Definitive Business Plan, Second Edition, The

Ten steps to a successful business plan

Start developing your plan by answering an obvious question – what and why are you planning? When you define this concisely you are well on your way to developing a valid plan. You then need to work through the planning process.

Do not be daunted by the following list (see also Fig. 1.1 ), the tasks are each relatively straightforward when you tackle them individually and in order.

Figure 1.1. Ten steps to a successful plan

1.	Define your business activities.
2.	Define the current status of the business.
3.	Define the external market, your competition and your market positioning.
4.	Define your objectives ...