Writing your Biz Plan

I’m the kind of girl who really appreciates the complete picture. A – Z. Before getting lost in the details, I find myself naturally pulling away and wanting to look at the big reason or objectives so I can quickly calulate in my mind whether this detailed task I’m doing is the most efficient way to approach it…

I have been helping a few people with Business Plans recently and took a very similar approach to the one noted above – I stepped back and thought, what is it exactly we are trying to accomplish. In it’s simplest form, we are writing a story that focuses on four key areas that speak to two possible outcomes. Consider this:

Business Plan – My 10,000 ft view:

1. People

Who is involved in your initiative, what are their credentials, resume, experience, vision, goals. Why are these people the best people for the job?

2. Opportunity

What is the product or service you are selling? Can you diversify, how fast? Who or what are your obstacles?

3. Context

This is your macro situation. These are factors that change, but cannot be controlled. So… regulatory environment, interest rates, competition, trends, etc.

4. Outcomes (note the plural)

Paint the picture should everything go to plan. Then paint the picture about everything that could go wrong and what action you would take to correct it.

I appreciate that life and business plans aren’t as cut and dry… but I do think that when approaching something potenitally big and cumbersome… breaking it down helps!