With the New Year upon us, it is a great time to take some time to review what we did with our businesses in 2006 and plan what we want to accomplish in 2007. I’m sure everyone has heard the saying:

“Failing to plan is planning to fail.”

Why not start this year off with a clear understand of where you want to go, what goals you would like to accomplish and how you would like to grow your business.

Step #1
Before you can plan where you’re going you have to take some time to see where you’ve been. Areas that you should focus on include:

• What new business relationships did you build?
• Did you meet your sales goals?
• How much did you spend on advertising and promoting your business? Did it work? Why or why not?
• Who is my competition?

Schedule some time to actually dive into this information and really pick things apart. Look hard at your expenses so you know exactly where your money went and if it was spent in the right places. Evaluate the time that you invested in your business against what you earned.

Make sure that you don’t just browse over this information, put it into a simple report, even if it is for your eyes only. By laying it out in black and white you will find that it will be much easier to “see” where you are and where you were.


Step #2
Now take some to really think about what you want to accomplish in 2007. Once you visually understand where you want to go, write it down. Let me say it one more time…

WRITE IT DOWN!

By simply writing your goals down you are much more likely to achieve success, so why not? I like to post my goals where I can see them on a regular basis, to keep then fresh in my mind.

Step #3
Having goals and writing them down is an important part of the planning process but you need to go one step further and plan how you are going to reach those goals.

For example, if you have a goal to build two new business relationships with Realtors then you are going to have to decide how. Your plan might include:

• Spend one Saturday each month visiting Open House – goal: get permission to email them something of value (tips sheet, newspaper article, statistics, etc.)
• Email each agent with this information within 24 hours.
• Maintain contact with each agent monthly.
• Schedule a phone call or meeting where you can learn more about their needs and the needs of their clients.
• Look for additional opportunities to provide solutions to particular needs.

Step #4
So now you know:

1. Where you have been
2. Where you want to go
3. How you are going to get there

The next step is probably the hardest because now you need to work it and live it. Take time each night to plan what you are going to do the next day to meet your goals. If you only have 10 minutes, you can still send a couple of emails or make a phone call.

Make sure you ask yourself each day:

• What you did to advance my business?
• What did I do to meet my goals?

 

Step #5
Celebrate your successes and achievements. Create a simple bar graph or chart listing your goals and track your progress. I can’t tell you how motivating it is to actually see what you have accomplished.

Remember success is not instant; you need to earn it step by step! Each step that you take will bring you closer to your goals.