Profit looks okay, but cash does not
See why profit and the bank balance can move differently instead of assuming one of the numbers must be wrong.
Free Monthly Financial Review Workbook
The month looked profitable. So why did cash go down?
A profitable month does not always mean more cash in the bank.
This workbook helps you understand what changed, why the numbers may be telling different stories, and what deserves your attention next.
Free Excel workbook. No account required. Anything you download is yours to keep.
Created by Josh Keller, CFO and business owner, for owner-led businesses.
Illustrative monthly reviewRevenue improved. Cash still fell.
Here is a fictional example of the kind of question the workbook helps you work through.
Example · fictional numbersMonthly review
Monthly reviewCurrent monthPrior monthChange
Revenue$86,000$78,000+$8,000
Operating profit$9,700$10,600-$900
Accounts receivable$29,600$21,000+$8,600
Ending cash$31,500$38,400-$6,900
Sales increased, but much of the additional money was still waiting to be collected. At the same time, profit slipped and the business had other cash demands during the month.
The result: a stronger sales month did not become a stronger cash month.
The workbook helps you keep following the numbers until you understand what changed instead of stopping at "sales were up."
Fictional illustrative example.
When this helps
Useful when having the reports still does not tell you what happened.
You do not need more reports for the sake of having them. You need to know what the reports mean for the business.
Sales are growing, but the business is not feeling stronger
Find out whether margins, expenses, customer payment timing, inventory, or other demands are using up the benefit of additional revenue.
You receive monthly reports but rarely turn them into decisions
Use a repeatable review to identify what changed, what needs an explanation, and what should happen next.
What you get
Find the change behind the number that caught your attention.
Instead of reviewing each statement separately, use the workbook to connect the month and narrow down what deserves another look.
- See whether higher sales actually improved the business. Compare revenue with margins, expenses, and operating profit rather than treating growth as the answer.
- Understand why profit and cash moved differently. Follow changes elsewhere in the business that may explain where the money went.
- Catch information that needs to be checked. Surface gaps and differences before you rely on questionable numbers for a decision.
- Separate an ordinary monthly change from something worth investigating. Focus your attention instead of reacting to every movement.
- Leave with a short action list. Record what needs explanation, who owns the next step, and what should be reviewed again.
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See what's inside
Work from the month's results to the decisions that follow.
Each part of the workbook has a different job.
P&L Review
Understand how the month performed.
Compare revenue, direct costs, gross profit, operating expenses, and operating profit with the prior period and the targets you use. The goal is to see where performance changed, not simply whether revenue went up.
Worksheet overview
Statement ConnectionsCatch a problem in the numbers before it becomes a problem in the decision.
Financial information is less useful when important pieces do not agree or something is missing. The workbook checks key relationships and tells you when: - the numbers appear to tie; - something needs to be checked; - a question requires human judgment; or - the information is not complete enough to finish the review. Reconciled: the relationship appears to tie. Review difference: something does not fully agree and should be checked. Review manually: the issue needs human judgment. Incomplete: there is not enough information to finish the review.
All names, amounts, dates, businesses, and scenarios shown in the previews are illustrative.
Start with one completed month
You do not need to change how you keep your books.
Start with the financial information you already have.
A useful monthly review is less about completing every box and more about knowing what deserves attention.
- 1
Use the financial information you already have.
Start with one completed month and the reports or records you normally rely on. - 2
Follow the changes that matter.
Work through performance, financial position, and cash until you understand where the important differences are coming from. - 3
Decide what happens next.
Finish with the action plan: what needs explanation, who owns the follow-up, and what should be checked again next month.
Workbook details
Built to be useful without turning the decision into a bigger project.
FormatExcel .xlsx
Sheets2 instruction/setup tabs + 6 review/action worksheets
UpdatedAugust 2026
Created byJosh Keller, CFO
Related resources
Go deeper on the question the monthly review raises.
Use the current page to connect the month. These guides and tools help with the closest questions that may come out of the review.
Understand which reports are useful to review regularly and what each one can tell you.
Understand what revenue, costs, margins, and profit are telling you.
Understand what the business owns, owes, and has invested in it at a point in time.
Work through common reasons a profitable or growing business can still feel short on cash.
Build a forward-looking view of upcoming cash needs and timing.
Common questions
What this workbook helps you understand — and what it does not replace.
What is this workbook supposed to help me understand?
It helps you connect monthly performance, financial position, and cash movement so you can see what changed, what may need explanation, and what deserves attention next. It is designed for management review, not for producing official accounting statements.
Do I have to enter every transaction?
No. The workbook supports summarized category information or a more detailed transaction feed. Use one consistent source so the same activity is not counted twice.
Why review the balance sheet if I mostly care about profit?
Because profit does not explain everything happening in the business. Receivables, inventory, payables, debt, equipment purchases, owner activity, and other changes can materially affect cash and the financial position of the business even when the P&L looks healthy.
What if the statements do not tie together?
That is useful information. The workbook is designed to surface missing information and reconciliation differences rather than hide them. That gives you something specific to investigate before relying on the numbers.
Is this the same as the 13-Week Cash-Flow Workbook?
No. The Monthly Financial Review Workbook helps you understand what happened during a completed month. The 13-Week Cash-Flow Workbook helps you look forward at near-term cash timing.
Is this bookkeeping software?
No. It does not replace your bookkeeping system, bank reconciliation, bookkeeper, or accounting software.
Does it create official financial statements?
No. It is a management-review tool. It is not a GAAP statement generator, audit, attest service, or certified financial-statement preparation tool.
Is the Cash Flow Review an official cash-flow statement?
No. It is a management view designed to help you understand how different types of business activity affected cash during the month.
Do not wait until a confusing month becomes a pattern.
One unusual month may just need an explanation.
But if receivables keep climbing without anyone asking why, a manageable timing issue can become a much harder cash problem.
A simple monthly review gives you a chance to notice the change while there is still time to understand it and respond.
Educational monthly review aid; not bookkeeping, CPA, tax, audit, or lending advice; distinct from the T-006 forecast.
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