Creating Your Business Plan –Why You Need to Get Organized?

Now that you have written down your vision statement, it is time to set some goals. Whether you are brand new to self-storage or you have been in the business for a long time, you are probably always looking for new ways to do things. You are researching how to find properties, or how to talk to sellers or the best way to make offers. As you do this research, you are going to get a lot of good ideas. Probably more ideas than you can possibly implement in the next few days, maybe even the next few weeks.

Here is a way to prioritize all the ideas that you are finding. Number them 1-6. Here is how you choose what number they get. You are going to choose 5 things that you can get done in the next week. Now they can’t all be things that are behind the scenes. If you constantly focus on things like business cards, or fliers, or your website you are never talking to sellers. This means that you are never actually progressing towards making money. Because of this, at least 2 of the things that you choose each week have to involve actively marketing or talking to potential sellers and investors. For example, this next week might include getting your business cards made, designing your first mailer, calling 5 self-storage property owners, talking with 3 bankers, and working on your business plan. These would all get a one.

Then everything else is going to get a 2-6. If it is something that is urgent but not so urgent that you have to get it done this week, give it a 2. If you finish your first 5 items in 24 hours, then you are going to start on your 2 pile. Each week you are going to be choosing out of your 2 pile and turning them into ones. Now there are going to be things that you learn about that just aren’t right for you at the point you are today. If they are things that apply in the next month, then they would be things that get a 3. If they are for longer than a month down the road, they are a 4. 4s are for 3 months down the road. 5 are for 6 months down the road and 6s are for next year. If you want, you can have a 7 for 5 years down the road and an 8 for I’ll get to that if it ever comes up.

Create files in your computer. Put your ideas in the right file. Scan in anything that you have acquired so that it is in the right place. This shouldn’t be something that takes away from your business. Maybe spend 20 minutes a day getting organized instead of having screen time. If you are organized, you are more focused on the things that are going to make you money today.

Make your to do list for the next day every night before you go to bed. This way, you will know if you need to get up earlier to accomplish everything on the list. You will wake up knowing exactly what you are going to do that day. You don’t have to spend time each morning trying to get prepared. Your brain can work on your list while you are sleeping so that you are ready to go when you wake up.

While getting your ideas organized may seem tedious it is a great way to help you stay focused on the things that matter most. You don’t need to be focusing on aspects of your business that won’t apply for 2 years. You need to be focusing on where the next property and the funds for that property are coming from. This is a great business to be in. Start in it today. As always, happy investing.