In business, is it better to plan ahead or go with it in order to live and learn?

If you're going to be borrowing money for the start-up you won't get a choice. You'll be expected to plan everything to the nth degree by the lender. What do you mean by 'the most' - long term satisfaction of a job well done or get rich quick and get out?

The proper answer to this question is either one. It is your choice you can take the "safer" way and plan things out or you can take the more "dangerous" way and just go for it. I still say starting a company is not an easy thing. It requires long hours and a ton of planning. If you don't plan your company will most likely go bust within a year. If you plan it out you will have a much larger chance of success.

I know a people that started their own companies. They kind of took the middle road. Somethings were done without thought and that back fired. But the things that planned turned out good. One of them created a company that is in millions of peoples homes. So you can have success but you need to be careful.

In business you should definitely plan ahead as it will almost always yield better results.

Very rarely do all things go to plan.

I've been studying business for 3 years now (high school business) and I've learnt that you can prepare for what you anticipate to happen, but alot of the time it doesn't work out and you have to use your initiative.

Personally, I'd plan, but plan to improvise too.

Well it all depends on a lot of different factors.

• What type of business is it?
• What kind of knowledge do you bring to the table?
• How much knowledge do you bring to the table?
• Do you bring real world experience or just read about it in a book?
• Are there licensing requirements for your new business?
• What are the licensing requirements?
• How much are you investing in your business?
• Will you need additional funding from outside sources?
• How much additional funds will you need?
• Where will you get additional funds?

These are just some of the factors that could change the answer to the question.

I have been saying for about 3 years now that "I am starting my own business". So far though I have been stuck in "analysis paralysis".

Sure you need a plan but you can also over-think it.

I am living proof of that. But I now know that I know much more than many of the so called "pros". I am currently taking a Law class about my chosen field. The teacher is a lawyer and has specialized for over 20 years in the subject and the stories he tells sometimes.... just makes you wonder how dumb some of these "pros" really are (anyone with any common sense could have avoided many of those problems).

There are many in my chosen field that have just gone out there and done it without even knowing anything at all. There are many that have even stumbled into it by a lucky accident.

My advice would be to read some books about business in general and also some in your chosen field. Also get a Mentor that is doing what you want to do. Learn from the mistakes of others and decrease your leaning curve.

So yes I do think you need to plan to an extent but don't over do it (like I have). At some point you just need to follow Sir Richard Branson's motto "Screw it, let's do it" (great book to read also for any type of business).

Good Luck to you with your new business

For business if you are in for making lots of money, then you need to be the first to introduce innovative things (hardest thing to do and has the highest risk)

While investors will want you to plan out everything years in advanced, in reality it does not work, only the government can plan years in advanced because they are tax funded which means they get your money whether their ideas are good or not.

In a market when you cant collect money by force from unwilling people, you have to respond quickly to market forces. (eg being willing to change the businesses direction on a moments notice)