As a consultant I often work with entrepreneurs working on their first startup. Sometimes I am asked to review business plans and financial spreadsheets. Some business plans are 32 pages long and cover every imaginable circumstance, down to the smallest detail.
I also see my fair share of seven-screen Powerpoint presentations. Guess what, the seven-page version can get funded as often as the 32-pager. Length and level of detail are not what gets you funded. A scalable idea with a great management team is often what investors are looking for. More is not always better.
Financial projections are often all over the place. The one thing that is common to most is that the revenue projections are so far out of alignment with reality as to be amusing.
Throwing caution to the wind, and old tried-and-true business adages to the wind, Rework, the new book from 37Signals, is a great read for anyone starting or running business, dating or otherwise.
Unless you’re a fortune- teller, long- term business planning is a fantasy. There are just too many factors that are out of your hands: market conditions, competitors, customers, the economy, etc. Writing a plan makes you feel in control of things you can’t actually control.
Why don’t we just call plans what they really are: guesses. Start referring to your business plans as business guesses, your financial plans as financial guesses, and your strategic plans as strategic guesses. Now you can stop worrying about them as much. They just aren’t worth the stress.
Great food for thought, as usual. As with all books about business, take what you want and leave the rest. Check out these workplace videos and testimonials and then go buy the book Rework
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