Business Planning in 5 Steps

business planning in five steps
business planning in five steps

Today I’m helping make business planning easy by breaking it down into 5 steps! The first few steps involve looking back at last year. The middle step is vision casting. And the last step is when we brainstorm and plan for the year ahead.

Let’s dive in!

5 Steps for Successful Business Planning

Step 1: Take Inventory | What Happened?

Here you’ll look at every part of your business from a bird’s eye view. Write down the state of everything. At this point, don’t make any value judgments. Just write what happened! I like to look in the following areas:

  • Finances
  • Sales
  • Marketing
  • Systems/Processes/Workflows
  • Goals
  • Projects
  • Education
  • Community/Relationships

Step 2: Analyze | Are there any trends?

At this stage, look at everything you did in your business, the state of everything, and look for trends. Did you spend a lot of money on marketing in one area but not see a ton of return? Did you invest in certain relationships that were really helpful? If you aren’t looking at the data you won’t be able to make an accurate analysis. That’s why it’s important to look at every part of your business!

Step 3: Vision Casting | What is Your Purpose?

Before diving in to planning for the next year, you should spend some time casting a vision for your business. It’s foundational to make sure that your business is based on your values and that everything not tied to your purpose is eliminated. Here are some of the questions I like to ask myself:

  • What are your core values? (personal & business)
  • Why are you in business?
  • What is your purpose?
  • How do you define success?
  • What is your vision?
  • What is your mission?
  • Where do you want to be this time next year?
  • How do you want to feel this time next year?

Step 4: Brainstorm | What Do You Want to Accomplish?

Here we’ll take a look at all 8 categories again and brainstorm everything that you want to do. No idea is too small or too big. Put it all out there! Finances especially need some careful planning. I like to ask these questions:

Where do you need to be? What is “enough”?

What is your cost of doing business?

How much profit do you need to make to get that “enough” number?

How can you price yourself to achieve that? 

  • Are you limited by hours per week?
  • Do you have a set number of clients you want to take on?
  • How many items do you need to sell? How much do you need to charge per item?

Before you move on:

  • Go through everything you wrote and eliminate anything that’s not tied to your vision/purpose
  • From what’s left, highlight what’s most important or write it below
  • Put the rest on a backburner list
  • Is there anything you can automate or outsource?

Step 5: Goal Setting & Planning | How Are You Going to Do it?

First, I like to break down everything that I want to do into habits and goals. Habits are things I want to tend to regularly; things that don’t really have a completion date. Goals are the big projects I want to work on.

For each habit, ask yourself:

  1. How often do you want to do it?
  2. How are you going to do it?
  3. When do you want it to be an ingrained habit?

For each goal, answer the following questions to ensure you’re setting SMART goals:

  • Specific – what do you want to do?
  • Measurable – how will you know you’ve accomplished it?
  • Attainable – can you actually achieve it?
  • Relevant – does it fit within your purpose? Will it move your business forward?
  • Time-bound – when will you complete it?

Next, break down each goal into milestones & action steps

Further Resources

Rising Tide Guide on Business Planning:

Books:

  • Building a StoryBrand by Donald Miller – meaningful marketing made easy!
  • Profit First – Mike Michalowicz – make more money! 🙂

Tools:

  • ubersuggest.com – keyword analysis/research

Need help in your business? Contact me today to see how I can help you make your Dream Biz a reality!

If you liked this post, consider sharing it on Pinterest!

Share This Episode

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

FAVORITE POSTS

The Intersection of Productivity and Self-Care is written in purple text on a tan background with a photo of Sabrina smiling at the camera in a green dress.

Today we’re diving into a topic that feels so close to my heart: productivity and self-care. If you’ve ever felt like you’re doing all the “right” things in business but still end your day feeling overwhelmed or disconnected, this episode is for you. I had the joy of chatting with Sabrina Avellán, a self-leadership coach […]

Listen Now

How to Simplify Your Business and Avoid Overwhelm is written in purple text on a tan background. There is an image of Zuzana standing beside a window and smiling.

If you’ve ever felt like you’re doing everything in your business but still feel like it’s not enough, you’re not alone. On this episode of the Dream Biz Podcast, I sat down with creative strategist and business consultant Zuzana Miraka to talk about something that every creative entrepreneur needs to hear: how to simplify your […]

Listen Now

Using Storytelling in Marketing to Make Your Message Stand Out & Build Trust is written in purple text on a tan background with a photo of Hannah smiling at the camera beside it

Let’s face it: facts and figures alone aren’t what make people remember you. A random email full of stats? Forgettable. But an email that opens with “You’re not gonna believe what happened in Costco…”? Now you’ve got our attention. In this episode of The Dream Biz Podcast, I sat down with Hannah Davis of Made […]

Listen Now

Nature's Business Plan: How a Seasonal Business Strategy Can Help Scale Your Business is written in purple text on a tan background. Jennifer is smiling at the camera in a photo wearing a blue blouse.

If you’ve ever found yourself burnt out from pushing through launches, chasing deadlines, or trying to keep up with hustle culture… this episode is going to feel like a breath of fresh air. I sat down with feminine business coach Jennifer Whitaker to talk about something radically refreshing: seasonal business strategy. We explore the question, […]

Listen Now

Navigating Grief as a Business Owner is written in purple text on a tan background with a photo of Leah smiling at the camera

Navigating grief as a business owner might be one of the hardest things you’ll ever have to do. As entrepreneurs, we’re taught to “keep going,” to deliver results, show up for clients, and remain “on” even when life is falling apart behind the scenes. But what happens when something so massive—like the loss of a […]

Listen Now

3 Types of Content to Boost Your SEO is written in purple text on a tan background with a photo of Victoria sitting on a chair and smiling

3 Blog Post Types to Boost Your SEO and Book More Clients Welcome to Episode 170 of The Dream Biz® Podcast, where we help you launch, streamline, and grow your business so you can work less, earn more, and build something that truly supports your life. In today’s conversation, I (Christi Johnson) sit down with […]

Listen Now

GET YOUR 

FREEBIES!

VISION CASTING ULTIMATE WORKBOOK

Struggling to figure out what success looks like to you or want to write a vision and mission statement? Check out this guide!

GET THE GUIDE

THE DREAM BIZ ROADMAP


Overwhelmed with all the steps it takes to start a business? Download the Dream Biz Roadmap! 

DOWNLOAD NOW

THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO A HIGH-CONVERTING WEBSITE

Ready to make sure your website is set up to convert? Download the Ultimate Guide to a High Converting Website! 

GET THE GUIDE