First and foremost, we wanted to wish you a very, Happy New Year! With all of the hustle and bustle of the holiday season behind us, it’s time to start thinking about the upcoming year.
It feels like we set goals and resolutions, but often those desires aren’t back by a plan, which is why they may not come to fruition.
So, today, we wanted to share some tips on how to make 2019 the best year yet for your business.
No matter what your goals are – creating a better work-life balance, growing your team or entering a new geographic region – these steps will help you have a plan to get exactly where you want to be!
Let’s get started…
Audit your current situation.
Like with any goal, the first step should always be assessing your current situation and circumstances. Here are a few items to think about:
- Where is your business currently at financially?
- What are your current and anticipated expenses?
- Were you able to meet last year’s objectives?
- Are you fully leveraging your skillset, expertise and experience?
- Are there new opportunities that weren’t present last year?
Answering these questions (honestly and thoughtfully) will provide a strong starting point, which will allow you to realistically plan next steps for the year ahead.
Think about external factors.
Once you’ve taken a look at your current business situation, it’s time to look at outside factors that may affect your plans for 2019. These are often things that may be out of your control, but items that you can plan and work around. Here are a few to consider:
- Is there anything going on politically or economically that might affect the real estate market, especially the area and niche you specialize in?
- Is there new competition in geographic areas you specialize in?
- Are there any new laws, regulations or special programs that might impact your business or target market?
While you really cannot change these factors, being equipped with information about them will provide immense value in helping you figure out how you’ll overcome them, leverage them and market yourself and business accordingly.
Figure out what resources you need.
Typically, when a business wants to achieve growth, it needs resources, including time, money, additional staff / vendors or new systems. Once you’ve made your list of needed resources, take some time to digest them and identify if they are realistic..
- Do you have the bandwidth to dedicate additional time to these goals?
- Financially, are you in a position to allocate more money to specific goals?
- Are there items you can bootstrap if cash flow is tight?
The most important part of this step is to be very honest with yourself. Taking this approach will ensure you don’t overextend yourself or your bank account.
Create a roadmap.
Once you’ve set your goals and completed the steps above, it’s time to create a realistic plan around achieving these goals. And, when we say plan, we don’t mean a statement like “I want to increase my sales volume by 50 percent.” Your plan should entail smaller and more manageable milestones.
This strategy is beneficial as it will result in you feeling less overwhelmed. Think about your goals in bite-sized chunks that will be achieved through baby steps. Another idea is to separate your goals by ‘need’ and ‘would be nice to have.’ This allows you to prioritize. If you complete your ‘needs,’ you’ll still have a list of goals, but won’t feel overwhelmed by them if you don’t get to them
Make a backup plan.
If you complete all of your due diligence in researching and planning, you’ll increase your propensity for success. But, it’s never a bad idea to have a contingency plan given unexpected events can happen that may affect your business, so think about ensuring you have some wiggle room in your budget.
We hope that you found these tips helpful and that 2019 is a year of good health, happiness and prosperity for you and your business!
