The end of the year is a good time to reflect on your business’s progress over the past year and plan how you want your business to develop. Do you want increased success in the coming year or the chance to enjoy the success you’ve achieved more? These New Year’s resolutions are designed to help you do both strike a better work-life balance and increase your business success in the coming year.
LEARN HOW TO DELEGATE AND DO MORE OF IT
There are so many things to do when you’re running a small business, it’s easy to delude ourselves that we need to do all of them. Then we wonder why we’re so tired and frazzled and have no time to do anything else. Let someone else do some of the tasks for a change. Delegation is the key to a healthy work-life balance.
PROMOTE YOUR BUSINESS REGULARLY AND CONSISTENTLY
Too often the task of promoting a small business slips to the bottom of the to-do list in the press of urgent tasks. If you want to attract new customers, you have to make promotion a priority. Make a New Year resolution to hire a marketing expert, or take the time to create a marketing plan on your own and follow through.
Take 2
MAKE BUSINESS PLANNING A WEEKLY EVENT
Planning is vital if you want a healthy, growing business. Business planning lets you take stock of what worked and what didn’t work, and helps you set new directions or adjust old goals. So why do it just once a year or once a quarter? Set aside time each week to review, adjust, and look forward or even better, make business planning a part of each day. Not only will this help you avoid costly mistakes and stay on track, but you’ll feel more focused and relaxed.
LEARN SOMETHING NEW
What you choose to learn may be directly related to your business or completely unrelated. Learning something new will add to your skills and add a new dimension of interest to your life another important part of achieving a healthy work-life balance and increasing your business success. Learn how to choose the right business consultant, trainer or business coach. Depending on how you choose to learn, you may meet new and interesting people, who may become customers, colleagues, or friends.
JOIN A NEW BUSINESS ORGANIZATION OR NETWORKING GROUP
There’s nothing like talking to other business people for sparking new ideas, refining old ones, and making contacts. Whether it’s a group specifically designed for networking or an organization dedicated to a particular type of business, in person or over the internet, making the effort to be a part of a group will revitalize you and your business.
GIVE SOMETHING BACK TO YOUR COMMUNITY
There are all kinds of worthy organizations that make a difference in your community. Make a New Year’s resolution to find a cause that matters to you, and give what you can. Make this the year that you serve on a committee, be a mentor, volunteer, or make regular donations to the groups in your community that try to make the place you live a better place.
PUT TIME FOR YOU ON YOUR CALENDAR
It’s so important to take the time to recharge and refresh yourself; a healthy work-life balance and your small business’s success demands time out. All work and no play is a recipe for mental and physical disaster. So if you have trouble freeing up time to do the things you enjoy, write time regularly into your schedule to “meet with yourself” and stick to that commitment. If you won’t invest in yourself, who will?
SET REALISTIC GOALS
Goal setting is a valuable habit - if the goals lead to success rather than distress. Resolve that the goals you set will be goals that are achievable, rather than unrealistic pipe dreams that are so far out of reach they only lead to frustration.
TheBalance
