If you want to drive from Chicago to Albuquerque, do you just jump in a car, start driving, and see what happens? Drive real fast in no particular direction and hope you get there sooner or later? Not a chance. If you’re a rational person you’ll start with a roadmap or a GPS, and you’ll probably check more than one to compare and consider your options. You’ll ask people who have made the drive before to give you advice. You’ll find out how long it will take, what the landmarks and milestones are, which route suits your purposes best. You’ll make sure your car is in good shape so it won’t die on the way and leave you stuck in the middle of nowhere.
Then you’ll customize your roadmap, marking the towns where you’ll rest and refuel and the junctions to watch for, and the names and/or numbers of every road and highway you’ll take. You’ll print out that map and keep it right beside you for the entire trip, checking it often to make sure you’re still heading in the right direction. Or you’ll program your GPS with every important waypoint, and keep it in your field of vision at all times to check your progress and mileage.
Trying to run a business without a business plan is every bit as insane as trying to drive from Chicago to Albuquerque with no map, no directions, and no idea how to get there or how long it will take. In fact, running a business without a plan is even worse—it’s like driving BLINDFOLDED! It will get you KILLED. But that’s exactly what most business owners think they can get away with doing. And that’s one of the main reasons they end up stuck. They run around in circles with no direction until they run out of time, money, and energy, risking burnout or even bankruptcy.
But YOU are not going to be one of them, because YOU are about to create a bullet-proof plan and a budget and keep them beside you on the seat the entire time you’re at the wheel.
A business plan not only helps you stay on track, it also helps prepare you for battle. It becomes a kind of résumé and foundation for the entire business. It describes what the business really is, why you’re doing it, who is on your team, your strengths and weaknesses, and most importantly—how much you intend to earn and what you will do to get it.
If your business model requires investment capital, you might already have a business plan you created to show potential investors. If so, ask yourself this question: is it a plan you actually use day-to-day or something you dreamed up to make the business look good on paper that you haven’t looked at or thought about in the past six months?
If you think you don’t need a plan because your business model is so simple, or because there’s no need for investment capital at the moment—think again, soldier. Even if you were only driving from the house to the grocery store, doing it blindfolded would be suicide.
Kick Ass, Make Money & Have Fun Doing It!
Craig Zuber
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