The one thing that you can be assured of with regard to your startup business plan is that it will not be 100 percent right. In fact, with many startups, the original business plan was more wrong than right.

Unfortunately, the business press over the years has created an image of highly successful entrepreneurs who followed a single prophetic vision to the Promised Land. In almost every case, closer examination reveals that the original vision had to be revised several times before they found the formula for success. One entrepreneur relayed to me that the only thing he got right in his last successful venture was choosing the right industry.

What do you mean ‘pivot’?

The ability to “learn as you go” and correct mid-course correct is now referred to in entrepreneurial circles as the pivot. Although it is a term more frequently heard in the tech arena, the concept is applicable to any new venture.

Randy Komisar, one of the founders of the highly successful venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins, said in an interview that they never expect an original business plan to be right. But even so, Komisar said Kleiner Perkins absolutely wants to see a business plan and that the entrepreneur discuss it in depth. Why? Because they want to know if the entrepreneur knows how to pivot. He said that in the early stages of their due diligence process, they try to determine if the entrepreneur has the strategic mental processes for adapting to the inevitable hurdles that will be encountered. A major consideration for them is if the entrepreneur is the type of manager who will keep beating his or her head against a brick wall, convinced that his or her original vision is the only way to go.

The following five principles can increase the chances for success in knowing when and how to pivot.

Be Committed but Flexible

As an entrepreneur, you need to have confidence in and commitment to your plan in order for it to be successful. However, you also need to maintain a flexible mindset to adjust the plan if some aspects of it don’t seem to be working. Keep the core goal of your plan in mind might help you let go of other issues that aren’t central to your success.

Always Be a Problem Solver

It is not uncommon to see entrepreneurs get stuck doing the same things over and over again while hoping for different results. If something is not working, dig down deep to figure out why. That is almost always easier said than done because if a problem were obvious, you would have already fixed it. Begin by breaking down the problem into its parts and trying to determine the root cause. This usually requires gathering more information. If customers are not buying, for example, try to interview some potential customers or do some additional market research. Is the price a problem? Do customers need additional features to get them to buy? Do they need more education to understand a very new concept? Are you using the right marketing channel to reach them? You will usually be working with imperfect information. If you think you have determined the probable root cause, try a test to see if you can confirm it.

Know Your Most Significant Risks

In addition to fixing problems after the fact, an entrepreneur should be proactive. You have likely been living with your plan for some time and have thought it through inside and out. As part of that process, entrepreneurs naturally focus on the opportunities and the potential. However, experienced entrepreneurs also focus on the major risks. There will always be many risks in any new venture, but there will usually be one, two or three of those risks that can cause the venture to completely fail. Identify those risks early on and proactively preparing a pivot plan for them.

De-Risk Major Problems Early

If you have identified a particular major risk, look for ways to de-risk it early in your process before you have spent much of your capital. Gather some additional information. Try some different options.  Consider running two parallel pathways. You will rarely be able to fully eliminate the risk but, if you are diligent, you can get good, early indications as to whether your approach has a reasonable probability of success. As part of that process, think about what tests you can perform, what information you can gather or what experiments you can run to get those early indications.

Always Be Prepared to Pivot

It goes without saying that you need to maintain a razor-like focus on making your current plan successful. Periodically, however, it is good to take some time to think through alternative pathways if one of those major risks turns into a major roadblock. It might require a change in your business model, a different strategy, an alternate technical pathway or something else. If you have fully prepared for it and you are working to get early indications, you will be in a good position to pivot if needed.

It will never be easy to know how long to persevere with your current plan versus and when to pivot. Following these five principles, however, will help you move out of the realm of pure gut instinct toward making a more informed, well-prepared decision.