So everyone is making New Year’s resolutions this week, right? Lose weight. Check. Spend more time with the family. Check. Exercise and eat healthy. Check, check. But what about your home business? Have you thought about your annual goals, or areas of improvement for your company? Without getting too technical about balance sheets and marketing plans, there are some basic areas that you can focus on to help get your year started off in a positive light. So as you sit down to make your personal resolutions, here are some things to consider with your business resolutions as well: Seek more training. It’s easy to get so busy that you ignore your own education. No, that doesn’t mean you have to go back to school. But you do need to stay current on industry trends or technological developments. Resolve to make the time to attend training sessions, industry conferences or business seminars in order to increase your knowledge on important topics. These also serve as excellent networking opportunities in order to find new customers or develop important business relationships. Balance your home and work life. Ahhh, the never-ending quest for work/life balance. So you might not actually quite get there, but keep it on your list. Develop a list of ways to achieve this goal, whether it’s by setting stricter limits on work hours, scheduling in flex time, or making weekly or monthly “appointments” with friends or family that are non-negotiable. Get more involved in your community. There are probably area professional organizations that would help you not only in your business, but personally. Find one that suits your needs or personality, and resolve to attend, or better yet, to serve on a committee. Choose a charity that you’ve been interested in, and find a way to serve in a manner that matches your time availability. The more involved in your community you are, the more satisfying your work and personal life will be. Keep track of your activities. Remember that community award you received four years ago that you never got around to documenting on your resume? Or how about that sales goal you met but never celebrated because your were too busy? Even though you work for yourself, you need to document and keep track of all your achievements, accomplishments and recognitions. You will need to be able to provide your documented successes to potential customers, partners or financial supporters. Take the time to make sure your resume or portfolio is current and truly reflects all your accomplishments. Change direction, if needed. Are you in a rut? Are you doing things that aren’t working, or have you always dreamed of adding a new service or different product? Now’s the time to step out on a limb and mix things up a bit. Find out what needs fixing, and plan ways to fix it. Or identify what you’re doing really well and find ways to improve or expand on those areas. Making business resolutions for 2008 can help you feel motivated and start off the New Year with a bang. Good luck, and Happy New Year!
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