The Founder's Finance Cheat Sheet
Founders do not need to become accountants overnight, but they do need a working vocabulary for revenue, margin, burn, runway, cash flow, profit and loss, CAC, churn, MRR, and break-even. This cheat sheet defines the terms in plain English so planning conversations stop getting stuck on jargon.
- You need a working vocabulary, not an accounting qualification.
- The core terms are MRR, CAC, LTV, burn, runway, and break-even.
- Plain definitions keep planning conversations moving.
- Each term maps to a real planning decision, not just a label.
What this means
Finance terms slow people down when planning conversations turn technical. A short, plain-English vocabulary removes that friction, so you can focus on the decision rather than the definition.
A founder's mini glossary
MRR: Normalised monthly subscription revenue, with annual plans spread across the months they cover.
CAC: Customer acquisition cost, the total cost to turn a non-customer into a paying one.
LTV: Lifetime value, the expected revenue from a customer over their lifetime.
Burn: Monthly cash spend or loss.
Runway: How long your cash lasts at the current burn rate.
Break-even: The point where revenue equals total cost.
How Startup Suite helps
Startup Suite turns this vocabulary into visible planning outputs. Instead of memorising definitions, you see each term as a live number in your own model, which is the fastest way to actually learn them.
See the terms as live numbers
- Watch MRR, burn, runway, and break-even update from your own inputs.
- Learn the vocabulary by seeing it move, not by memorising it.
- Carry the same numbers into your plan and investor conversations.
Watch the 60-second summary
The founder's finance cheat sheet
Frequently asked questions
Do I need to learn accounting?
No. You need a working vocabulary and the ability to read the numbers that drive decisions.
Which term matters most early on?
Runway, because it sets the clock on every other decision you make.
Where do these terms come from?
They are standard founder finance and SaaS metrics, defined here in plain English.
Still have questions? Talk to the team.
