Time To Fill In The Blank Pages Ahead
Planning for 2019.
Most people are winding down now to Christmas. “Hasn’t the year flown”… if I had a euro for each time I’ve heard this since the 1st of December 😊
Time flies when we’re having fun… but also it flies when we’re busy. Months roll by so quickly and before you know it, you’re using the quote above again! So, let’s slow down for 5 minutes and take a deep breath.
How will we plan for 2019 to ensure it doesn’t fly by without us achieving what we want to?
I usually use Gordan Ramsay’s ham recipe and Jamie Oliver’s mulled wine and a few others of his for my Christmas dinner. Each year I pull out the recipes, make a list and plan for shopping ingredients and the prep work.
The same rules apply for preparing for anything worthwhile. Start with a list of what you want to achieve and make a plan to ensure it’s a success. Without my recipes (or my lists in work), I doubt I’d get half the ingredients right (and I’d never make my deadlines!)
Making lists also gets a lot of ‘noise’ and information from your head onto a page, which can help you work more productively and procrastinate less apparently.
Schedule time
My simple formula for year end review and planning for 2019 is as follows:
- Look back
- Look forward
- List action for sales strategies
Some simple questions to ask yourself honestly if looking at 2019 planning in the coming week.
For the LOOK BACK, I would recommend using numbers where possible ALWAYS. Numbers don’t lie. That’s one of the reasons I love them! 😊
What worked for you in 2018?
Where did you spend time and it paid off with new clients?
What did you do that didn’t go so well throughout 2018?
What can you learn from what didn’t go right?
How can you improve (skill up) during 2019 to ensure this doesn’t happen again?
The answers to the above will help you with your LOOK FORWARD.
What do you want to achieve in 2019 (be specific)?
What will you need to say no to, to allow time to do new things in 2019?
What action / plan will you put in place around your 2019 SALES STRATEGIES?
Having spent a morning last week in the company of the fabulous Jo Collins of Sales Performance, I’ve already started my planning for 2019. Attending planning seminars can leave us feeling overwhelmed at times though. Take one thing at a time. As Jo often says, “how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time!”
For more information on Jo see here.
We can only do what we can do. One thing at a time based on priorities and what will have the biggest impact to our business, broken down into bite-size manageable chunks.
Some recommended reading
To get your motivation going, it might be good to dig out a few inspirational books over the holidays. Maybe something more practical would be suited to you for your business needs. I like reading biographies but more so, I prefer tips on ‘how to’ and books that have something I can put into place action-wise to make my business better asap.
If you’re starting out in a service company and unsure how to get more clients, a great book is ‘Book Yourself Solid’ by Michael Port.
If you’re busy and find it hard to get new work done, a good time management book is ‘The 12 Week Year’ by Brian P Moran and Michael Lennington.
Unsure where you want to market your business next year, read ‘Known’ by Mark Schaefer for some ideas to test in 2019.
The ’12 Rules for Life – the Antidote to Chaos’ by Jordan B. Peterson is a great read.
If you’ve reading suggestions, please feel free to leave them in the comment box below as many people enjoy a good book to get their teeth into. All suggestions welcome but do say why we might read it, what we’d learn from it or if it’s inspirational.
Have a wonderful week whether you get to start your 2019 planning now or early New Year.
Jumping into a greater 2019!
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[17 December 2018]
