If you cross paths with a financially successful contractor, odds are the company has been in business for a long time. Have you ever asked yourself why? Why is it so rare to find a relatively new, financially successful contractor?

The reasons are many, but the main one is that rapid growth requires lots of cash. New construction companies rarely have access to lots of cash. Without access to cash, new contractors are forced to grow very slowly.

So, where do most businesses turn to for cash to fuel growth or to cover expenses when clients hold payment? Their bank.

But, do banks eagerly loan money to contractors? No.

As a banker friend recently told me "In general, my bank views contractors to be un-bankable." His bank's opinion appears to be in the majority. That doesn't mean that banks will not lend money to contractors and that doesn't mean you shouldn't try to borrow money from banks.

What that means is you should make your company bankable. Allow me to explain how a contractor becomes bankable.