Welcome once again!
Let me communicate something about business plans today. I know that there are many entrepreneurs out there who have started and developed businesses without any elaborate and documented business plans, and somehow think and feel that business plans are not necessary. We cannot rule out success in business circumstantially and not by serious planning. Sometimes the plans are in the mind of the entrepreneur only, and nothing is on paper. It occasionally happens. However, businesses that grow by default will always have their limitations. The majority of enterprises start, grow and succeed with careful planning and execution. Whatever the nature, size, location etc. of an enterprise, planning is not something to ignore unless you are not really focused on business. Don’t you agree with me?
A business plan is basically a document that specifies business goals and objectives and how to attain them. It provides a sense of direction to guide your activities from the start to growth and expansion of the enterprise. We will leave it at that for now and avoid complicating this whole thing. There is no single way or format to document a business plan, and you could find zillions of business plan formats. What is important however is the fact that the plan contains the critical elements that make it a business plan. Usually one would expect things such as a general description of the business, an analysis of the opportunities including industry and market, business model, organisation and management, operational plans, marketing plan, financial plans etc. Possibly we could consider these elements at a different time.
Today I simply want to focus on why an entrepreneur requires a business plan. I would like to write about the top 9 reasons why a business plan can guide your business into success. Business plans are critical to business success. Oftentimes there are entrepreneurs who fail in business and blame everybody else except themselves. When you request them to provide for you the business plan they executed and failed in, you start seeing someone looking blank and without anything concrete to show. They start explaining issues along the lines of you see, you know etc. Now, that is not what I want. Ok? I need something concrete and then it becomes easy also for a business consultant to analyse the plan and tell you where the problems are, either in the planning or in the execution. Do you understand me? Now, let’s look at the reasons why I insist that a business plan is required for business success.
So, in conclusion, I request you to take business planning seriously in your enterprise. By the way, it’s easy to know businesses that don’t have any plans at all. There are usually tell-tale signs. Additionally, I don’t need to hear the unpleasant news that you have closed your business due to factors arising from lack of planning. Do I? The above are my top 9 reasons why a business plan can guide your business to success. Planning will guide you towards success while avoiding and overcoming common pitfalls along the entrepreneurial path. Don’t be a lazy entrepreneur with the I-don’t-care attitude about planning. Ok?
Till then, and with every good wish,
The Wise Entrepreneur