Encore entrepreneurs and small business owners must limit their cash flow dependency on factors they cannot control. The sudden reversal of fortunes in the oil industry of late demonstrates how quickly a seemingly robust sector of the economy can suddenly fall upon hard times.

This is why its imperative for encore entrepreneurs and business startups to diversify their customer base, so that they are not excessively dependent on one segment of the economy doing well. Unwittingly I made that mistake myself by allowing too much of my new business to be vulnerable to the downturn in the oil patch.