posted by Andrew Hartley - Business Consultant & Entrepreneur on Oct 19
Everyone has heard the importance of business planning. Creating a business plan before you start your business is very nearly a universal starting point for all successful businesses. In fact, Chris Corrigan, an Australian businessman who grew logistics company Patrick Corporation into one of Australia’s most successful companies and owns part of Richard Branson’s Virgin Blue airline, said, “You can’t overestimate the need to plan and prepare. In most of the mistakes I’ve made, there has been this common theme of inadequate planning beforehand. You really can’t over-prepare in business!”
Once again, we find that business and aviation are quite similar! Let’s walk through the business planning process and take a look at the similarities:
The first step in any plan is to know where you are… determine where you stand in your business knowledge and preparation. Are you ready to start a business? Do you really want to? This is analagous to a pilot’s home airport and “I’M SAFE” checklist:
- I: Illness - It is best not to fly while suffering from any illness.
- M: Medication - Pilot performance may be adversely affected by the taking of certain medications.
- S: Stress - Stress from work or from home may distract pilots during important segments of a flight.
- A: Alcohol - As little as one ounce of liquor, one bottle of beer or four ounces of wine can affect a pilot’s skills negatively.
- F: Fatigue - Fatigue affects a pilot’s coordination and alertness.
- E: Emotion - Emotions of anger & depression decrease alertness & may lead to taking higher risks than necessary
If any one of these things is affecting you as a pilot, it’s best to postpone your flight for another time. In business, a lack of knowledge of the industry, a poor work ethic, a bad reason for starting a business, other important obligations, etc. are all good reasons to delay the start of the business until your situation changes. I have come up with the following acronym, similar to the “I’M SAFE” checklist to help you determine if you are ready to start a business (NEW BIZ):
- N - Network: Do you have both a business network and a personal network of people who will support you?
- E - Emotion: Is your desire to start a busines free from emotion (e.g. anger or frustration at your current job)?
- W - Work Ethic: are you willing & able to work the hours necessary to start a new business?
- B - Business Acumen: Do you have experience in the industry you would like to enter?
- I - Investment: Do you have the capital (or can you get the capital) necessary to launch & sustain the business until it is profitable?
- Z - Zealous: Are you passionate about this business idea and industry?
If you cannot answer yes to all of the above questions in the “NEW BIZ” checklist, it might be better to wait to start your business until you can. Answering “no” to any one of them will only cause you frustration and pain in the long run of starting and running your own business.
Can you answer the “NEW BIZ” checklist questions in the affirmative? What other considerations might you want to consider before jumping into the entrepreneurship world? Tell us by leaving a comment!
Fair Winds,
Andrew
P.S. Stay tuned for part two of this six-part series: Where do you want to go?
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