Here’s 10 New Year Resolutions ideas for you to add to the ‘drink less’ and ‘exercise more’ list you’ve already got.
1. Look at the important stuff
Do you spend your time dashing from crisis to crisis? Or, fiddling around with crappy stuff? In the melee of life it’s too easy to forget about the “Important but Not Urgent” stuff. Spend a moment to write some of it down – and check your progress through the year to make sure you’re getting it done.
2. Be more organised
Deal with stuff once. Don’t faff about.
3. Have a plan
Adventure is just bad planning – Roald Amundsen
You might not need a detailed strategic plan. You do need some idea of where you want to be and how you’re going to get there. One page is fine.
4. Create a budget
Boring, boring, boring…. But 3 hours spent looking at what you’ll earn and what you’ll spend over the next year can be incredibly enlightening. The process of doing a budget is just as invaluable as monitoring how you’re doing against the budget you set.
5. Get Social
There’s a world of social media there to help you promote your business and make new contacts. Like real networking you need to make sure you’re ‘in the right room’ and – like real networking – don’t just stand there and shout about what you’re selling.
6. Outsource
Focus on what you’re good at. Get someone else to do the rest.
7. Tech is your friend
Technology is moving along at a massive rate (you might have noticed). Accounting is no different. You can now raise an invoice on your phone, take a credit card payment on your phone, take a photo of an invoice and have it magically appear in your accounts… and lots more.
8. Be early
There’s stuff that needs doing by a deadline. Don’t add to your stress levels by waiting until the last minute. Do it early and wallow in smugness for the rest of the year.
9. Don’t forget yourself
Don’t just focus on your business. Spend a little time making sure you and your family would be ok if disaster struck. The best business advice I’ve ever had – ‘Get Good Insurance’
10. And finally, have fun…
….or what’s the point?!
Have a great 2015 from us all at Jonathan Ford & Co.