We really hope that our series on how we make equipment purchasing decisions has been helpful for you. This is seriously something we would agonize over, then make a decision just hoping it was the right one. Then we realized that making a decision based on just hoping would never be a good business decision. We needed to make decisions based on facts – not hopes and emotions.
We started with Part 1 of this blog series, Rent vs. Buy, talking about the first questions we ask ourselves when we are faced with that decision. If we worked through those questions and decided we needed to make a purchase, we then asked ourselves if we were buying the best option – which we outlined in Part 2! Once we decide on the very best option for our business, we then evaluate our purchase based on one very important question that is not only a principle interwoven throughout every financial decision we make but is also solely responsible for bringing us to where we are in our lives and business today.
Can We Pay Cash For It?
Ohhh…
We hear the sound of the wheels in your mind screeeeeching to a halt as you read those words.
It’s not a popular question in small business circles. Today’s businesses run on credit for capital purchases. And our ‘instant’ society has become comfortable with leveraging debt for quick gratification.
We feel fortunate that the size and scale of our equipment needs aren’t in the levels of millions of dollars. The scope of our business allows us to raise the capital on our own by working hard! As tempting as credit options can be, we’ve chosen to postpone gratification if needed rather than take on the burden of debts.
We worked extremely hard for years to get where we are today – completely debt free. That very process is the only thing that allowed us to quit Jon’s job and jump into business full time for ourselves. Climbing out of that hole taught us a lesson we will never forget. As one person put it, getting into debt is as easy as sliding down an icy hillside. Getting out is like trying to climb back up that icy hill.
For that reason, we choose to pay cash for any purchases we make. If we can’t pay cash, we wait until we can. Period.
It means sometimes we rent longer than we’d like to. It means we don’t get to feel the good vibes of ownership as quickly as we’d like to. Those don’t sound like fun things. But here’s something else we don’t get to have that we are excited about – financial strain and stress!
Guys, we know it’s hard. That new shiny lens. The upgraded camera body. The new website. All of it is SO fun. It feels SO good. But how much greater will that feeling be when you know that you have made your decision based on facts, researched until you found the best option, and finally, paid cash for what you needed!
If running through these steps means you aren’t purchasing that new equipment today, don’t be discouraged – be resolute. Be determined. Nothing drives success and new opportunities for growth like working towards a goal! So make that piece your driving force and work toward it! You will NEVER regret making that choice!
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