With unemployment continuing to rise, home prices falling due to a surplus of inventory, and small business lending at a standstill, this recession doesn't seem likely to end soon. The recovery will be slow and Americans will certainly not enjoy the prosperity of a few years ago for a long time to come. It's not just economists who think this way. "Half the population in [a] new ABC News poll thinks both job security and retirement prospects in the years ahead will remain worse than their pre-recession levels." ("Poll: Less Job Security is the 'New Normal,'" ABC News The Polling Unit, June 15, 2009, analysis by Gary Langer) This confidence, or lack thereof, is an integral part of an economic cycle. The analysis goes on to say, "Those diminished expectations - plus the pain of the current downturn - are fueling retrenchments in consumer behavior that could fundamentally reshape the economy."
I don't need a business plan--it's just me! Starting a business without a plan is like taking a trip in a foreign country without a map. You might have a lot of fun along the way, and meet a lot of friends, but you are likely to end up at a very different place than you originally set out for-and you might have to phone home for funds for your return ticket.Solo Entrepreneur Reality: Successful Solo Entrepreneurs know that the exercise of creating a plan for their business really helps them think through all the critical aspects of running a business, make better business decisions, and get to profitability sooner.I have to buy business plan software before I can start.Business plan software comes in many shapes and sizes, and prices. Many are more geared at small and growing businesses with employees.
Solo Entrepreneur Reality: Software can be helpful-but it's not required. Software is more likely to help if you have a more traditional type business, like a restaurant or a typical consulting business.I need to hire a consultant to write my business plan. Consultants are expensive and don't really know as much about your business as you do! Solo Entrepreneur Reality: Your business IS you-and you need to be intimately involved with the creation of your business plan. A better strategy, if you think you need professional help, is to hire a coach or mentor-someone who can guide you in what you need to do, not do it for you.
A recession is the optimal time to reinvent competitive advantage because the pressure of a feeble economy will separate the strong businesses from the weak ones, with the weak falling out of the game entirely. Your business will be strong if you have a plan of action based upon a little industry research, an analysis of what you have and what you want, and continuous monitoring of the results of your plan. This kind of innovation is not only a necessity right now, but it is an opportunity to improve the quality and efficiency in the way you do business.
The easiest way to start with a loose leaf notebook, plenty of paper, pencils, pencil sharpener, and several erasers. Once you get your mind "in gear" and begin thinking about your business plan, "10,000 thoughts and ideas per minute" will begin racing through your mind...So, it's a good idea when you aren't actually working on your business plan, to carry a pocket notebook and jot down those business ideas as they come to you--ideas for sales promotion, recruiting distributors, and any other thoughts on how to operate and/or build your business.
A good business plan has a nice cover, is at least 40 pages long, must be typed and double-spaced.Business plans intended for investors, such as a bank or venture capitalist, must meet certain requirements that such investors expect.Solo Entrepreneur Reality: As a Solo Entrepreneur, your business plan need only satisfy YOU. It might be scribbled on a napkin, on stickie notes on your wall, or consist of a collage of pictures and captions. It might be all in one document or scattered among several mediums. As long as you know it in your head and heart without having to look at it, and and it is easily accessible to you when you have doubts, that's all that is necessary.
Every Business Needs a Plan Without a plan, there is little hope for growth, let alone survival. As my small business development counselor, Terry Chambers says, "If it's not written, it's not real." That doesn't mean it's unchangeable, but it does show that you mean business. In order to accomplish your strategies of improving efficiency, increasing volume, and reorganizing your business, you've got to examine what you have, what you want, and how you plan to get there.
My business plan is in my head-that's good enough.I don't know about you, but I sometimes can't remember what I planned yesterday to do tomorrow, if I don't write it down!Solo Entrepreneur Reality: There is a real power in writing down your plans. Some schools of thought advocate that the act of writing a plan down triggers our subconscious to start working on how to manifest that plan. And, of course, it's a lot easier to remember when you have it in front of you. And a lot easier to share and get feedback from your non-mind reading supporters.Friends and family are the best sources of feedback and advice on my business plan.If your brother is an accountant and your best friend is a market research expert, then this might be true.
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I don't need a business plan--it's just me! Starting a business without a plan is like taking a trip in a foreign country without a map. You might have a lot of fun along the way, and meet a lot of friends, but you are likely to end up at a very different place than you originally set out for-and you might have to phone home for funds for your return ticket.Solo Entrepreneur Reality: Successful Solo Entrepreneurs know that the exercise of creating a plan for their business really helps them think through all the critical aspects of running a business, make better business decisions, and get to profitability sooner.I have to buy business plan software before I can start.Business plan software comes in many shapes and sizes, and prices. Many are more geared at small and growing businesses with employees.
Solo Entrepreneur Reality: Software can be helpful-but it's not required. Software is more likely to help if you have a more traditional type business, like a restaurant or a typical consulting business.I need to hire a consultant to write my business plan. Consultants are expensive and don't really know as much about your business as you do! Solo Entrepreneur Reality: Your business IS you-and you need to be intimately involved with the creation of your business plan. A better strategy, if you think you need professional help, is to hire a coach or mentor-someone who can guide you in what you need to do, not do it for you.
A recession is the optimal time to reinvent competitive advantage because the pressure of a feeble economy will separate the strong businesses from the weak ones, with the weak falling out of the game entirely. Your business will be strong if you have a plan of action based upon a little industry research, an analysis of what you have and what you want, and continuous monitoring of the results of your plan. This kind of innovation is not only a necessity right now, but it is an opportunity to improve the quality and efficiency in the way you do business.
The easiest way to start with a loose leaf notebook, plenty of paper, pencils, pencil sharpener, and several erasers. Once you get your mind "in gear" and begin thinking about your business plan, "10,000 thoughts and ideas per minute" will begin racing through your mind...So, it's a good idea when you aren't actually working on your business plan, to carry a pocket notebook and jot down those business ideas as they come to you--ideas for sales promotion, recruiting distributors, and any other thoughts on how to operate and/or build your business.
A good business plan has a nice cover, is at least 40 pages long, must be typed and double-spaced.Business plans intended for investors, such as a bank or venture capitalist, must meet certain requirements that such investors expect.Solo Entrepreneur Reality: As a Solo Entrepreneur, your business plan need only satisfy YOU. It might be scribbled on a napkin, on stickie notes on your wall, or consist of a collage of pictures and captions. It might be all in one document or scattered among several mediums. As long as you know it in your head and heart without having to look at it, and and it is easily accessible to you when you have doubts, that's all that is necessary.
Every Business Needs a Plan Without a plan, there is little hope for growth, let alone survival. As my small business development counselor, Terry Chambers says, "If it's not written, it's not real." That doesn't mean it's unchangeable, but it does show that you mean business. In order to accomplish your strategies of improving efficiency, increasing volume, and reorganizing your business, you've got to examine what you have, what you want, and how you plan to get there.
My business plan is in my head-that's good enough.I don't know about you, but I sometimes can't remember what I planned yesterday to do tomorrow, if I don't write it down!Solo Entrepreneur Reality: There is a real power in writing down your plans. Some schools of thought advocate that the act of writing a plan down triggers our subconscious to start working on how to manifest that plan. And, of course, it's a lot easier to remember when you have it in front of you. And a lot easier to share and get feedback from your non-mind reading supporters.Friends and family are the best sources of feedback and advice on my business plan.If your brother is an accountant and your best friend is a market research expert, then this might be true.
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