Siam Thai

If you are just starting a company and looking for funding, or looking for additional funding for growth, you will need to develop a traditional business plan. Creating a business plan is a business hurdle that entrepreneurs seem to dread. Do you do it yourself? Do you hire someone to do it? How do you get it done quickly, but without spending too much money on it? Will what you do yourself be adequate to get funding?

In this article I will discuss the pros and cons of do-it-yourself business planning versus having a business planning consultant do it for you or with you.

The Do It Yourself Business Plan

Particularly if you are seeking capital of less than $200,000, consider creating the plan yourself after taking a class or reading some books or getting some coaching for someone who has written successful business plans.

Consider taking a three-hour business planning class through SCORE or the local Small Business Development Center. Even if you decide afterwards not to write your own plan, you will have a much better idea of what you want out of the process and what to expect.

There are some good reasons for an entrepreneur to do the business plan:

• First of all, because you can. If you’ve read sample business plans and find their accounting jargon intimidating, you are not alone. But as long as you can clearly get your message across and have other people such as you accountant look at the plan before it goes to lenders or others, you can do this work yourself.
• It is in learning the business planning process that you develop analytical thinking skills necessary to run your business with an intimate understanding of your own business model. Going through the planning process is an invaluable business experience.

A sitcom character challenged herself to make her soon to be brother in law open his eyes to the wonders of the United States Postal Service. She wanted him to fill awe and respect for the USPS. Her argument was the USPS can virtually do anything anywhere.

After attempting to send a fish bowl with a live fish in it with just a few stamps and an address she nearly gave up. The delivery person wouldn’t accept the live fish. It is not hard to imagine why shipping anything that is alive may take more than a couple of stamps and an address. There are rules and regulations.

However, she wasn’t far off by saying you can ship almost anything with the right amount of postage, a legitimate address, and some creativity.

This Christmas I was able to mail a gag gift to my brother through the post office. I sent him a cupcake inside a piece of paper that said Merry Christmas. I used one stamp and put his address on it and he received it just before Christmas. He didn’t eat it because it wasn’t in its original shape but it was nevertheless delivered. It may have had a little mold or something but other than that it was in tip top mis-shape.

There are many other stories about odd things that have been shipped. Some people have mailed bowling balls by writing the address on the ball and taping the postage to it. That may roll around in the delivery truck a little more than normal.

USPS priority mail flat rate boxes can ship anything that fits for one flat rate. It is not recommended to test the Post Office to see what will and will not be mailed. But for your business you can be sure that your package will make it to the final destination.

Not everyone has heard of career builders before. They are actually necessary tools to help you build your career, so that you can get the job you want, be happy with it and succeed in it. All these attributes will eventually lead to a fulfilling career.

Career builders can the form of training, seminars, workshops and continuing education, and willingly and actively participating in these activities can help you get an edge over others. If you are looking for a job, you may not even need to be seen for an interview. You simply have to present the skills you acquired in the builder programs in your resume to convince your future employer what you can do. In case you are currently employment, taking a career building program can help improve the package of skills and services that you can offer to your employer. Whether it is an improved work attitude or new skills, the employer will definitely notice you more.

Aside from communicating the fact that you are highly capable, skilled and updated in your field, you are also giving an employer a hint of something else. Letting him know that you have been to career building programs is a way of telling him that you are also committed and eager to advance your skills and knowledge for the benefit of the company. An employer loves no one better than an employee who is always open to change and improvement.

Although the benefits of participating in career building programs are obvious, some people have trouble choosing the right ones to take. After all, there are a good number and various types of programs out there. You do not want to get stuck taking the wrong one. How can you tell which program is good and appropriate for you?