Most of the entrepreneurs we interview in our consulting business have a very unrealistic conception of what excites and disappoints investors. The dream of many inexperienced inventors seeking to fund their opportunity is to build a substantial infrastructure. Their business plan identifies the need for factory space, equipment, staff, and many other fixed costs.

Investors want to see a plan that maximizes return on investment. High fixed costs are the enemy of a great profit margin. When business turns down, and it always does at some point, fixed cost assets become liabilities and must be continually fed, even as income declines.

Always present decision-makers with the most streamlined operations plan possible. Do not confuse grandiose staffing and equipment wants with actual needs. In today