Always have a plan B and a plan C

FT.com / Management - Always have a plan B and a plan C

The problem with sticking to an initial plan, no matter how good it is on paper, is that harsh realities are too often likely to derail it, Mullins says.

“There are things that you know you don’t know but there are also things you don’t know that you don’t know – the unknown unknowns.”

Mullins argues that successful entrepreneurs are not those who push their original ideas at all costs but those who work out which of their original assumptions are wrong and stop pursuing them.

“Your key job is to learn quickly which parts of your business plan are not right and change them without wasting a lot of your money and those of your investors,” says Mullins.