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All for profit businesses, large and small use the same formula. Revenue minus expenses equal profit or loss. The operational and accounting complexities may change dependent upon the size of the organization but the formula remains the same. Remembering this simple formula will help you to stay organized and centered on the reason you're in business to begin with. That reason is to make a good return on your investment. That investment is your time and money.

Here's how to do it. In the beginning, keep your operation as simple and consistent as possible. You want to keep your revenues up and your expenses down to maximize profits. This is your mantra. It's important to keep this in mind because there are only three of you and plenty of chores to go around. Each person is an important business asset. Protect your human resources and avoid depletion by balancing the workload.

Break the responsibility for business activities into three categories similar to the concept of departments. These categories are operations, revenue, and administrative. Develop agreed upon procedures for each task. Agree on measuring tools to determine that anticipated results occur. Assign business responsibilities. Once assigned, there are no crossing boundaries, as long as the responsible party is meeting business objectives.

Your product or service is your primary focus. It produces the revenue. Without it, you have no business. If you are selling a product, someone needs to order, manufacture, store, and maintain inventory at adequate levels so there is a constant supply for customers with minimal warehousing costs and obsolescence. Receiving and shipping also fall within this category. If you're providing a service, someone needs to be responsible for scheduling the workload and maintaining job related tools and supplies.

Even the greatest products and services don't just fly off the shelf. They are sold. Someone needs to oversee advertising and customer relations; both in generating new sales and maintaining repeat business.

The third category may be the least glamorous but certainly just as important. This is the "behind the scenes" job. It involves obtaining and updating business licenses, billing and collecting revenues, paying bills, processing payroll, negotiating operating contracts and leases, and filing taxes.

Division of responsibility is important from a decision-making standpoint. Too many chiefs and nothing gets done. Someone has to decide. That doesn't mean that

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