A recent study showed that most people give up their New Year’s Resolutions by January 12th. How much of that can be attributed to people setting lofty goals without a doable plan in place?
Anytime you are creating something new, whether a business or a habit, you’ve got to be committed to the process. And there is a process.
All of my clients have a big dream, a passion and the willingness to take action, they just sometimes don’t know where to start or what is really important. As I come alongside them and they articulate the vision to me, it’s my job as a consultant to bring it from an idea to a reality by creating priorities and tried and true practical steps to the forefront.
Does that mean you need a business plan? Not necessarily. At least not your traditional business plan. Business plans are overwhelming and no one reads them unless you are going to a bank to ask for a loan or looking for investors, and then they only care about your financials and marketing strategy. Instead I recommend mini-plans for success.
Break it down into doable chunks
We all know that the way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time. We also live in a time of instant gratification where we want results right away. Having unrealistic expectations will only lead to disappointment. The only way to accomplish your big dream is by breaking it down into doable chunks and being consistent in the action steps.
Even if you own a business you might be interested in expanding or starting a new offering. You need to know if your idea really fits into your current business plan, and if so, then a mini-plan can get you to execute on your idea quickly.
You can even use a mini-plan for many ideas. If your business plan is to sell wholesale, retail, and do pop-up shops at events, you can create a mini-plan for each of those offerings. This will help you cut through the overwhelming ideas and things to do and get you focused on the tasks and priorities at hand.
Outline of a mini-plan
What’s the idea? What do you really want to do? To really flesh out your idea you’ve got to know the what’s. You also need to be able to answer some important questions like why and who so you keep your enthusiasm and momentum going before you see the results. Ask yourself, why do you want to do it? Who does it serve? Then decide, who is your audience?
What do you need to do to get there? Ask yourself, what’s it going to take? Make a task list, assign dates for deadlines.
Is there a marketing plan necessary? It might be as simple as creating an event and invite, but you need to know your plan so you can execute it, and assign deadlines so you get it done.
What’s the budget? How much money do you have? How much do you need? Where will the money come from? Are you selling something? What are your prices? Be specific.
Priorities! Set your priorities for your mini-plan. Some things are more important to do first, some things might drop off your list and become irrelevant so you can scratch those ideas off. If you have several mini-plans, what comes first?
This whole process of making your mini-plan doesn’t take long and will yield a harvest in due time. So, set aside 30 minutes this week and commit to the process of making a mini-plan. Then work your plan. There are a whole lot of us locally and socially minded folks who want to support your business!