It’s almost 2013 and you know what that means: it’s time to start thinking about all those New Year’s resolutions.
According to the Associated Press, the top resolutions generally involve weight loss, exercise, and flossing (although using mint-flavored dental floss is clearly optional). Published studies show that over 45% of Americans make such resolutions at the beginning of each year. Butdocumented research also shows that nearly 65% of those resolutions are broken within 6 months.
What gives?
Surprisingly, it’s not because people are lazy, incompetent of forgetful – it is because they don’t take the necessary time to create those resolutions and goals properly.
Pledging to knock off that extra weight is a wonderful intention. But good intentions alone just aren’t enough. You’ve got to come up with a solid, practical and realistic weight loss plan that you can stick with all year long. A sensible plan that will work flawlessly when you’re eating at home or traveling on the road or dining in a restaurant.
And this concept works just as much in business as it does when you’re sitting in Prime Grill.
So before you go ahead and start scribbling different business-related resolutions onto the cover of your appointment book, let’s spend a little time studying the methods successful companies use to create goals that can ably address the challenges they’re facing.
The Review Phase [“The What”]
Before establishing what your goals are, let’s establish what challenges your company is battling against. Once you figure out which obstacles are affecting your business, you can then create defined goals to solve them. For example, upon reviewing your 2012 business records, it might become obvious that you’re not landing enough new accounts in a region where many of your target markets are located. Now you know what the big challenge for 2013 will be.
The Assessment Phase [“The Why”]
Once you’ve figured out what your problem is, begin assessing why the problem is happening. Has that lack of new accounts come about because the product line you’re offering is very limited? Or maybe it’s because the process used by your sales team doesn’t allow them to accurately pinpoint and focus on the most promising client leads. Think a little… and you’ll see a lot.
The Planning Phase [“The How”]
Now that the we’ve determined the core root of your problem, it’s time to create an action plan that will address it head-on. Perhaps the solution would be to expand your product line and offer potential clients a significantly wider selection. Or creating an internal follow-up process that allows your salespeople to place a bigger focus on landing accounts that look really promising. Put the culmination of all these steps into a written and detailed plan so you can reach the final – and most crucial – step.
The Launching Phase [“The Do”]
Now that the reviewing, strategizing and planning is finally done, there’s just one thing left to do – set out to accomplish your goals. With a clear plan in your hand (and a passion for excellence in your heart), you’ll be in the position to start off the year by taking your business to an entirely new level of success.
Of course, if you complete your New Year’s resolution before 2013 ends and are concerned about finding another important goal to tackle, don’t worry – you can always choose to knock off those extra pounds.
Onwards and upwards to a successful 2013!
Meny Hoffman
P.S. Have any interesting business-related resolutions that you’d like to share? Just comment below or click here to give me the lowdown and I may very well use them as topics for future articles…
