes down and the decisions get sharper. Vague dread becomes a specific list of things to do.
You only need three numbers and one division.
monthly revenue = sum of subscriptions, sales, and recurring income
monthly costs = sum of every recurring outflow (tools, contractors, ads, you)
monthly burn = monthly costs - monthly revenue (negative = profit)
runway in months = cash on hand / monthly burn
Write these on one Notion page or Google Sheet. Wave is free if you want a real bookkeeping ledger to pull from. Add a date stamp. Re-run it on the first of every month.
Now read the number. If runway is over 12 months, you have time to experiment. If it is 6 to 12, every new cost needs a reason. If it is under 6, you have a decision to make this week — cut costs, raise prices, or both.
Then audit every line of cost. Ask one question for each:
Is this making me money, or just making me comfortable?
The comfortable ones get cancelled.
The same expense list reads differently when you ask the right question.
Bad: "We spend $400/month on tools." (vague, no decision)
Good: "$240 on tools we use weekly. $160 on tools nobody opened in 30 days — cancel them today."
Specific dollars tied to specific actions. That is what runway math turns vague anxiety into.
- Refusing to look because you suspect the answer. The answer does not get better while you wait.
- Counting one-time revenue as recurring. A big consulting check is not MRR.
- Skipping the audit. Calculating runway without cutting waste is half the work.
Open a fresh Notion page or sheet. Write monthly revenue, monthly costs, monthly burn, cash on hand, and runway in months. Identify the top cost you will cut this week.
A one-page financial snapshot dated today, with revenue, costs, burn, cash on hand, and runway in months. One specific cost is marked for cutting and the page is on your monthly calendar to refresh.
Most founders avoid the numbers because the numbers can be scary. Then the numbers become emergencies. The way out is a 15-minute habit: pull the real figures, write them on one page, and look every month.
Once you know the math, the fear goes down and the decisions get sharper. Vague dread becomes a specific list of things to do.
You only need three numbers and one division.
monthly revenue = sum of subscriptions, sales, and recurring income
monthly costs = sum of every recurring outflow (tools, contractors, ads, you)
monthly burn = monthly costs - monthly revenue (negative = profit)
runway in months = cash on hand / monthly burn
Write these on one Notion page or Google Sheet. Wave is free if you want a real bookkeeping ledger to pull from. Add a date stamp. Re-run it on the first of every month.
Now read the number. If runway is over 12 months, you have time to experiment. If it is 6 to 12, every new cost needs a reason. If it is under 6, you have a decision to make this week — cut costs, raise prices, or both.
Then audit every line of cost. Ask one question for each:
Is this making me money, or just making me comfortable?
The comfortable ones get cancelled.
The same expense list reads differently when you ask the right question.
Bad: "We spend $400/month on tools." (vague, no decision)
Good: "$240 on tools we use weekly. $160 on tools nobody opened in 30 days — cancel them today."
Specific dollars tied to specific actions. That is what runway math turns vague anxiety into.
- Refusing to look because you suspect the answer. The answer does not get better while you wait.
- Counting one-time revenue as recurring. A big consulting check is not MRR.
- Skipping the audit. Calculating runway without cutting waste is half the work.
Open a fresh Notion page or sheet. Write monthly revenue, monthly costs, monthly burn, cash on hand, and runway in months. Identify the top cost you will cut this week.
A one-page financial snapshot dated today, with revenue, costs, burn, cash on hand, and runway in months. One specific cost is marked for cutting and the page is on your monthly calendar to refresh.