Smart Resolutions for Small Business Owners

Not everyone makes New Year’s resolutions. In fact, according to Statistic Brain, a German think tank, only about 45 percent of Americans even bother to come up with new goals for the coming year. And when they do, not more than 10 percent keep them for longer than just a couple weeks. It’s actually proving to be a losing proposition.

And that very well may be why the tradition that began more than 4,000 years ago has lost its luster. Back in Babylonian times, everyone was encouraged to make promises at the beginning of the new year. Mostly, they had to do with paying the bills they owed and returning borrowed stuff. But when they made those resolutions to the gods, by god, they knew they’d better keep them — or risk getting stuck with a poor crop that year.

Set the Stage

Whether or not you count on your god (or higher power) to bring you good fortune or punish you if you break your word, you still can set the stage to come out of the whole resolution business as a solid winner. It may take a little more thought and foresight to make realistic resolutions. But the process very well may be worth the effort.

Those same German brainiacs report that the people who make specific, well thought-out New Year’s resolutions are 10 times more likely to succeed in the new year. Those who don’t make any resolutions and those who spout only wishful fancies and call them resolutions are just spinning their wheels.

Get Real

A New Year’s resolution really is just another word for setting goals. And any halfway decent entrepreneur knows that goal-setting is tantamount to success. The trick now is to choose wisely rather than make predictions that are doomed to fail. Start your year with some New Year’s resolutions that you have a very good chance of achieving.

The primary focus of New Year’s resolutions — or any goals, for that matter — should be positive. Instead of setting your sights on losing weight, for example, it’s much kinder and more encouraging to want to get healthy. And that just may be the best place to start anyway:

1. Get healthy. Good health doesn’t have to mean that you fit into any societal image of body perfection. But it does infer that you’ve reduced stress in your life, since stress is one of the major causes of disease and sickness in this country. Choose one new habit to institute this year in honor of your good health. Consider little things like: turning off your cell phone for one hour a day, meditating for 10 minutes each day or drinking one less beer a week.
    
2. Give compliments. Amazing things can happen in your life when you aren’t thinking only about yourself. Not only do you make the world a happier place, but you also store up plenty of good karma to improve your own life.
    
3. Share your talents. There’s a reason that you’re achieving success in your business and in your life. You’ve got talent. Invoke the power of payback and either give away an hour of your time every month to someone in need or take on at least one pro-bono client this year. This resolution falls into the same metaphysical category as giving compliments.
    
4. Read your own website. It’s amazing how many small business owners get so busy that they don’t even look at their own websites. But even if your website person did a great job on your site, you need to keep it updated and current. Read through it at least every other month. Make necessary and appropriate changes. You may save a sale or earn a new client if you do.
    
5. Clean house. Just as a cluttered office can lead to lost production time, so too can a lazy underachiever. Let the deadweight go and hire people who are hungry and want to make money for themselves and for you. This could also fall in the “get healthy” column of New Year’s resolutions, as you’ll discover how much your stress levels drop off after your poor employees leave.
    
6. Mix business with pleasure. Never leave home without your business cards. And jump into conversations with updates on your business when at parties or other social events. You’ll be surprised how many people you know need your services or have talents you could use.
    
7. Spend money. It’s true that you’ve got to spend money to make money, so let 2017 be the year that you loosen the purse strings a little more and hire a contractor to do some of your admin work or bring on a team of awesome writers to maintain your blog (hint, hint). As your revenues grow, you’ll wonder how you ever got along without them.

These New Year’s resolutions aren’t difficult to achieve, and they just make sense. Come back to the tradition of making resolutions. Even if you boil it down to just one, make it count. And make it real. Not only will you reap the benefits of each positive change, but you’ll feel better about yourself for trying — and succeeding! Best of luck for a rewarding, prosperous 2017.

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