What comes in what goes out and how long you last
This is the page most creators avoid and the one that decides whether the whole thing survives a slow quarter. Three numbers. Fill them in honestly once a month.
Average month in
4200
Average month out
2650
Set aside for tax
25 percent
Months of runway
5.5
Money jobs nobody warns you about
Putting tax aside the day money lands and not in January
Chasing the invoice that is 40 days late
Knowing your worst month of the year before it arrives
Paying yourself a fixed amount instead of whatever is left
Runway is the only number that tells you whether you can say no to bad work. Everything else on this page exists to make that number bigger.
Your worst month
Every creator business has one. Find it in last year's numbers and plan for it instead of being surprised by it annually.
The invoice that is always late
Name the client. If it is the same name every quarter that is not an accident and the deposit terms on your next contract should reflect it.