Q-08Direction
I make plans and do not follow them
The plan was good in January. By March nobody had looked at it.
That is normal, and it is not a weakness of character. Plans are dropped when they are too big, live in one person's head, and nobody asks about them. Make the plan small, write it down, and tell someone who will ask.
4 things to look at
- Too big. The first action takes a month, so it never starts.
- Not written. A plan in your head changes every time you are tired.
- No date. “Soon” is not on any calendar.
- No witness. Nobody else knows, so nobody notices when it stops.
Checks you can do yourself
These cost nothing but time. Do them in order. If they answer the question, you do not need us.
Cut the plan to one page
Three goals at most. Use the one-page plan.
Make this week's action small enough to finish
Not “improve marketing”. Try “print 50 flyers and hand them out at the taxi rank on Saturday”.
Write a commitment to yourself
One sentence, in positive words, about something you can see and measure, with a short deadline: a week or a month. Sign it and read it each morning.
Tell one person you respect
Give them the date. People keep going when someone is expecting them to.
Fix a monthly review
The same day each month. Compare what happened with what you planned, then set the next month.
- You have restarted the same plan more than twice.
- There is nobody in the business you can report to.
- The plan needs figures and you are not recording any.
- You want someone outside the family to ask the hard questions.
Monthly Review
Plans are dropped in month two, when nobody is looking. This is somebody looking.
N$349 a month
Related questions people ask
Is it just a lack of discipline?
Mostly it is design. A small, written, dated plan with one person watching gets followed by ordinary people. A large unwritten one does not get followed by anyone.
What if I miss a month?
Then you review two months at the next session. Missing a review is not a reason to drop the plan.
Related questions
I want to grow but do not know what to do first
Many ideas, limited time and money, and no clear order.
OpenI do not know where the money goes
Money comes in and disappears, and you cannot say on what.
OpenSomething is wrong and I cannot say what
The business feels stuck, and there is no single obvious cause.
OpenTell us what you are trying to decide.
You do not need a business plan to talk to us. Say what the business is, what you want from it and what is in the way. A Business Check-up costs N$199 and comes off any other service you book within 30 days.