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:-) Hey Norm,
No...no reality check in particular, but rather perhaps a reminder that
what you`re looking for is sort of par for the course with ANY
entrepreneur.
Most people starting a business in the cottage industry sector, don`t
have an MBA or a degree in some related area. They`ve worked for "the
Man" for a long time and want out. They`ve maybe been a housewife,
stay-at-home mom, or they`ve recently been let go, downsized, or
retired.
All these people have a lot of skill in certain areas, with some
expertise in a few specialized areas. And so they decide to go into
business for themselves. They used to talk with people, back before
Startup Nation came together with a consolidated resource center and
community.
The first hurdle is when they discover, like yourself, that they`re no
longer working for someone. They`re no longer an employee. There`s no
enterprise structure anymore, with "experts" in departments who can
take bits and pieces of an idea and work it through. Suddenly, they
themselves are it---the entire ball of wax!
From what you`ve said earlier, and from what I`ve seen on SuN, together
with our experiences with SCORE, I`d get a second opinion. Either talk
with a different team at the same location, or try a different location
in your area. I think you may have been given some misleading advice.
What we found is that SCORE, being made up of retired executives for
large corporate businesses, also doesn`t think very much like a micro
business. Many of the volunteers (not all) "grew up" in business before
personal computers. They have a history of handing things off to
Accounting, or Manufacturing, or Marketing.
I think you have to get some advice on a basic or general level, about
how to turn a business plan into a living reality. One idea might be to
call around to your local colleges, speak to some of the business
professors, and ask if you might schedule some time with one of them.
They could maybe do what it is you`re looking for.
You`re looking for a sort of mentor, not really a champion. It`s rather
that you need some guidance from someone who`s experienced the
day-to-day details of structuring a business, first at the startup
level, then the daily operations phase.
But of all the things discussed here, I think the key is for you to
take a long look at what it is you say you want, versus what it is you
*really* want. Much of starting a business is the confusion, the
mistakes, the uncertainty, and the anxiety of feeling that you`re in
over your head. It`s the feeling you don`t know what you`re doing, and
you`re flying by the seat of your pants.
The trick is to minimize your losses, calculate your risks, and "just
do it" to the best of your abilities. It sounds as if you`re trying to
reduce your risks as much as possible, but the way you`re trying to do
it sort of hands over the entire business to someone else. See? :-)