Getting there is easier with your simple, strategic plan
by Lisa Princic
Do you have a strategic plan?
C’mon really? If you do, do you actually use it?
It seems as though everyone I work with doesn’t set their future intentions or goals on a regular basis. Some entrepreneurs did have a business plan, usually before they started up. Now with the reality of a busy day-to-day operation planning and reviewing goals often gets lost.
It’s not difficult to see why because paperwork and writing can feel like a chore when there are more urgent activities calling for attention.
Like planning a road trip, if you don’t take a map with you it’s not guaranteed that you’ll make your destination.
Especially if you are on a very long journey like the one I took with my family from British Columbia to Southern California. It was nice to know where we were along the way, where we should stop and rest and even nicer to know how far we were from our destination.
How do you create this kind of business roadmap without it becoming too stringent and too cumbersome? And instead make it super nimble and fun to use?
Unless you have a large senior management and management team you likely won’t have enough resources to do anything complex. And if you do, you likely won’t use it. I really had no clue how to create effective, usable and nimble before I came up with this idea.
Enter sticky note strategic plan (above). Like a road trip you want the process to be fun and easy.
A strategic plan with flexibility for the freedom focused entrepreneur
Creating a simple template like mine above, will help you to stay on track in short 30 day time periods while keeping an eye on the longer-term.
As a solo operator and a great believer in truly living “Whole Entrepreneurship” which is a holistic approach to living an inspired life now. That includes must-haves in my strategic plan that allow me to be successful, healthy and fulfilled. Without personal mastery and wellness, it entrepreneurship doesn’t work for me.
In other words, it’s success on my terms.
You can use a template like the one my designer created to serve as a base for the sticky notes with my goals on them for each month. Or simply stick a bunch of sticky notes on the wall (just watch that your marker doesn’t bleed through!) and line them up under a monthly header.
Or hire a business strategy coach who’s a master at strategic plans that work.
Before this I used to jot down a list of important projects by month on a whiteboard but it just wasn’t well organized and big enough for each area. Now I just LOVE using this template. It’s working well for me and I urge you to create a similar plan to ensure that the important things do get completed month to month. That kind of commitment to getting the big stuff done will take you ANYWHERE you want to go!
Happy planning!
Lisa Princic is a Business Strategist & Membership Expert who helps thought leaders & niche experts build wildly successful memberships while making a positive impact. She helps entrepreneurs scale with powerful positioning & profitable programs designed around their zone of genius. A staunch believer in simplicity, Lisa helps her clients accomplish their goals by focusing on what to do AND what to ignore.
