Thank you Teri. I feel like I just got 1 years worth of real world experience in the time it took for me to read your letter. Seriously, I would seek this kind of advice from a mentor. 

Wow... the LinkedIn part of your story is amazing and yet I believe that is the connection ecomony that we all live in. 

I just read in Allan Weiss's Getting Started in Consulting that he believes only 1 in 20 will make it without a formal plan. I'm not sure if that number is exact but it proves a point in which your practice has provided for you.

Steve