Business Planning Through the Eyes of a Toddler

This week, my 2 year old son received some new puzzles. He loves puzzles but has always just played with the pieces without really concentrating on putting them together. Well, with the new puzzles we worked with him to actually put the pieces together and complete the puzzles. We did not put any pieces together for him, just encouraged him to look at the box and make the patterns fit, or make sure pieces are joining in the right spots. Sometimes, he would get frustrated because he would try to put pieces together, one at a time, yet would have a hard time figuring out what was next. Finally, I saw him put a few pieces together here, a few pieces together there, and ultimately join the sections to create a complete puzzle.

This reminds me of when entrepreneurs attempt to write a business plan or simply start a business.
There are several puzzles out there suggesting how to put a business plan together. People try to follow the pieces step by step and get so frustrated and overwhelmed when they get stuck with a problem. Really, they can put together a section here, then another section there and ultimately, it will all come together. In the same way, just because you have not completed a business plan, does not mean you have to wait to open your doors. Pursue business in the way you know with the resources you have access to while putting together a plan for the next few years of business.


Like I told my 2 year old:

• Just be patient
• Look at the patterns to discover what fits
  
• Try different pieces to see if they fit together; if they don't, put a piece down and try another
  
• Put the pieces together that fit and do not be ashamed to do this a section at a time
• Join the sections together to complete your puzzle/business/product/service