Is Your Business Ready For 2011?

Stop. Plan ahead and thrive. With the new years still very fresh on our shoulders there couldn't be a better time to set the scene for your business in 2011. And if you're looking to create a bigger and better year in your business, setting clear goals will have the power to fuel your vision and turn your business desires into the real thing. Time and time again I find that business owners who fail to plan simply plan to fail. Can you imagine hopping onto the latest airplane filled with all the latest gizmos and navigational equipment, but not having a specific destination? The airplane’s technical marvel would serve no purpose without a destination.

The first thing to do is to have your goals written down on paper. Don't just have it stored in your mind because the physical act of writing your goals out establishes a strong level of commitment and is like a declaration to yourself. Ask any person who has achieved some major level of success, whether in their personal or business life, and they will tell you that the simple act of writing your goals makes all the difference. And once you've set your goals you need to get clear on "why" these goals matter to you. Your "why" is the backbone to achieving your goals because it keeps you going when the going gets tough. And it's true that even the clearest and most amazing goals would have no power and momentum without it.

To help you set goals that'll make 2011 your best year ever, i will highly recommend that you implement the SMART method of goal setting which is by far, the most effective and simple goal setting method that I have ever come across.

S - Specific
Often times when I ask business owners what they’d like to achieve, they give waffley responses which may sometimes sound like “I want a better business, more money, better staff” and the list goes on. But the question is how do you define each of these? Does earning an extra $1 qualify as ‘more money’ in your mind? This is why having specificity in your goals helps tremendously with giving you laser beam focus. Follow the ‘what’, ‘why’ and ‘how’ model. That is, define ‘what’ your goals are, clarify ‘why’ this is important to you and then detail ‘how’ you are going to achieve it. For example, it could be that you want to increase your net profits by 25% or earn an extra $50,000 in business.

M - Measurable
You want to make sure that your goals can be measured so that you can keep track of your progress. Most major goals (especially year long ones) would normally involve a number of shorter term goals in order for you to reach the final one. So instead of writing down “I want to make more money”, you can write “I will increase our business’s weekly sales volume by five a week”. The key is to monitor your progress so that you continue to work towards your goals.

A – Attainable
This is to ensure that your goals are within your reaches of being achieved. For example, aiming for a 1000% increase in sales volume in one week is not practical and can only set you up for disappointment.

R - Realistic
Having realistic goals gives you momentum and the rule of thumb is that there should be a 50% chance that you can achieve your goal. For example, if you’re currently earning $70,000 and your goal is to earn $1 million in the next year, this is highly unrealistic. However, if you say you’re looking to increase your earnings by 50%, then there is a higher chance that you will achieve it.

T - Time
A goal without a time frame becomes a nice wish. In order for things to become real, you need to schedule in a time frame that’ll have you getting off your back side and working towards that goal. Make sure that the goal is not set too far out because it loses its sense of urgency which breeds complacency.