Another year has almost gone, and now's the time when many of your clients or colleagues may be asking about your business resolutions for 2018.
But let's focus on the elephant in the room first: how'd you do on your resolutions for 2017?
At the beginning of the year, we're focused and ready to do things better. But how often do we pause to think about those resolutions 365 days later?
I'm usually guilty of this, but this year was different. I kept it simple: write 500,000 words and break ground on my own business blog.
With fewer than 30 days to go in 2017, I reflected on my two small-but-sturdy goals, and realized why I achieved them both:
I started with my end goals in mind, then built my strategy around them.
Just like my two resolutions for this year, your business goals don’t just happen by accident. Even if you think you’re doing logical things to progress toward your goals, you’ll never get there without a well-laid plan.
Think about why you’re creating certain goals, what you’ll get from them, and all the little steps from start to the finish line that will lead you to the winner’s circle.
For example, my goals were all about getting bylines and published content to build my writing portfolio. Ultimately, these goals will attract more clients for my writing business.
Some companies make marketing look stupid simple. It seems like everything they do chalks up another win. But there's a lot that goes on behind the scenes, a lot of research, experimentation, and trial and error we never have the benefit of seeing - and it all starts with strategy!
Truthfully, this is often the hardest part of marketing, which is why many folks skip it altogether. If this sounds like you, this might be why some of your marketing has never given you a positive ROI.
I’ll leave you with this: If you realized you still haven’t achieved this year’s “resolutions,” that’s okay. A new year is all about growth and learning things you didn’t know last year. It’s never too soon – or too late – to start.
To Your Success.