The point is this: don't worry about "right" way to do your business, but rather worry about what works! Just because others in your field do things a certain way doesn't mean that you have to as well. I think it's important to stand out from crowd, so don't be shy! I walked around that book fair (which drew 75,000 people first day) in a bright white terrycloth bathrobe with a sign proclaiming myself as "The Stay-at-Home CEO"! Do you think that other authors were doing that, or anything remotely like it?

We have a local tourist-oriented magazine and it carries a number of advertisements from real-estate professionals. One particular page caught my attention because there were at least a dozen business-card-size ads that were virtually identical except for photos. I was astonished. What is it that would cause a reader to pick one particular agent out of crowd?

So, write your own rules. They are only ones that matter.

4. Competition Analysis **************************** The analysis of competition and failure to describe a sustainable competitive advantage are killer mistakes in business and business plans. Many entrepreneurs do not make effort, or find it too difficult, to research their competitors. Entrepreneurs often say there is no competition, or underestimate strength of competitors. Their business plans do not describe a competitive advantage for company, or how to achieve a competitive advantage.

5. Mistakes and errors ************************ These appear frequently in business plans, according to VCs. Rely on more than just spell checker in your word processing software. If you aren't very good at spotting grammatical errors or incorrect spelling, hire someone to act as a copy editor.

6. Lack of Management Strengths ******************************** Management strengths were overstated in plan, with one VC even saying that entrepreneurs "lie" about their credentials. Venture capitalists always complete thorough background checks. If your management team is weak, try to assemble an advisory board that has strengths in areas your team lacks.

7. Incompleteness ********************* This includes leaving sections out of plan, or not including sufficient support data. One interesting response was that entrepreneur failed to provide name of anyone in company to contact. He or she must have been in quite a hurry to get plan in mail!