Things Rarely Go Exactly As Planned

There is a term in the project management world that I think is one of those terms that are such good metaphors for life. The term is "progressive elaboration." My take on the definition as I taught to project management certification students was that every project needs a plan, whether that plan was just a rough outline or a detailed spreadsheet full of minute steps. But, just as important as the plan is the understanding that the plan will change. The reason that it will change, no matter the amount of detailed planning, is that our perspective changes as we move into the project. We begin to see things that weren't visible before. Opportunities that weren't on the table when we were planning are presented to us. Roadblocks that weren't even near the road during the planning are now front and center.

My plan to build and to run an ice cream bicycle/tricycle was more on the rough outline end of the planning spectrum. More, actually, into a just-an-idea realm. This was by design, as I wanted to see what the process was going to throw at me and just roll with it.

On Thursday, I began taking my first steps into the plan. As I was returning from taking the computer that Pam's mom left us to the repair shop to have reimaged, I stopped into the Florence Chamber of Commerce and began asking questions about how to start a business in Florence.  This led me to the executive director's office--she had just walked in with her two little doggies--who gave me the name of a guy at the city who was in charge of getting new business owners through the process. I left him a message once I got home. I found out that the city offices are in the process of moving to a temporary building so it might be a few days before I get a return call.

The second stop on the way home from the computer tech was BJ's Ice Cream at 29th and Hwy 101. I had heard from the other store downtown that this location was where I should do my asking. The young gal didn't know when the owner, Keith, would be around, but I was welcome to write him a note. As I was taste-testing a scoop of Oregon something or other that had blackberry swirls in it, I wrote Keith a short note about my business idea to give him the opportunity to choose whether he wanted to talk to me or not.  Just as I was about to pull into our driveway, which is about three blocks away, I got a call from Keith. We talked for a bit and he seemed excited about the idea, as it's one that he has had for awhile, but didn't have the peoplepower to make it work.

The change that I am wrestling with is that Keith has a 3-wheeled Cushman, such as the one pictured below, and a cold-plate freezer that goes with it that he mentioned could be part of the deal. 

1970 Cushman--not the actual vehicle

While I still want the bicycle/tricycle to be part of the plan, I don't have the capital to make that happen right at the moment. Leasing the Cushman from Keith might be a solid way to see if there is a market for custom ice cream sandwiches and enough of one to earn the capital needed for my bicycle/tricycle.