To plan or not to plan? That is often a question business owners ask themselves,
and while they know the "correct" answer is that planning is important to the
success of a business, many female entrepreneurs admit they're more likely to go
by gut instinct than deliberate, methodical planning. Who's more likely to
succeed: the passionate, seat-of-the-pants type or the careful planner?
"When researching highly successful women, I was surprised by the number that
did not have five-year plans--or two-year plans, or 10-year plans," reveals
Sally Helgesen, author of the seminal book on female management,
The Female
Advantage, as well as
Thriving in 24/7: Six Strategies for Taming the New World of Work.
Helgesen quotes Margaret Thatcher, who demonstrated a classic seat-of-the-pants
approach when she said, "I never had a plan. I just took opportunities that
presented themselves to me as I went along."
According to Helgesen, "The passionate entrepreneur starts out with a strong
idea, but doesn't have a set plan for execution. She adapts and makes changes as
she goes along, seizing opportunities and letting them shape her decisions." In
contrast, she says the planner starts off with a detailed plan for execution and
is far less likely to alter it in response to circumstances.
A seat-of-the-pants entrepreneur, explains Helgesen, has great faith in her own
instincts, listens closely to her gut, then follows that feeling, while a
planner may be less confident about her intuitive powers and feel more
comfortable relying on a plan.
Terri E. McNally, 50, president of Chicago-based Global Capital Ltd., admits she
is more of a planner. Her $28 million equipment leasing and financing business
has operated from a business plan since the start--that plan is updated annually
and referred to often as a guideline for running the company.
Planning is an important part of both McNally's professional and personal
life--something she learned during her years of employment in a corporate
setting. "I have no choice but to stay as organized as possible," she says,
citing running her business, raising four children on her own, sitting on
several boards and her outside activities as reason enough to have a plan.
"Personally, seat-of-the-pants is a little scary to me," acknowledges McNally,
who believes that "all hell would break loose" if she were to deviate too far
from her plan, which in turn would result in losing business, time and money.
She also understands, however, that even with planning, things change. "We are
flexible enough and leave time for opportunities that come up."
Beth Shaw is McNally's polar opposite. "I have been in business since 1994 and
have never had a formal business plan," says Shaw, 39, founder and president of
YogaFit, Inc. in Redondo Beach, California. Shaw runs her $4 million yoga
education and products company completely by the seat of her pants. "I have
ideas, goals and some plans, of course, but overall, I think business is a
living, breathing, organic thing with a life of its own that an owner cannot
really control."
Despite the lack of a detailed written business plan, Shaw does point out
YogaFit has an annual financial goal: to cover expenses and achieve at least 10
to 15 percent growth on gross sales from the previous year.
Running a business without a plan doesn't seem unusual to Shaw. "You never know
what the universe has in store for your business and what can come up, so it's
most important to be flexible when running a business. When you are run by a
plan, you become rigid. Rigidity is not a positive trait for an entrepreneur."