STEVENPALMIERI

Walk the loop

Personal finances: what to check before the call

What you own, owe and take home.

Why it matters: Your household runs on what the company pays you. If that number is a guess, every other plan is a guess.

Pick the answer closest to you.

What this covers

  • What you take home each month
  • What you own outside the company
  • What you owe, and to whom
  • What you're saving for retirement

What good looks like

  • One page with real numbers for all four.
  • A take-home figure you could say out loud.
  • Something going into retirement every year.

Do this yourself

  1. Write the four numbers on one page, rough is fine.
  2. Circle the one you are least sure about.
  3. Bring the page to the call.

See it on a company like yours

Here is how Cinder Mesa Landscape, the fictional company in our worked examples, is doing this year.

The situation

Illustrative composite. Not a real client.

Cinder Mesa Landscape LLC · October 18, 2026

How the company is doing this year

Sales for 2026 so far are $750,000, and the company has lost $134,800. Of the four years from 2023 to 2026, only 2023 made a profit: $378,800. The sales report and the profit and loss report show different totals; we'd find out why. Your numbers will be different. On the call we work them out with you.

Sales, 2026 so far
$750,000
January 1 to October 18
Net income, 2026 so far
−$134,800
The company lost money in 8 of 10 months
Gross margin, 2026
42.0%
52.0% in 2025
Unpaid invoices over 90 days old
$208,400
out of $309,310 still unpaid
Loan used to buy another company
$1,480,000
Arroyo Bench Bank
People paid in October
20
$65,038 a month in pay for people still working there

See the whole section in the CFO example

See a personal financial statement built for a credit-line increase

Read more on the How a lender reads you page

Steven sees your answers before the call. Nothing here is graded.

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