Most small business owners know exactly what they want to achieve from their business, but very few communicate their goals to their support team.
It’s very easy to get bogged down in the day to day requirements of your business (i.e. working in the business), that we forget to take the time to take a high view level of how the business is actually performing (i.e. working on the business).
By sharing your business (and personal) goals with your support team, you are able to be held accountable for achieving those goals. Plus, chances are that your support team will be able to assist you in getting to where you want to be.
Everyone’s support team is different, however it usually includes a combination of personal and professional colleagues who you trust, and who want to see your business perform to the best of its ability. Choose your team carefully!
Your business’ financial goals are particularly important, as they are the fruition of all of your hard work and dedication. You need to be performing financially in order to continue operating your business.
Once you determine what your financial goals are, it’s important you prepare a budget for your business. Make sure that the budget is S.M.A.R.T. (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Timely) and takes in to account any costs your are expecting to incur during the period.
The most important part of the entire budgeting process however, is monitoring how you are performing compared to the budget. This is where most business owners go wrong. They don’t stop and check (regularly), whether they are on track to achieving their financial goals. This means that most business owners are essentially ‘running blind’. They are working day in, day out, with very little idea of whether they are on track to achieving their goals, only to find out when they prepare their tax returns at the end of the year, how they actually performed.
Don’t run your business while blindfolded. Have a think about what you want to be getting out of your business, and take the steps to make sure that you achieve them. Prepare a budget. Put your goals on to paper. Communicate those goals. And most importantly, make sure you are held accountable for achieving those goals.
