***** REALITY CHECK *****

• BE HONEST with yourself. Did you do the preceding studies with great care and honesty?

• Lack of information can be extremely hazardous to your proposed venture. Continue your research until you reach either a time or resources limit.

• Answer the following ten questions that create serious problems for new ventures.

1. Do you have sufficient knowledge of your customers and their needs?

2. Do you have sufficient knowledge about how to sell your product or service?

3. Do you have sufficient knowledge about your compelling reason for wanting to start the venture?

4. Do you have sufficient alignment of the founders' compelling interest with the venture's mission statement?

5. Will the venture concept meet the customers' needs?

6. Do you have sufficient time to create the required venture?

7. Do you have sufficient knowledge or capability to produce the product or service in a timely manner?

8. Do you have sufficient capital or financial resources to complete the venture?

9. Do you have sufficient experience for the proposed venture or can you afford to hire it?

10. Do you have sufficient network of contacts to support and grow the venture?

• Be HONEST. If you have more than two deficiencies, they must be overcome in the Business Plan Stage. More than three and you should explore more models or customer needs.

• It is nearly impossible to overcome deficiencies in items 1 through 5.

• Problems in areas 6-10 can be overcome, but are often venture threatening.

• If the founder's alignment with the mission of the venture is not in sync, you should not proceed until this issue is resolved.

• Risk reducing elements that should be incorporated are the keys to the ideal first venture listed in Part 1.

We hope this checklist assists you with your decision making process. Quite often, going through this initial stage will convince you that your original ideas could use some course correction before you proceed.