Now what? My business plan isn't working.
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Some combination of passion, commitment, necessity, and stubbornness got you started on the path to working for yourself, but maybe confidence and optimism have been displaced by confusion and uncertainty. Has your business plan taken a detour and you're now working harder than you expected for a smaller return than you predicted? Where did it go wrong?
The answer can be found if you're willing to work through these three exercises:
Revisit your Financial Assumptions. Rebuild your financial projections using real data. Even with good initial research, business plans are often filled with erroneous assumptions. Now it might be time to start over, with real expenses and with real revenue streams. Be brutally honest. Then ask yourself if these new numbers will satisfy you.
Look in the mirror. Take a self-inventory. What are you good at, and what don't you do well? What important things aren't being done at all or are being done poorly because you're trying to do it all? Are you prepared to hire out the jobs that you don't do well or don't do at all? Is this reflected in your new financial projections?
Revisit your Marketing Plan. Can you easily identify the problem your business solves? Sales happen when problems are solved. If you aren't clear about what problem you solve, you'll have a hard time marketing your business. So can you clearly state what problem you solve for whom? How does this impact your financial projections?
Its vitally important to work through all three of these steps because your future is dependent on knowing and acting on what is, not what you want it to be. You must know your true financial situation. What your strengths and weaknesses are and how that affects your company and what exactly are you selling?
You might decide that you don't want to move forward, but hopefully you can now design an effective business plan. A plan with clear, measurable goals, firm deadlines and scheduled meetings with an accountability partner. The plan is the first step in changing your business and yourself. It will take time, it will be slow and it you will face setbacks. Build a team to support you, to give you honest feedback and hold you accountable. You have done the hard work of honestly assessing where you are. Now you know what needs to be done, and confidence and optimism can replace confusion and doubt. You are on your way.