10 New Years Goals for the Entrepreneur
Feeling warm and fuzzy yet? Christmastime is a trip! Everyone is in this intense cross between stressed out and happy bliss. I, however, decorated 2 weeks before Thanksgiving & had 100% of my gift wrapping done this last Monday. #AheadOfTheGame
Trevor and I have an early Xmas Gift Exchange before he leaves to his Fam in Vegas (I’ll be joining him the 26th, gotta love Vegas!), and so I am ALL set.
Mmm, although this is the season of giving & thinking of others… it is also a great time to think “self care” for the New Year. It’s a time to reflect, evaluate, and prepare to make changes and kill it in 2019.
Looking back at my 2018 New Years Resolutions, I had a few wins and a few losses.
2018 GOALS: (Click HERE for the YouTube vid if you’d rather watch them)
Get abs (didn’t do that… actually gained weight!)
Get out of debt (not quite, but made progress)
Build Urban Bay Client base to 10 (did that!)
Stay at the beach house more (did it!)
Go on more hikes (nope, didn’t really do this)
Clear out tons of clothes in my closet (yep, did this!)
Read 1 book a month (not quite, but did read more)
Release 12 pieces of content that are my best work (maybe writing? But not video)
Get to 10,000 followers (did that!)
Write a book (got started and found the reason to!)
Make 100K (not trying to go into my personal finances, but let’s just say this has been a very good year for boosting my income)
Although I didn’t master every single challenge– writing them down, making a video, and putting them out to the universe helped them stay front of mind all year. I did make an effort in every category, and at the end of the day… that’s what counts!
Today I wanted to get into the specific goals I have for me and my business, as an entrepreneur. If you’re starting your own business too, hopefully you can benefit from them too!
ONE : GET ORGANIZED
Now that I have my 10 stable clients, things can get messy. I’m in an office here, at a meeting there, jumping from coffee shop to coffee shop, running around town… it gets a little crazy, k. I’m definitely a fan of writing things down in my little notebook, but it’s completely scattered and there’s no real organization to it. The more work you take on, the better you need to be at keeping everything in line. Prioritizing becomes the MOST important thing when you’re being pulled 7 directions.
HOW TO GET ER DONE:
Get a padfolio or planner (one with LOTS of space to write lists, goals, etc.) Use it less for appointment keeping and more for prioritizing.
Put EVERYTHING into your phone calendar and start each day by scrolling through it.
Make a to-do list each week
Make your bed every day, first thing (I’ve done this since the first day of college) It helps set your up for success
If you can’t clean your house, hire someone. You need a clean space to thrive!
Clean out a closet, drawer, etc. every month. Just one per month.
TWO : BUILD A LIST
Okay, this is a true goal for ME. I’m terrible with this. I’ve listened to one thousand podcasts and they all talk about building that “list” and I just have contacts scattered about. It’s hard for me to do it all, but this needs to be a priority for me this year.
What’s a list, you say?
A Master List is an excel spreadsheet or document or program that holds all of your business contacts, probably personal as well. Your phone doesn’t count. Keeping business cards doesn’t count. You need their emails, phone numbers, where you met them, etc. in a list. This way you can set up drip emails, keep up with leads, reach out to people that you haven’t in a long while, the whole thing.
HOW TO GET ER DONE:
Pop open an excel spreadsheet or google doc and start making the list.
Categories should be : NAME, PHONE, EMAIL, ADDRESS (if you have it), WHERE YOU MET THEM, WHAT THEY ARE INTERESTED IN, WHEN YOU CONTACTED THEM, DATES THAT YOU CONTACTED THEM
THREE : CREATE VALUE SHEETS
Sometimes it’s hard to see your own worth when you’re working with someone. I know it sounds odd, but not everyone has Trump confidence. Making a list (kind of like you would on an invoice) is a great way to make sure you are pulling your weight for your good/service. If someone continues to hire you, employ you, or use you… you’re most likely doing a good job; but not always. Make sure that they are not on the fence. This will also eradicate any uneasiness that you have about whether or not YOU are doing enough and satisfying your customer.
