Small Business Coach - How Your Small Business Can Create Profits From a Business Plan!

Late last century, E.B. White unwittingly penned the entrepreneur's planning mantra: "I get up every morning determined to both change the world and have one hell of a good time. Sometimes this makes planning my day difficult." At the other extreme of self-determination is the proverb: "If you don't have a plan for yourself, you'll be part of someone else's."

Talk about being caught between a rock and a hard place! What is a smart business owner to do?

The bottom line is that action without a plan will send you round in circles faster than a one-armed canoeist! Whether it is a business plan, a project plan or a 'to do' list of daily priorities, it is essential to have a written reference point that will keep you focused and motivated. (By the way - your business plan needs to be strategic and action focused - forget 50 or 100 page doorstoppers - make sure you use a 5 page "door opening" business plan instead!).

Management guru, Peter Drucker got it mostly right when he contended: "Plans are only good intentions unless they immediately degenerate into hard work." Once you have a plan, you have goals and parameters for action - whether or not you make it into hard work or easy work is up to you!! The important thing is to take action.

You can use your plan to:

o Stop chasing 'shiny new objects' - you know what you need to focus your energy on to be successful.

o Identify and remove inefficiencies, tolerances and frustrations - and watch your productivity increase!

o Leverage the right opportunities and say no to the opportunities which don't fit your plan.

o Prioritise daily actions that will make the biggest difference to your business success - stop running from crisis to crisis.

o Recognise and address the constraints and gaps between where you are now and where you plan to be in future.

o Minimise procrastination and maximize motivation as you see results from your focused efforts.

o Create stability and sustainable decision-making practices in your business.

Most importantly, using your plan, you'll quickly move closer to achieving your vision - with less effort, less mistakes, less resources and less time - all because you planned for success.

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