With the begging of a new year, many people come up with yearly goals. We all know the usual suspects: lose weight, stop smoking, and our favorite eat better. Much in the same way business owners typically start the New Year with ambitious goals. Maybe you want to increase sales by 50% or you want to reduce costs by 30%. There is no limit on the number of business goals you could create. However what are the odds you will accomplish your goals?
Just as people fail to keep their New Year’s resolution most businesses fail to hit their yearly goals. More than 80 percent of the 300 small business owners surveyed in the recent 4th Annual Staples National Small Business Survey said that they don’t keep track of their business goals– and 77 percent have yet to achieve their vision for the company.
There are five things you need if you want to reach your business goals in 2016:
1. Vision – You need to have a vision, “No vision. No success.” Where do you want your business to be next year? How about in five or ten years? Your vision should extend that far. Take time to visualize all the things that you want. What things need to change in order for your vision to take shape?
2. Strategy – Michael Porter once said “Strategy is about making choices, trade-offs; it’s about deliberately choosing to be different.” Your business strategy is the map to that place called “there”. Not having a strategy for your business is like not providing a group of people with proper directions to their destination. Where does your business want to go and how are you going to get there?
3. Deadline – “A goal is a dream with a deadline.” I promise you that you will never achieve your personal or business goals if you don’t set deadlines. When will you redesign your website? When will you register for that important conference at the end of the month? Without a deadline these and other equally important things will never get done. Don’t leave your business success to fate. Set a deadline and keep it.
4. Perseverance – I hate to be the one to tell you this, but you will more than likely miss your deadline. Yes deadlines are important, but it’s even more important to keep pushing despite setbacks. Anyone who accomplished any great business goal had to overcome many setbacks. That’s why you must persevere in the face of resistance.
5. Advertisement – The number one reason businesses reach their goals, they advertise them. Something happens when you tell the world what you want to accomplish. For example, Ferrari’s vision statement reads: “To make unique sports cars that represent the finest in Italian design and craftsmanship, both on the track and on the road.” That’s a bold statement that customers, employees, and investors will hold Ferrari too. At my firm our mantra is “Innovative ideas, from innovative people.” That means we must bring our best to each engagement.
I wish you the best in 2016. Go out there and accomplish all your goals!
To learn more about Will and West Arlington, please visit www.waconsultgroup.com.