Although there may be a few reasons for working besides the money – that stellar office coffee, for example – ultimately, those of us that punch a clock do it to support our families. So it’s pretty ironic that working actually causes so many of us to waste lots of that hard earned cash. When it’s not the guilt making us spend, it’s the belief that we’re just too tired or busy to avoid it. So how can we stop?

When it comes to starting a small business bootstrapping is best. Bootstrapping is when you use your own money however, meager the investment and then use the profit from your business to grow.

I am at a point in my business that to grow it the way I would like, I need to seek outside funding. I do not want to give up control or the majority of my company. What advice would you give as to how to prepare for and approach investors?

The most significant turning point hands down was when I learned my Self Fundable Growth rate. The SFG showed me how much cash it took to run the business and the rate at which it was being spent.

When you are thinking about raising money for your business, bootstrap financing – using your own money to get your business off the ground – may be an option you should consider, said Glenn Muske, Oklahoma State University Cooperative Extension interim associate dean, assistant director, family and consumer sciences

Brilliant business ideas backed by a solid business plan may not be enough to raise the capital you need. Here are some tips to tap alternative sources of finance.