As a mom and a gardener, I want to make everything perfect for both my kid and my flowers. Yet I recall an experiment where plants grown in sterile, perfect conditions were weaker than those grown with natural stressors. The adversity made them stronger.

Profit First works on a similar principle. By constraining what’s available in your operating account, it forces your business to adapt, find efficiencies, and make smarter decisions. The constraint is the point. Adversity — in the right dose, in the right structure — makes businesses stronger, not weaker. Embrace the constraint. It’s doing its job.