Not matter what kind of business you’re in; having a plan is crucial to an positive outcome for your business.

A plan provides you with the necessary focus and direction. As Yogi Berra said “When you don’t know where your going any road will get you there”. Do you know where you’re going or are you just “letting it happen” – if you’re just letting it happen, how’s that working for you? For 99% of businesses is the path to disaster, both financially and emotionally.

Having a plan allows you to use your limited resources (time, money, effort) effectively and efficiently.

Most small business owners cringe at the thought of a “business plan”, the proverbial 50+ page bible. Who has the time for this? Who has the fortitude for this? Who has the desire for this? Certainly not me and I am fairly certain not you. And unless you are going to external sources for financing or support of some kind it’s not necessary.

There are many resources out there to assist you in doing a short and sweet business plan. One I recommend is the One Page Business Plan by Jim Horan. When I reconfigured my business this is what I used to do my business plan. Other than the dreaming/thinking time involved it took me about 16 hours (over several days) to do it. Who doesn’t have 16 hours for this task?

Planning is nothing more than setting your Vision and Mission, identifying and preparing your Goals and Objectives based on your Vision and then prioritizing them into some kind of order. There are six simple steps in developing a workable plan (don’t over think it, don’t over complicate it, this isn’t Quantum Physics) for the typical business owner, I’m not saying you’re typical, but if you were typical, they would be:

1) Set your Vision
2) Define your Mission Statement (as necessary)
3) Identify and prepare your Goals and Objectives
4) Define your Strategies to support the achievement of your Goals and Objectives
5) Generate your three to five year Plan; this is your Strategic Plan or Business Plan (the view from 30,000 feet).
6) Generate your one year plan; based on your Strategic Plan, this is your Tactical Plan or Annual Operating Plan (the view from a mile high).

Are you willing to spend two hours a week and a few days a year to stay on track, work on the critical issues, save yourself hundreds of hours (not working on the wrong or lower priority issues)?

I hope so… if not, how’s that (not having a plan) working for you

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