Most founders only look at their finances once a month—usually when the bookkeeper sends the P&L. By then, the data is 20 days old. You are making decisions today based on what happened three weeks ago. That is too slow for a modern business.

To gain control, you don't need to become an accountant; you just need a ritual. The "Weekly Finance Review" is a non-negotiable 20-minute meeting (even if it's just with yourself) to calibrate your compass.

Minute 0-5: The Cash Position (The Truth)

Open your bank accounts. Not your accounting software—the actual bank.

• Total Cash on Hand: How much liquidity do we have today?

• The Burn Check: How much left the bank this week?

• The Runway: Divide Cash by Burn. Has the number of months changed since last week?
  Seeing the raw number every seven days desensitizes you to the fear and sensitizes you to the trend.

Minute 5-15: The Inflows (The Pulse)

Look at your Accounts Receivable and Pipeline.

• Who owes us money? If a client is 5 days late, flag it now. Do not wait for them to be 30 days late.

• Pipeline Velocity: Did the deals we expected to close this week actually close? If they pushed to next week, why?

• Lead Volume: Did we get enough new leads to hit next month’s target?

Minute 15-20: The Outflows (The sanity Check)

Scan the credit card transaction log for the week.

• Are there any duplicate charges?

• Did a trial subscription flip to paid?

• Is travel spend creeping up?

The Outcome

By the end of these 20 minutes, you aren't looking at a static report; you have a gut feel for the business. You know if you need to push sales harder or cut costs immediately. You enter the weekend with clarity, not anxiety.