New Year Resolutions for Small Business Owners

I know what you’re thinking, “Not another New Year resolutions post!” You’re right, they’re everywhere at the moment. We’re three weeks into 2018 and we’re being hit left, right and centre with New Year resolution suggestions for our personal life, work life, family life etc. It’s a little overwhelming.
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The thing is - these articles all have a point. The New Year is the perfect time to reassess your business goals and strategies, to reflect on what you learned over the previous year and to implement new ideas that can take your business forward. 

That’s why I’ve put together a list of the best New Year resolutions for small business owners, cutting out all the waffle in between.

1.Reassess Your Pricing – Look back over the last year and ask yourself, ‘Did I earn what I’m worth?’. Maybe you learned new skills last year that made your service more valuable to your clients, perhaps you did some market research and found you were charging considerable less than others. Now is the time to charge what you are worth. It’ll lead to a happy, more confident you who feels appreciated instead of undervalued.

2.Prioritise Your Work/Life Balance – How many times last year did you find yourself working later or earlier than intended? How often did you cancel plans, even meals, with family and friends? As a small business owner, the everyday tasks that come with running a business can start to pile up and you’ll find yourself working longer and longer. This year, set yourself stricter working hours, and schedule in time for yourself and time for your friends and family. Remember that if you’re burned out, the quality of work you produce will be much poorer than if you’re fully rested and relaxed.

3.Delegate/Outsource More – This will directly help with the previous resolution. Outsourcing or delegating tasks to a member of staff, virtual assistant or freelancer can free up time that you can spend growing your business instead of working in it. Start by outsourcing these 5 tasks to free up more of your time.

4.Identify Your Goals – What are your goals for the year ahead? What do you want to achieve in business this year? Identifying your goals is the first step to realising them.

5.Devise a Marketing Plan – Even if you already had a marketing plan for the previous year, it’s time to re-evaluate. Use the list of goals you just made and work your marketing plan around these. What do you need to do to achieve your goals? Don’t forget to consider new online marketing and social media trends to keep you up to date!

6.Keep Learning – Set yourself a personal challenge this year. Maybe you want to learn a new skill that can help with your business. Learning something helps us to continue our personal (and business) development. There are plenty of free classes online, books and other courses that can help. Once finished, you’ll have achieved something great that you can be truly proud of.

Have you already set your New Year Resolutions? Share them in the comments below and have a happy and prosperous 2018!