Another year has flown by, and we are now well into the 4th quarter. This is the time of year when many business owners and leaders start looking back at the goals they set for the year and try desperately to make progress on them before the year ends. If you’re feeling the pressure of the end of the year approaching, these tips can help you finish strong.
1. Re-visit your goals
If you set your goals for 2022 a year ago and haven’t regularly reviewed them, that’s the first thing you need to do. Look over the goals you set for the year and identify where you currently stand on achieving them. Have you already accomplished them? Have you made progress? Or, are you in the same place you were last year?
As you review your goals, leave emotion out of it. This step isn’t to make you feel guilty if you haven’t stuck to working toward the goals or to make you feel bad if you have experienced multiple failures throughout the year. Knowledge is power, so it’s important that you know where you currently stand.
2. Realign failures and problem areas
As you review your goals, take time to analyze the failures that you’ve had while working toward those goals and where you are struggling. Again, this is not a time to get down on yourself. Instead, it’s time to learn from what didn’t work so you can know what to try next.
Even though failures is inevitable in life, too many business owners and leaders get stuck in failure instead of using it to propel themselves forward. Spend some time reviewing what you’ve tried this year and what didn’t work. Did you try something and it failed? Did you not make any effort toward a goal? Ask yourself questions like these and then take it a step further.
Ask yourself why that certain task didn’t work. Consider what you need to do differently to not fail in that area again. Look at what you could change about the process or step you took to make it better next time.
Then, remind yourself that ‘knowledge is power.’ Take all of that information you collected as you analyzed and apply it to the remainder of the year. Make the adjustments that need to be made. Cross off the things that don’t work. And create a plan to get back on the right path.
3. Set your priorities
It’s important to be realistic when setting goals for yourself and your organization. If you have a long way to go on the goals that you established, it’s probably not possible for you to hit them all before the end of the year. You set those goals at the start of the year with 12 months of work in mind. If those goals are no longer realistic, spend time setting priorities.
With a little over two months until 2023 begins, you need to choose to focus on the areas that will have the biggest impact for you. Look over your list of goals and to-dos and identify what items matter for the remainder of 2022. Then, re-establish SMART goals in those areas to direct your focus through the end of the year.
4. Get your team on board
If you have a team, it’s important that you work on getting buy-in from everyone. This is the best way to achieve lofty company goals. One of the best ways to get your employees to buy-in to working toward the company goals is to show them how the work they do contributes to the big-picture goals.
If your employees have departmental goals or goals unique to their position, they need to understand how it helps the business achieve its goals. They need to understand why the work they do matters.
5. Look for the opportunity in the recession
SPEARity CEO, Darren Fisher, recently shared about the importance of taking risks as a business owner. He referenced the fact that we are either already in or headed into a recession. This can stir up a lot of fear in business owners. But there are always opportunities that show up in these situations.
If we are too busy focusing on our fear or the situation, we miss the opportunities that are in front of us. If you want to finish the year strong and have a good plan for 2023, it’s important not to let the fear of the current economy to make you freeze.
6. Review and ensure you understand your numbers
When SPEARity coaches start working with small business owners, it’s common that they don’t really know how to understand their business numbers. They know it’s important to know their numbers, but they don’t really understand how to read them or what they mean.
If you don’t know what your numbers look like from the year thus far, take the time to look at them. If you don’t know how to read them, what to look at, or why they matter, find a business mentor, coach, or professional who can help you gain a greater understanding of your business in this area.
Understanding your numbers and what they mean for your business allows you to confidently make wiser decisions.
7. Express appreciation to those around you
Gratitude goes a long way in life and business. When is the last time you expressed your appreciation for your customers, vendors, and employees? What about your family and friends? Take time to plan out a few ways to communicate your gratefulness for the people and relationships in your life and business.
We all know that the last several years have been challenging personally and professionally for many. Mental health has declined across the board and many people are struggling with anxiety, depression, and burnout.
A few kind words or actions can go a long way. And, taking time to be grateful can help change your mindset and mood as well.
8. Set yourself up for success in 2023
Do not wait for January 1st to set your goals for the new year. Start planning now if you haven’t already. Take time to set long-term goals and then break them down into smaller goals. Consider your five year goals for your business and then think about what needs to happen each year to help you achieve those goals.
Once you do this, you’ll know what you need to work on in 2023. This will allow you to break your 2023 goals down into smaller goals and then each task you need to achieve to hit those goals.
You will enjoy the end of 2022 and start of 2023 even more when you know you have a plan in place and can hit the ground running when you come back to work in the new year.
9. Celebrate your success
As business owners, entrepreneurs, and leaders, it can be easy to get so caught up in trying to hit the next goal that we forget to celebrate our successes along the way. As you work on finishing the year strong, take time to celebrate the wins and successes you have experienced so far. And make sure you celebrate with those who were part of helping that win happen.
10. Work with a business coach
If you have been trying to grow and scale on your own and you’re struggling, it may be a sign that it’s time to find a business coach. At SPEARity, we help business owners transform their company into a scalable enterprise by fostering a growth mindset and holding them accountable to their vision.
If you’re ready to take the next step, call us today to explore which coaching options are right for you and your organization.
