Page 13 - Business Plans that Work A Guide for Small Business

4 • Business Plans that Work

to the rule abound (Colonel Sanders was in his sixties when he launched
Kentucky Fried Chicken and Mark Zuckerberg was a teenager when he
launched Facebook). We often describe entrepreneurship as the art and
craft of the creative, the unexpected and the exceptional. The inspiration,
if you will, may strike at any time in your life as long as you are open to
seeing new opportunities.
Not all nascent entrepreneurs successfully launch their businesses.
Many will discover in this prelaunch stage that the business isn’t viable
for any number of reasons. For instance, the opportunity may not be
compelling enough for you to leave an existing job. You need to be con-
fident that the business can grow to a level where you will be able to pay
yourself a salary that is comparable to what you currently make, or more.
Moreover, you must recognize that it will typically take two or more years
before you approach revenue figures that make such earning potential
possible. There are opportunity costs to pursuing a new venture. Other
flaws may become apparent in the prelaunch phase. You may learn that
you lack the skills necessary to be successful, so you may postpone your
dream while you seek experiences that build that skill set. Entrepreneurs
often find it difficult to raise the necessary capital, and less determined
individuals will abandon their plans.
Learning is a way of life for entrepreneurs. New and old businesses
make mistakes and some of those mistakes may lead to failure, but suc-
cessful entrepreneurs manage mistakes better. Successful entrepreneurs
recognize that learning events help them reshape the opportunity so that it
better meets customer needs. The business planning process can help you
compress and create those learning curves and move from nascent entre-
preneur to business owner. Business planning will save you considerable
time and money by helping you understand and anticipate the obstacles
that all entrepreneurs face when they launch a business. Articulating in
your business plan the nature of your opportunity and the way you will ex-
ploit it requires you to answer many of the real-life questions you will ulti-
mately face in practice. Indeed, your immersion in creating a great business
plan will carry into your execution of that plan. You will build a textured
awareness of the market and how to attack it by doing research, talking
to potential customers and vendors, and generally building a network or
“brain trust.” In essence, writing a great plan provides the momentum for
you to become a great entrepreneur, but it is not the business.
Even if you successfully launch your business, not all new businesses
will survive. Traditionally, the failure rate for new businesses has progressed