So, you’ve been back in work for over a week and Christmas seems like a distant memory. And, how about those New Year’s Resolutions? Still going, or are they also a distant memory?
Far better than resolutions are definite goals for the year. Even better is to have a plan to achieve them. But a plan is no good unless you actually do it! You need deadlines for each task so you can measure your progress…..and some accountability to make sure you keep on track.
In our video we explain our steps to business success this year:
Step 1 – Start with the big stuff
At its simplest, ask yourself “Where do I want to be at the end of the year?”
- Start with the personal stuff – “I want a new car” or “I want to spend more time with the family”.
- Make sure it’s specific – ie those two would become “I will have a Batmobile Model XYZ to be delivered on 1 December” or “I will take the whole of December off work”.
The reason you start with the personal is that it’s more exciting and motivating than a business goal.
Step 2 – Link it to the business
You can then work out what the business needs to do this year to support the personal goals.
Those two might become “The business will pay me £x in cash by 1 September to pay the deposit on the car and £y on 30 November for the balance” and “The business profit will increase to £x per month by 30 September so I can hire a trusty sidekick on 1 October”.
Step 3 – How will you get there?
What do you need to do to get there? And when?
For example, do you need more customers so that you can meet your goals? If so, how many new customers? And how many quotes do you need to do to get that many customers? And how many leads will generate that amount of quotes. And, where will those leads come from? By when?
This can take some time but it’s well worth it as you get a definite plan, with timescales and deadlines. [You do really need to know your numbers, though – something we can help with.]
Step 4 – Break it down in manageable chunks
So, you need 123 new customers by 31 December to reach that goal. Which means 1,000 leads from Google plus 50 leads from current customers, etc, etc.
That can still seem daunting. So, break it down month by month. And focus on this month’s tasks. Or, even better, this week’s tasks.
I was lucky enough to hear Chris Hoy speak last year. With 6 gold medals, he is Great Britain’s most successful ever Olympian. He said he had a long-term plan to win those golds, but it was broken down into tiny chunks. For example, he talked about his training camp in Australia, where he’d get up, have breakfast, cycle to the track, train until he was physically sick, cycle back, have lunch, etc, etc. He said that the only way he could carry on was by focusing on one thing at a time and doing it.
If he was doing 2 hours of hard training and also thinking about doing it again that afternoon, he’d have given up! He just had to focus, do it, and then move on to the next step, knowing it all fitted the big plan and the ultimate goal to get a gold medal.
Step 5 – Do it!
This is the hardest bit. Like those New Year’s resolutions, it can be easy to make a plan, but hard to follow through.
In this case, you do have definite actions and deadlines, but implementing can be hard.
Getting someone else involved can be a massive help. Once you’ve shared your plan with someone else and made a commitment to them, you’re more likely to do it. Nobody likes letting someone else down.
We have a business coach who gives us a kick, and we take on this role for many of our clients.
But, ultimately, it’s all down to you! That’s why those personal goals in Step 1 need to really excite and motivate you. When it gets hard, you need to remember why you’re doing this. When you really, really want them, you’ll do the work to get there.
If you’d like any help in achieving your goals, please let us know as we’d be happy to help. We can do a goal setting exercise to pull all your thoughts together into a plan…….and then keep you on track to make sure you have a your most successful year yet!