Revisiting Your Business Plan

In this article

Remember those days when you had the first ideas for your real estate business? For some that seems like eons ago while others may just now be in the beginning stages of their business. For many those ideas never escape the confines of the cranium and some will scribble ideas on a napkin as they sit at their favorite watering hole. Hopefully those plans eventually made it to paper or, better yet, became a formal business plan.

Unfortunately for many, those plans that were so carefully crafted are soon forgotten. The mission statement, goals and objectives, strategy and such are collecting dust somewhere. Unless it is needed for some proposal or financing it is never looked at again. What happened?

Reality Strikes

People will often start out methodically following the steps in their business plan. They begin with the ultimate goal in mind and set off on the journey to realize their dreams. If they are committed to their goals they keep going while experiencing the ups and downs and challenges that come their way. Things move along as expected for a time but soon enough something happens. Reality enters the picture.

Somewhere along the line we seem to go from the relentless pursuit of our goals to putting out the little fires that pop up at every turn. Those fires are simply the reality of everyday life. They have always been there and will always be pulling you away from your intended path. In the recent real estate environment those fires have been roaring blazes. Foreclosures, falling prices, and difficult to obtain credit have wreaked havoc with business plans everywhere. What now batman?

Reevaluate & Revise

A good business plan is not a static document, it is a living, breathing organism. As such it needs to be nurtured, fed and cared for. If you have a written business plan, take it out and look at it. Have your goals and objectives changed? Odds are that your strategy has, have you adapted your strategy to fit today’s reality? If you haven’t put a plan to paper what are you waiting for?

A typical plan has the following elements:

• Mission Statement
• Executive Summary
• Goals & Objective
• Market Analysis
• Strategy
• Financials

Without a doubt the most important step is taking those elements and implementing them. If you don’t put the plan into action it’s just a bunch of wasted ink and dead trees.

You’ve got to be very careful if you don’t know where you’re going, because you might not get there. – Yogi Berra

Note By BiggerPockets: These are opinions written by the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions of BiggerPockets.