Sustainability – you and your business
So you have several great ideas for your business.
Without a real plan, but with a lot of enthusiasm you get started on one of them, but then something else comes along, so you run with that for a while, and then things start happening with the original idea you started on, so you go back to that for a bit.
Meanwhile, something else has grabbed your attention, and you realize that your web site doesn’t say anything about any of these new ideas, so that really needs updating, or maybe a new web site entirely….? But then you really need to figure out where that fits in with your business as a whole….? And who your target market is….? And what your key messages are…..?
Then you get up one morning and realize you have no idea what to do next to further any of these projects, and you waste time looking at Facebook and feel exhausted at the prospect of doing anything. Does this sound at all familiar?!
It is usually at this point that I get a phone call or email from a client or prospective client because they need to figure out what to do next and they are, frankly, burnt out.
If you look up ‘sustainable’ in the Thesaurus, it’s associated with all kinds of wonderful words like ‘unending’, ‘worthwhile’ and ‘continual’. For me it means not only that your business model needs to be sustainable, but also, very importantly, that your workload needs to be sustainable too. If you get burnt out because you are overcommitted that is no good for you, your clients, or your business.
Here is my sustainability checklist:
Prioritise – Stop and take some time to figure out what you really want to do with your business, and what your long-term goals are.
Have a SMART plan – once you have set your goals, make sure they are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, Timed.
Take time out – as a small business leader you are probably your businesses most precious resource. Make sure you are doing all you can to take care of yourself on a regular basis.