Objectives help you track your business' success according to plan. Your objectives might set targets for sales, profitability, even hours of personal time per week - whatever is most relevant to you, your business, and success as you define it.

Your objectives should be expressed in measurable terms. Using numbers and dates help to say exactly what you're hoping to achieve, and by when. Rather than "We want to be the best greenhouse operator in the province," you should say, "In our first year of business, we want to sign up three new major retailers." Other objectives could include increasing profitability, attracting new investors or increasing staff.

When writing this section, describe your business' key short-term objectives for the next 3-12 months and long-term objectives for the next 1 to 3 years, or longer if you prefer. If you set too few objectives, you won't get a full picture of your company's progress. Too many objectives will make it difficult to focus on what's important.