It is interesting how two articles that I saw on the same day seem to indirectly make the same point. For any business, if the goal is to think big, then one has to plan big. The first article, “10 surprising stats about small business in Canada” states that only 24% of the surveyed small business owners in Canada “had a succession plan worked out for retirement,” meaning that 76% did not. On the other hand, Steve Jobs, Apple’s cofounder, is one who prepares and plans well for the future. Just like the title of the article states, Steve Jobs certainly does “control Apple from beyond the grave”, especially since Apple will have four years-worth of projects to work on, thanks to the planning he did during the last year of his life. This goes to show that planning in advance is worth the effort, seeing that Apple is a huge and successful company. Small businesses need to think big and plan beyond tomorrow. They will have to change hands some time as their owners reach the age of retirement, and, with a plan, those who take over will be able to carry on smoothly with the business.
