Planning - Why and How?

by Warren Williams

Businesses that plan are more consistently successful than those who don't. This works the same as individual business people. Setting goals and following through is the secret to accomplishing great things. Sounds pretty simple, doesn't it? The reality is that so many either don't bother to plan or fail to do what their plan called for (New Year's resolutions, anyone?)

Start with deciding for yourself where you want your business to go. What is it that you want? Is it defined by revenue, size, locations, the number of clients or take home pay? Is your personal lifestyle what will determine success, or is it something else? It's vital that you take the time to work this through. In order to know what to do, you need to know where you want to end up. Steven Covey calls this ‘starting with the end in mind'. The better you can define and describe the destination, the clearer your next steps will be.

Nicole Greer, founder of the Vibrant Coach, is a fantastic success coach. She walks her clients through a process she calls ‘introducing you to your future self'. Going through this exercise is an enlightening experience, to say the least. Ever tried to describe what your life will be in 20 years? How about how you will look, where you live, what your income will be, and your state of mind? She even has you envision what kind of car you drive, and how you dress. The point? To get that picture so clearly defined in your mind that you can describe it in detail. Makes it much easier to decide what it will take to get there, including the changes you will need to make personally!

The same exercise can be valuable for the life of your business. Create a picture of what will define success for your business. Describe it on paper, in as much detail as you can.

Guess what? You've started the planning process! Figure out when you want that picture to become a reality and determine what steps will be required to get there. Write these down. Your plan is taking shape!

Be realistic about your expectations. Don't let yourself get away with not figuring out the details. Know what it will cost and when. Know what your competition is, what they are doing and why. Be absolutely sure you can zero in on your ideal target. Figure out what they want and why. Write it down! Make sure you can solve their problems or give them what they want. Figure out how you will tell them that you have the answer!

See where we are going? Business Planning is nothing more than deciding what you want, when you want it, and what it will take to get there. Is it a perfect process? Of course not! It's not about perfection, it's about progress. It's about consistently moving towards your goals, not away from them.

Plan. Do. Succeed!

The Nelson Group regularly publishes tips and articles to help your business succeed. For past articles, check out the Article Archive on the left.