“The 3% of people with written business plans earn more than the other 97% added together!”
Whether or not you are wanting to sell a business, it is fairly well known that those business owners with a written business plan are far more successful than those who don’t. There’s one story that goes along the lines that a man was riding a galloping horse; when passing by someone, they shouted out “where are you going?!” The reply from the person riding the horse: “I don’t know, ask the horse!” Most people (not just business owners) have no idea where they are actually heading in life, most have some rough idea in their head but leave everything to chance on how to get there. Others really do leave things to chance often saying “when I win the lottery…..!” and carry on with the same old habits. And then there’s that quote from Henry Ford:-
“If you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you’ve always got.”
Of course, producing a written plan that is realistic and achievable, with action plans that are SMART (specific, measurable, accountable and time-measured) are not always easy to prepare, when it’s your own life or business that you’re trying to plan out. It’s far easier to be objective telling or suggesting to someone else what they should be doing! Many business owners for instance, like the thought of selling their business but have given very little thought to what they might do, once the business has been sold. Many deals have crashed, not just because the sale process wasn’t properly planned out in the first place or because the business owner decided to take tax advice right at the last moment. The business owner often pulls out of the deal when it has suddenly dawned on them that they’re going to give up everything they’ve developed over several decades and have no idea what to do with themselves once the keys have been handed over. No wonder one prominent business broker states that their commission must be paid in full, if the business owner pulls out of the deal, once Heads of Terms have been signed!
It’s easy to realise that everyone should really have a written plan of where they want to be and a good understanding of how they are going to get there. A written plan focusses the mind and assuming the plan is not put away in a drawer, it will remind us of all the action we need to take in order to reach whatever it is we want to achieve. With business planning, it is important that the business owner aligns their personal aims and objectives with the business, otherwise you may end up with the business dictating how you run your life and nothing much more. There’s plenty of business owners who end up sacrificing their “health for wealth” before they realise that they need to sacrifice some “wealth for health”. Unfortunately, many leave it too late.
The good news is that we can help! Our business planning expert is able to talk you through all the questions that you need to be asked and produce that all important written business plan – aligned with your own personal aims and objectives. You can get started now, by completing the form below:-