There are no quick and easy ways to succeed in business. No short cuts, no free handouts, no regular out-of-the-blue windfalls, no perpetual guaranteed lucky breaks. So even if it’s tempting to rush headlong into the first opportunity you can see, take a short but meaningful step back and make sure you are really prepared and ready to move forward.

Here are five tips to keep you on the right track.

1. Planning in business is about all preparation and preparing far enough ahead of what you want to do. Remember, Noah built his Ark before it started to rain. So it’s about thinking ahead, all the time. However business opportunities, once discovered, don’t remain there indefinitely, so be prepared and ready to proceed armed with the facts and resources you need to exploit them.
2. As well as the widespread and worthy business advice available from a variety of sources, there is also plenty of rubbish around about starting a business or pursuing a new business opportunity. In fact it could be argued that there is too much emphasis and encouragement on starting up and ‘just going for it’ and there are an increasing number of unqualified providers willing to give this advice. So shop around for your advice, and get opinions from at least two or three sources before you act on anything. If one adviser says ‘you’re right’ or ‘you’re wrong’, get a second or third professional opinion until you have a broader set of views.
3. You’ll also come across plenty of critics and detractors about your business ideas. Some of these critics may actually be helpful and constructive, but a lot will just be negative or downright dismissive. However, if you can see the action you think needs to be taken to move your business forward, and on balance feel that the constructive criticism outweighs the negative, then follow your gut with caution, not reckless abandon.
4. The road least travelled often proves to be the road best travelled. In other words, don’t always look down the same well trodden track as everyone else. If possible look for the less beaten path, which will be less crowded, more interesting, bear more unpicked fruit and lead to more undiscovered little opportunities. Truly enterprising people are prepared to explore those paths and places which in general are where others fail to go, picking up valuable little gains along the way.
5. Although you need to take sufficient time, don’t dither too long in devising or writing your business plan. The detail may be interesting and in many cases important, but if it’s just irrelevant, states the obvious, lacks focus or deviates from your main commercial objective, then you may not only waste a lot of your own time, you might also bore the hell out an investor or lender.

Make sure you aren’t a turkey when you start up or pursue a new business venture. Don’t rush - always prepare carefully and pick the right opportunity for you. But in the end don’t take too long or you might miss it by a whisker, which in business can amount to a heck of a lot.