Round three in dealing with venture capitalists or corporate investors. Don't (never!) be so desperate for capital that you agree to turn over reins of company if you don't meet specific performance milestones based on a first or second round of funding. There are too many variables in marketplace for you too control and you're taking too much risk for not enough upside. If this is only way you can raise money from this venture firm or corporate investor then walk away, in end you will be better off.

Here are some "cliff notes" on how to write a business plan - there is no set formula other than covering basics about your company; i.e. technology, market analysis, marketing/business development, competitive analysis, management team and a five year set of (detailed by month from startup to year three) financials. The Executive Summary (first 3-5 pages) is most important, as it is a summary of entire plan and most investors read this carefully and scan rest of business plan.

Don't get caught in trap of endless rewrites based on investor feedback - put your plan through one or two reviews by your BOD members and or seasoned execs that will give you honest feedback. Once plan has been reviewed and approved then go to market with this iteration and stick to it - investors should be investing in you ultimately, not an artificial business plan that more often than not is out of date by time you get to market.

Think about how you are going to market your company as you would any other product or service, blending traditional (fax, direct mail) with interactive processes (web site postings, e-mail, etc.). It's a numbers game, you have to aggressively market your company and be prepared to see a return of only 1-3% versus your output - 1K in direct or opt-in email may only lead to 10-20 casual inquiries, generating 5-7 serious conversations, resulting in 1-3 term sheets (what we will invest for "x" equity) discussions.

Finally, last and most important rule of all is be tenacious, there is no substitute for absolute commitment to growing your company by raising capital or bootstrapping it! Your vision, guts and passion will very often carry day when/where others may give up!!

7. Transitions are wonderful opportunities for evolving.

8. Some transitions have to be accomplished after fact -- a car accident that leaves you blind, for instance, or a forced retirement, or sudden death of a loved on.

9. The more you fight a transition, harder you'll make it on yourself.

10. Coaching is excellent for transitions.