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Following Through on Your Business Goals
If you have a business, or are getting ready to start one, you should already have a Business Plan. If not, you need one and you can start by asking yourself these questions and figuring out who your target market is.
Within your business plan you will have major and minor goals, and some of those minor goals may change depending on how things go within your business. Sometimes you may see that you are not hitting the minor goals you want and wonder what you should do, that is the reason for these secondary/minor goals. Some people give-up and that is not what you want to do, it is easy to give-up and think you can come back to it all later, but trust me, I speak from experience, giving up to come back later may take longer then you think.
There are some things you want to look at to follow through on your goals for your business.
There is one other thing I want to cover. Sometimes things go the opposite way, sometimes your business does great and you start reaching major goals sooner then you were expecting. Do not use this as a reason to start slacking. If the first main goal was set for 12 months and the next one is set for 24 months, but you hit the first one after 6 months, do not say, well now I have 18 months for that second goal. You will want to keep working towards that second goal at the same rate you had already planned.
Being the owner of a fledgling business can be scary at times, but if you focus on you minor goals instead of you major ones, and be willing to change as you need to you can reach those goals.
Good Luck and Good Sales.
Within your business plan you will have major and minor goals, and some of those minor goals may change depending on how things go within your business. Sometimes you may see that you are not hitting the minor goals you want and wonder what you should do, that is the reason for these secondary/minor goals. Some people give-up and that is not what you want to do, it is easy to give-up and think you can come back to it all later, but trust me, I speak from experience, giving up to come back later may take longer then you think.
There are some things you want to look at to follow through on your goals for your business.
- Don't be afraid to extend a main goal deadline
- This might be one of the hardest thing to do as a business owner. You want to get to the point where your business is self-sufficient. But the reason for secondary minor goals is so you have a point to continue towards a main goal. That main goal make take a little longer though, and that is fine. Remember all big businesses start small and need to work towards becoming the large corporations they are today.
- Be willing to sacrifice time
- Most people realize when starting a business that it is going to take a good deal of time, but sometimes the reason a business starts to have trouble is that the owner is not willing to give up their time to it; and it is understandable, after all you are giving up time with your family, time to do things that you want to do and relax. You need to be willing to put 50, 60, 70 hours in to your business if that is what it takes. It may mean you working more hours then you want because you cannot afford to pay an extra employee at the point.
- While you should be willing to sacrifice time, do not over do it, it is not worth making yourself ill because all you do is work and sleep, and not too much of the latter.
- Most people realize when starting a business that it is going to take a good deal of time, but sometimes the reason a business starts to have trouble is that the owner is not willing to give up their time to it; and it is understandable, after all you are giving up time with your family, time to do things that you want to do and relax. You need to be willing to put 50, 60, 70 hours in to your business if that is what it takes. It may mean you working more hours then you want because you cannot afford to pay an extra employee at the point.
- Keep moving forward
- Do not let a little set back get in the way. Each step forward is a good step, if you were hoping to make ten steps in a month but are only two steps forward by the end of a month, that is still good, you are moving forward and each step in that direction is what you want.
- Change is not bad
- This is another difficult one. No one wants to change their business plan, but sometimes your business model is not working, do not be so rigid that you won't change it. Sometimes you need to be ready to take your company is a new direction, be ready for that.
- Do not jump in a new direction without thinking on it, a new direction can mean a new business plan, or it may just be a matter of redefining your target market.
- This is another difficult one. No one wants to change their business plan, but sometimes your business model is not working, do not be so rigid that you won't change it. Sometimes you need to be ready to take your company is a new direction, be ready for that.
- Accept help
- Many people who start a business do not want to take advice, or accept help from outside, but you might have to suck up that pride and do it. You may have friends or family willing to help you get by, this might be in the form of a small loan, or time help your business of the clock. Asking for and accepting the offer of help is not a bad thing, it might be the difference between success and failure.
There is one other thing I want to cover. Sometimes things go the opposite way, sometimes your business does great and you start reaching major goals sooner then you were expecting. Do not use this as a reason to start slacking. If the first main goal was set for 12 months and the next one is set for 24 months, but you hit the first one after 6 months, do not say, well now I have 18 months for that second goal. You will want to keep working towards that second goal at the same rate you had already planned.
Being the owner of a fledgling business can be scary at times, but if you focus on you minor goals instead of you major ones, and be willing to change as you need to you can reach those goals.
Good Luck and Good Sales.