New clients often ask me: “How can I take my business to the next level?” Some wonder if there’s a magic checklist or template they can use to make this happen.
Unfortunately, there is no universal set of tactics or magic document suited for every business. But there are a few things that every business needs to have right away (a business banking account; a way to track income and expenses; a dedicated place to work, etc.) You have to lay the foundation first. Once/If those are in place, I always recommend that each business owner make their own checklist of “best next steps” and set off to tackle them one by one. I even have a couple of “magic checklists” (not really magic… but they are checklists!) of three professional and three personal goals to achieve in 90 days, and 10 things that can be handed off to me. These documents help them think about where they want their business to go and how I can help them.
Before we can tackle these goals and tasks together, I ask them to first consider where the problems may be in their business (and be honest about what it will take to fix them).
This may seem a bit backward. After all, the business blogs and magazines tend to focus on tools and tactics that are intended to grow and improve operations or profitability. What I’ve seen, though, is that until you fix the “messes,” you’re spending time and money in the wrong place. I’ve had to work on this in my own business.
Problems Slow You Down
As your business grows, your messes will grow right along with it, if you don’t fix them. At some point, they’ll become cumbersome. When that happens, you’ll be drowning in new work but unable to do a good job since you’ll be beyond the point where impromptu fixes and systems can support you.
Here are some examples of messes that escalate as your business grows:
1. Your email inbox. If you’re having trouble keeping up with your inbox now, think about what happens when you reach your dream and your business doubles or triples in size. The volume of email will double or triple, too.
So take the time now and figure out a system to manage your inbox. At a minimum, if you don’t already have folders for sorting, do that. The naming conventions need to match your business (i.e., there’s no need for client folders if you don’t have clients you work with regularly). It could be as simple as “Urgent” “Working on” “Save for later”, etc. Just make it something that makes sense to you.
2. Your contact list. You have business cards piled all over your desk, a Gmail account, a business email address, and a ton of LinkedIn and Facebook contacts. Right now, you can kind of, sort of, remember where to go to find a given contact.
But as you grow, particularly if you add new information, it will be too much to keep in your head. When you want to announce a new web site, promote a webinar or even just send a holiday card, it will be a huge chore.
The solution is to keep all your contacts in one place. Choose a CRM and add everyone, once and for all. Create a system to keep it up to date. Be sure to research them well – some very simple but efficient CRM’s are free to use or have a minimal cost. And remember again – not one size fits all so most programs will have features you won’t use. And that’s OK!
3. Your finances. Whether you offer a service or a product, it’s important to know whether or not you’re making money. When a business is just starting out, you might have more time than money and not be too worried about profitability. That’s the best time to get a system in place for tracking money.
Because as you get busier, you’ll want to make sure that you’re not losing money on some (or all?) of your efforts. So either take the time to figure this out or find yourself a capable financial resource who can come in and sort things out for you. Be honest with yourself because not everyone is a ‘bookkeeper’. This is one area in your business it might make sense to spend money to have someone else handle it.
Messes are as individual as the person who made them – but they’re all fixable. Make a list of all your messes and prioritize them according to how much time (and money) they are wasting and how much they’re holding you back.
Then either hire someone to help you handle them or make a list of actionable steps to get them under control. Get rid of them one by one so you can be bigger, more efficient, work less and make more money (yay)!
Here’s to new growth for your business! 🌼🌻