I’ve got a few invoices that have been lingering unpaid for ages, and it’s really throwing off my financial planning. It’s tough to differentiate between what’s real income and what’s just a hope.
Right now, I’m using a simple spreadsheet, but it’s getting chaotic trying to sort out dependable payments from those that may never come.
Been dealing with this for years. I created a separate “maybe money” column in my tracking - game changer.
Anything over 60 days goes there and I never count it for cash flow planning. Only real payments and invoices under 30 days make it into my income projections.
I also assign percentage chances to older invoices - 50% at 45 days, 20% at 75 days. Shows me the reality instead of banking on the full amount.
I’ll still chase the old ones sometimes, but my stress dropped big time once I stopped treating them as real money.
I send one follow-up after 30 days, then I’m done. Not worth stressing over people who won’t respond.
I categorize my invoices into three groups: current, late, and dead.
For cash flow planning, I only include current and late invoices as real income. Dead invoices? I just ignore them mentally until I see payment.
Set up an aging report and break down unpaid invoices by time:
I track the real amounts separately so I can follow up, but my budget only uses these adjusted numbers. Stops me from overestimating what’s actually coming in.
Also note which clients are repeat offenders. You’ll spot patterns after tracking for a few months.
I just write off anything over 90 days honestly.
Don’t count invoices over 45 days as real money. I got burned too many times doing that. Track two numbers - what’s actually coming in reliably and what might show up if you’re lucky. Only use the reliable number for cash flow planning. Everything else is bonus.