HOW TO GET ER DONE:
Either on paper or in a word doc; use a separate page for each client and write down a list of what you have done for them this year.
Write down what you want to do for them next year.
Write down ways you can improve.
Write down questions you have for them.
Grade yourself on your work for them.
If you’re ballsy, give a modified sheet to your client and ask them to add anything they’d like
FOUR : STICK TO YOUR COMMITMENTS
I really try not to cancel meetings. Sometimes, work and life get overwhelming and life just HITS you, but try to stay on top of your obligations. This week (granted, this is the Holiday Season), I had 7 different people cancel on me. SEVEN! Pretty much every single thing I was supposed to do canceled or rescheduled. On my end, it’s not a big deal. I just don’t want to be that person! I think it’s really important to be reliable as a business person.
HOW TO GET ER DONE:
Don’t overschedule yourself.
Leave room for error, margin, travel, and hiccups.
Put everything (I mean EVERYTHING) in your google calendar on your phone.
Prioritize!
FIVE : STAY HEALTHY
Odd plan for an entrepreneur? NO. You need to be the best you can be if you’re going to be successful. You need to drink loads of water, eat healthy food, and exercise regularly.
HOW TO GET ER DONE:
Get 10,000 steps in on non-workout days. (Your iHealth app is already tracking you! Go check it out now!)
Get 7,000 steps in on workout days.
Go to Starbucks? As for a Vente ice water every single time!
Drink loads of water.
Eat a handful of fruit and veggies with every meal.
Exercise full out at least 3 times per week.
Put workouts on the calendar!
SIX : DRESS FOR SUCCESS
When I’m dressed well, I feel good. When I look good, I do well. When I’m dressed for success, I kill it! Even when I’m working from home, I get up, put my makeup on, and get ready. I may be in slippers, but I’m still ready to go. You never know if there’s a potential client, walking around your apartment building!
HOW TO GET ER DONE:
Find clothes you know you’ll feel comfortable wearing when you’re having an off day.
Get comfortable work clothes (but still classy).
Dress nice when you’re out with friends!
Get rid of pilled, outdated clothing.
SEVEN : READ
I’m SO bad at picking up a book at night, I just have so much trouble focusing. Honestly, I get more reading done on planes than anywhere else! (I also realized I get a ton more steps in when I’m traveling… maybe I should travel more!) My goal for this next year is to read (even if it’s just a few pages) MOST nights of the week.
Reading will help you learn more, stay relevant, and become a better human!
HOW TO GET ER DONE:
Find really interesting books.
Get recommendations from others.
Listen to Audio Books and Podcasts too!
EIGHT : FOLLOW UP
Meet someone? Always follow up soon after the event or meeting. Just let them know that you remembered them! Don’t ask for their business right off the bat… but really make sure you are following up PRONTO.
HOW TO GET ER DONE:
Schedule time in your day to follow up.
Don’t hound people, but be consistent!
Add leads to your list.
NINE : SAY NO & FORGO
We can’t be all things to all people. As business owners, we often want to—but we can’t! We need to be just as good at saying no as we are at saying YES. That beerfest sounds fun, but man, I should probably go on a hike instead!
HOW TO GET ER DONE:
Schedule downtime
Don’t look at weekends as the time to party, look at weekends as the time to recharge.
Don’t look at weekends as time off from work… also, don’t allow yourself to feel pity for working weekends! You’re an entrepreneur… you’ve GOT TO work weekends.
Say NO!
TEN : SELF CARE
At the end of the day, if you’re not taken care of—you can’t take care of others. Put on your own oxygen mask first. Make sure you are taking time to recharge and become your best self.
HOW TO GET ER DONE:
Don’t feel guilty for getting your nails done, hair done, lashes done, etc. It’s okay to do some things for YOU.
Meditate, pray, have alone time.
Schedule time for you to do the things you love.
Well, folks. These are quite different goals from last year. I am proud of myself for all the growth that happened in 2018, and I’m ready to annihilate 2019!
Let me know what you are going to try to do in the New Year below!
x Chelsea
