Every week, I meet founders who’ve done everything the manuals preach—a fractional EOS implementer, they have a coach, they use KPI dashboards. On paper, they’re winning; in the bank, they’re bleeding. Their own paycheck? M.I.A.
I’ve lived that movie. My staffing firm once sat $600K in debt, and my “solution” was to cut my salary to zero. Translation: I wore martyrdom like a championship ring… right up to the brink of bankruptcy.
Let’s make sure you’re not heading for the same cliff.
60-Second Gut Check
Ask yourself—be brutally honest:
- When did I last open my P&L—this week or last winter?
- Am I looking at my collections report weekly? What are my DOS? Are we making collection calls to delinquent customers?
- Have I skipped even one paycheck this quarter?
- Am I funding payroll from a personal credit line “just for now”?
- Do I pray the team is thriving while I secretly panic
If you answered “uhh…” to any of the above, you might be speeding toward what I call the Revenue Cliff—where the business looks like it’s growing on the surface, but underneath, cash is bleeding and warning signs are flashing.
It’s when top-line revenue creates a false sense of success while:
- Profit margins are quietly shrinking
- Clients are slow-paying their invoices, treating your business like a line of credit
- You’re robbing Peter to pay payroll
- You haven’t paid yourself in months
- You’re scaling… straight into a financial nosedive
It’s called a cliff because you don’t see how close you are to the edge—until you’re already in freefall.
You’re not lazy. You’re overloaded. And when you’re juggling sales, operations, and 99 other fires, it’s easy to overlook the fact that you haven’t taken a paycheck in months.
This isn’t a sales problem—it’s a sustainability problem.
And for most entrepreneurs, it’s rooted in hustle, avoidance, and the lie that working harder will fix what’s actually a structural issue.
Let’s catch this before gravity does.
The Shame Loop That Keeps You Stuck
Here’s how it works:
- Shame: “Real CEOs never miss payroll.”
- Avoidance: You stop looking at numbers—it’s too painful.
- Chaos: Cash dries up, stress skyrockets, you scramble for money to meet obligations.
- More Shame: “I knew I wasn’t cut out for this.”
Spreadsheets can’t break that loop—only courage can. The second you face the truth, the loop loses power.
The Ripple You Don’t See
Every unpaid month silently broadcasts scarcity:
- Team: If the skipper sails without a life vest, why should they suit up?
- Family: Your spouse sees hustle but not harvest. Resentment grows.
- Kids: They learn success = exhaustion, not stewardship.
Healthy leadership models abundance; it doesn’t preach it. As Mike Michalowicz writes in Profit First, if you don’t build a business that pays you first, you’re not building a business—you’re building a trap.
Four Small Swings to Reclaim Your Power
- Face the Stats – Pull fresh cash-flow data today. Leading blind is optional self-sabotage.
- Open an Owner’s Pay Account – Even 1% of every deposit lands here. Non-negotiable.
- Automate the Transfer – Payroll for the people includes you. Set it, forget it.
- Protect the Plate – No “just this once” raids. That account is sacred.
Remember: singles win ballgames. This is about the muscle of self-respect, not the size of the first draw.
Micro-Action (Do It Before You Reply)
- Log in to your bank.
- Move $50 into a brand-new account labeled Owner’s Pay.
- Close the browser.
You just told your nervous system, “I matter.” Now hit reply and type, “Done.” I’ll send your next step—gratis.
Truth You Need to Hear
- You’re not broken—you’re obeying bad rules.
- No one builds wealth by starving themselves.
- If your team eats and you don’t, the company is bleeding from the top.
- Systems didn’t trap you—beliefs did. Let’s change them.
You’ve already done the hardest part—surviving. Thriving starts when you pay the person in the mirror.
Stay grounded,
Todd Palmer**
**CEO, Extraordinary Advisors | Author, From Suck to Success
P.S. Stuck on a different cash-flow kink? Drop one sentence in the reply. I’ll walk you through your next at-bat—no judgment, just straight talk and practical action.
