Time Is MoneyByRaymond D. Matkowsky
Those of you who are old enough to remember the TV series “My Little Margie” might remember the episode were Margie and her father looked for hidden cash of a deceased client who did not believe in banks. The former client’s estate included a talkative parrot that kept on repeating “Time is money. Look in the clock.” Sure enough the former client’s cash bundle was hidden in an old Grandfather’s Clock.
The fictitious parrot is just as right today as he was sixty years ago. Time is money. Throw it away and you throw away money. Hence, the emphasis on work place productivity.
I know of a case where a client’s daily receipts would be taken to the bank every day at closing. This would be after the bank had closed. The company’s receptionist had noticed this and made the suggestion that daily receipts be taken to the bank before it closed. The company would then benefit from one more day’s interest.
According to the U.S. IRS, a typical small business earns about US$150,000. That works out to about US$625.00 a day. Gross receipts would probably be much more. Let’s ay US$1,000. At 1% interest, US$ 1,000 every day would work out to about US$10.00 per day or US$3,600 dollars per year. Your yearly bottom line would gain US$3,600 without any additional costs. That is the definition of productivity. Getting more from what you have. Of course, individual banks have own terms and this would have to be taken into account.
My insurance company prints the following statement on the bottom of each bill: “Do not postdate your check. All checks will be deposited immediately.” Insurance companies seem to know how to monetize most aspects of their business. If you know someone or can contact someone in the insurance business, it might be worth your while to ask if they would be willing to share some of the tricks of their trade.
There is all sorts of time saving opportunities. You just have to look for them. For example, occasionally I have a client that has to make a choice to place an emphasis on one of several equal factors. If one was time, I would urge the client to optimize for time. Time almost always turns out to be the better choice.
If you have any further suggestions, do not keep it to yourself. Help your fellow readers!
If you have any questions, comments or suggestions drop me a line at rdm@datastats.com.
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