Are Business Plans Obsolete?
Are Business Plans Obsolete?
Is there any planning going on? Or are entrepreneurs just running their business as a type of second life – seeing what happens and then adjusting what they are doing from that?
The answer is yes…and no.
Your business will benefit from having a basic structure. This is your business plan. The plan sets down what you intend to do. How formal the business plan becomes depends on what you use it for. Just putting down plans for yourself? The back of a napkin might do. Want to get a loan from a bank? Be prepared to do some real digging and writing.
Many women entrepreneurs shy away from writing a business plan. It’s as if they believe that their business really doesn’t count. If they have enough money (“enough” is rarely defined), then they are doing o.k., they think. To actually have to define the amount of money you want to earn in a business is an intimidating thought.
Yet many women are also great believers in the idea of putting an intention out to the universe. We’ve been doing it since we were teenagers, hoping for “Mr. Right” to come along. We knew exactly what he would look like and how he would treat us.
It’s the same with our business. We need to decide exactly what our business looks like and how it will treat us. That is part of your business plan.
Women also put a great deal of time and effort into finding and attracting the right man. We make sure our image is just right; maybe even a little daring. We go to places we wouldn’t normally go and we put up with really boring dates on the way to finding the man we want.
That’s marketing. It’s time to apply the same techniques to your business. Marketing is also part of your business plan.
Finally, we develop detailed plans to attract someone we have our eye on. We willingly spend money on a new dress, certain that the return on our investment will be great. If the dress doesn’t work, we figure out what was wrong with it and get a new one.
We plan, execute our plan and evaluate our results. A business plan is no different.
But there’s an element of chance underneath all of this. What if the dress doesn’t attract the man of our desires, but attracts someone who is even better? Do we stick with the plan or go with the flow? Most of us go with the flow.
And so it is with business. We need to be able to work the plan, yet grasp an opportunity that comes along.
Business plans aren’t obsolete. It’s only rigid adherence to them is obsolete.
Are Business Plans Obsolete - To learn more about this author, visit Casey Dawes's Website.
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Businesses seem to come alive, experience a huge blast of exposure, and then fade away. This is particularly true of Internet businesses. Very often the person behind the business is a serial entrepreneur. He (generally, it’s a he) takes what he learns and creates a new business. Then the business fades away, gets sold, or morphs into something else.
Is there any planning going on? Or are entrepreneurs just running their business as a type of second life – seeing what happens and then adjusting what they are doing from that?
The answer is yes…and no.
Your business will benefit from having a basic structure. This is your business plan. The plan sets down what you intend to do. How formal the business plan becomes depends on what you use it for. Just putting down plans for yourself? The back of a napkin might do. Want to get a loan from a bank? Be prepared to do some real digging and writing.
Many women entrepreneurs shy away from writing a business plan. It’s as if they believe that their business really doesn’t count. If they have enough money (“enough” is rarely defined), then they are doing o.k., they think. To actually have to define the amount of money you want to earn in a business is an intimidating thought.
Yet many women are also great believers in the idea of putting an intention out to the universe. We’ve been doing it since we were teenagers, hoping for “Mr. Right” to come along. We knew exactly what he would look like and how he would treat us.
It’s the same with our business. We need to decide exactly what our business looks like and how it will treat us. That is part of your business plan.
Women also put a great deal of time and effort into finding and attracting the right man. We make sure our image is just right; maybe even a little daring. We go to places we wouldn’t normally go and we put up with really boring dates on the way to finding the man we want.
That’s marketing. It’s time to apply the same techniques to your business. Marketing is also part of your business plan.
Finally, we develop detailed plans to attract someone we have our eye on. We willingly spend money on a new dress, certain that the return on our investment will be great. If the dress doesn’t work, we figure out what was wrong with it and get a new one.
We plan, execute our plan and evaluate our results. A business plan is no different.
But there’s an element of chance underneath all of this. What if the dress doesn’t attract the man of our desires, but attracts someone who is even better? Do we stick with the plan or go with the flow? Most of us go with the flow.
And so it is with business. We need to be able to work the plan, yet grasp an opportunity that comes along.
Business plans aren’t obsolete. It’s only rigid adherence to them is obsolete.
Are Business Plans Obsolete - To learn more about this author, visit Casey Dawes's Website.
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David BarrDavid Barr is the President of Venture Opportunities, Inc. David has been a professional business broker/intermediary since 1980 focusing on General Business Brokerage and Mergers and Acquisitions representing client transaction value from $400,000 to $20,000,000. Mr. Barr has handled the sale of over four hundred and fifty companies. David earned a university degree from the State University of New York majoring in economics and business. David holds the Mergers and Acquisition Master Intermediary and the Certified Business Intermediary designations from the International Business Brokers Association. He is also a Senior Business Analyst and a Texas licensed Real Estate Agent. For more information about David and Venture Opportunities, visit www.bizdealmaker.com. - Visit David Barr's Website |
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Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
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Kim CastleWith nearly two decades in the advertising and design business, with clients like Domino's Pizza, General Motors, Direct TV, Pedigree, Wolfgang Puck, Higher Octave Music, Hollywood Celebrity Products, Disney, and Paramount, as well as thousands of entrepreneurs around the world define, structure, communicate, and position their business for greater profits, BrandU(R) co-creators Kim Castle and W. Vito Montone discovered that entrepreneurs could experience the same power that big brands command for a fraction of the cost with the world's only process-based results-drive Integral approach to business creation. BrandU(R) is helping entrepreneurs grow with the power of extreme clarity from idea...to brand...to market(TM) and helping one million entrepreneurs become successful and whole so that they can make a difference in the world. Are you one of them? If you want to experience clarity all the way to the bank(TM), get started now at http://www.brandu.com. - Visit Kim Castle's Website |
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Jeff FosterWebBizIdeas.com is a Minneapolis website design company founded to help people start an internet business by providing them with website, business, and internet resources that help foster the growth of successful online businesses and develop innovative Internet business ideas. We specialize in internet consulting & internet marketing. - Visit Jeff Foster's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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Cheryl MatthynssensCheryl is a life skills coach, licensed Chemical Dependency Counselor and a 20 year entrepreneur. Cheryl's dedication to achieving a life of balance led to her expanding her teaching from the simple managing of life's daily challenges to adding financial well being as well. A direct marketer with DrinkACT, she is gaining ground in the online community with her concepts of making sure business owners, entreprenuers and employees have well rounded life styles. She opened up a small affiliate site - The Balance Guide- to help others find resources for mental and emotional well being. Visit Cheryl's blog to see more of the diversity beyond business she has began offering online at www.thebalanceguide.blogspot.com - Visit Cheryl Matthynssens's Website |
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