This is Todd. He’s got a business idea that’s gonna make him rich. Todd’s gonna sell it to “everyone.” He says the market is predicted to be worth several billion dollars next year. No matter what anyone says, Todd is going to launch this startup. He’s got no customers lined up, no entrepreneurial experience, but he’s not taking no for an answer. He’s already sunk a lot of money into it, he says. I wonder on what. He heard about small business loans and VA help, so Todd needs a business plan – yesterday! Todd’s on a mission to find a stranger on the internet to write a 50 page strategic business plan for $150 or $250 tops – one that will get him a $1 million loan to grow a multimillion dollar business! Todd wants that business plan ASAP, no later than Friday, and it better be cheap. And add market research and graphs. Todd, I say, I do the real work and I don’t charge $250 for a worthless business plan. As if I hadn’t heard this hundreds of times, he says “How about you work in exchange for shares in the business?” Take a few guesses: Will I work for sweat equity on a business with someone with no experience? If he goes elsewhere for help, will Todd get a customized business plan from a business writer working for cheap to run his business from idea to profitability? Will he get the loan? I’d bet against him. The odds are strongly against Todd. The lesson for you is: DON’T BE A TODD.

At vero eos et accusamus et iusto odio dignissimos ducimus qui blanditiis praesentium voluptatum deleniti atque corrupti quos dolores et quas molestias excepturi sint occaecati cupiditate non provident, similique sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollitia animi, id est laborum et dolorum fuga. Et harum quidem rerum facilis.