Build a 13-week cash flow forecast
Turn your bank balance, expected receipts and bills into a week-by-week cash forecast that shows when cash gets tight and what to do about it.
The prompt
Act as a fractional CFO for a small [TYPE OF BUSINESS]. Build a 13-week cash flow forecast starting the week of [START DATE]. Starting cash balance: [AMOUNT] Expected money in (customer, amount, expected date, how reliable): [LIST] Recurring money out (rent, payroll, loan payments, software, etc. with amounts and timing): [LIST] One-off payments coming up (taxes, equipment, insurance): [LIST] Typical customer payment delay: [e.g. most pay 15 days late] Give me: 1. A week-by-week table: Week | Starting cash | Cash in | Cash out | Ending cash. 2. The lowest-balance week and how far it is below my safety cushion of [AMOUNT]. 3. A "pessimistic" version where receipts arrive two weeks late. 4. Five specific actions to improve the tight weeks (for example which invoices to chase, which payments to move), ranked by impact. State every assumption you make.
Replace every [BRACKETED] part with your own details before sending.
How to use it
Fill in what you know; rough numbers are fine for the first pass. Re-run it every Monday with your real balance so the forecast rolls forward. The pessimistic version is usually the one to plan around.
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