Planning a business

...can sometimes be enough of a challenge for people that their ideas never materialize, For those that spend the time and effort to carefully map out a plan for their venture, the rewards can be great.

Wikipedia says:

"A business plan is a formal statement of a set of business goals, the reasons why they are believed attainable, and the plan for reaching those goals. It may also contain background information about the organization or team attempting to reach those goals."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_plan

The U.S. Small Business Administration

...(SBA - http://www.sba.gov) breaks this into 4 major steps:

1. Plan Your Business

• getting ready
  
• writing a business plan

2. Start Your Business

• finding a mentor
  
• finance start-up
  
• buying existing businesses
  
• franchises
  
• naming your business
  
• structure
  
• intellectual rights management
  
• licenses and permits
  
• location, location, location
  
• leasing equpiment

3. Manage Your Business

• becoming a leader
  
• decision time
  
• employees
  
• market & price
  
• market & sell
  
• fair practice
  
• taxes
  
• insurance
  
• legal concerns
  
• forecasting
  
• advocate and stay informed
  
• leveraging technology
  
• financial growth

4. Getting Out

• exit strategy
  
• selling the business
  
• transferring ownership
  
• liquidate assets
  
• bankruptcy
  
• close officially

related links:

• VIDEO: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tn2JKAwGn5E
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business_plan
• http://www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/index.html
• http://managementhelp.org/plan_dec/bus_plan/bus_plan.htm
• http://www.bplans.com/
• http://www.toolkit.com/small_business_guide/sbg.aspx?nid=P02_0001