For many New Zealand businesses, summer brings a different rhythm. Some are flat-out through December and January, others slow right down. Either way, March often arrives with the same feeling: “Right… where are we actually at?”

March is a great month to check in on cash flow—not in a panic way, but in a practical one.

In book club this month we have been reading Mike Michalowicz - The Money Habit.

In The Money Habit, Mike shares a powerful idea: managing money well isn’t about complex strategies or strict budgets—it’s about building the right habits.

Many people assume financial stress comes from not earning enough. However, Michalowicz suggests that the real issue is often a lack of structure around how money is managed.

We’ve all been there, we are in a rush to pay for an item or service and we reach into our wallet and fish out a debt or credit card, it is only later we realise ‘oops that should have been on our personal card.’ It is easy for personal and business spending to cross over from time to time. Totally understandable.

If you’re planning to cease trading at 31 March 2026, there are several important tax and administrative steps that must be completed before your company can be formally wound up and removed from the register.

Closing a company isn’t as simple as stopping trading. Both Inland Revenue and the Companies Office expect all obligations to be fully resolved before a company can be removed.

Here’s what you need to consider.

As we head toward 31 March, now’s a good time to stop and ask yourself this question.

For many business owners, the answer is yes. Maybe income is higher than expected, margins are tighter, there’s a new income stream, or plans changed partway through the year. The good news? There’s still time to review things before year-end — and that can make a real difference.

Extremely common with business owners is the shame we feel when things aren't working out with our finances. 

Business finances are just numbers. Your P & L is a report card on how the business is doing. Yet we make it mean something about ourselves. We’re dumb, we’re stupid, we’re not good enough, we should have stuck to our day job....