Why You Don’t Need a Business Plan to Start

By Charles Mathison | The Founders Table

More than 20 years ago, I had a good friend who was thriving as a corporate journalist. He had worked at top-tier media outlets like Forbes and Dow Jones, building a name for himself in the field. But after a few years, the shine wore off. He got tired of the grind. So he quit—with no backup plan, no next job, and no certainty about income.

Instead, he started tinkering with newsletters. That’s it. No business plan—just curiosity and instinct.

He would often ask for my input on his newsletters, and I gave him constructive feedback. At the time, I was running an online store that sold books and videos to professionals in the social and behavioral health fields, and he told me he was inspired by what I was building.

His first newsletter didn’t take off. Neither did the second. But by the time he launched his third newsletter, which delivered curated news for lawyers, something clicked.

He bought some inexpensive newsletter management software (about $40/month), loaded it with nearly 80 stories to make it feel substantial, and then did something wild: he scraped the internet for email addresses of decision-makers in the legal field—back when people actually posted those addresses publicly. He sent his newsletter out cold.

At first, it was quiet. But within a month, subscriptions started rolling in—and they weren’t small. They were thousands of dollars each.

He kept going, expanded his services, grew his reach. Six years later, he sold the company for $100 million.

No business plan. Just an idea, a strong belief, and relentless action.

I share that story because I’ve lived it too.

I started my own company, SRPublications.com, by copying what my employer at the time was doing. I had no grand strategy. I just saw that the business model worked, and it felt aligned with my mission—I was studying to become an educator, and this work served people in the helping professions. My business made very good money for years.

But then technology changed, and I didn’t keep up.

Now, I’m at the Founders Table because I’m pivoting. The content I built still matters. But the problems people face have evolved, and so must I—both in what I offer and how I deliver it.

The internet is different. Social media changed the game. And the audiences we serve have different needs than they did 25 years ago.

So here’s what I believe:

You don’t need a business plan.You need a real idea, a bold start, and a place to talk it through with people who get it.

That’s what The Founders Table is.

It’s where I go to get feedback, test new directions, and hear from other builders in motion. Whether your idea is just beginning or your old idea needs a second life, the table is open.

Join us. You don’t need it all figured out to start—just the courage to bring what’s real.