This time of year, many people set self-improvement goals. But what about your business? Here, Wanstead resident and business coach Rachel Jarvis offers some guidance for New Year business resolutions
The holiday period is the perfect time to step back and plan activities to grow your business. Here are my top reasons why you should set goals to improve your business as well as yourself.
Set direction
Goals are the milestones towards your bigger vision and provide a clear roadmap to your final destination. Setting goals in all areas of your business clarifies what you are aiming for and the time frames. Once you have defined your business goals, the natural next step is to work out how you are going to achieve them. Breaking each goal down into actionable steps, and identifying who will do it and when, forms your business plan.
Prioritise time
I often hear small business owners complain they are ridiculously busy but don’t feel they are achieving anything. Unless you have a clear idea of where your efforts should be focused, it’s easy to waste your time. Having defined goals and a detailed plan focuses you on goal-relevant tasks and helps avoid unnecessary distractions.
Aid decision-making
Having business goals and a plan also helps you make difficult decisions. Maybe you’re unsure whether to invest more time or money in a particular area of the business, hire a new recruit or develop a new product or service. Identifying your overall business goals for the next year will help in making those decisions.
Motivate you and your team
Completing every goal, big or small, is a win and that makes achieving goals incredibly motivating for you and your employees. By using goals to shape your business, you allow yourself and your staff to have lots of these victories that keep your business on the right path toward bigger goals.
Create employee engagement
One of the biggest contributors to a lack of engagement is when employees feel like what they’re doing is meaningless. Setting goals improves employee engagement by creating a common purpose and giving employees a sense of ownership over their contributions.
Measure success and track progress
When you have specific key performance indicators, you have a much clearer measure of your success. Having goals in place will enable you to accurately track progress and determine if something needs to change.
Accountability
Once you set goals, you can break them down to the individual level. This helps maintain accountability, from leadership level all the way down to individual team members. When team members are responsible for their individual goals, it’s easy to gauge how they’re performing and when they need support.
Rachel Jarvis is an ActionCOACH business coach. Visit wnstd.com/actioncoach or call 07711 193 998
