BATS Xpress, LLC

At the beginning of the new year, it is easy to get caught up in the swirl of new beginning feelings and set resolutions and goals that are more aspirational than realistic. As a result, they aren’t maintained and typically fizzle out within the first couple of months. To help you stay consistent and accomplish your small business goals this new year, we have put together a list of tips that will make you a goal-setting guru!

7 Steps to Set Achievable Goals for your Small Business This New Year

1. Identify What You Want to Achieve

Business goals need focus and direction. Start by asking yourself what you want to achieve in the coming 12 months, is it increased sales, minimizing expenses, minimizing tax liability, streamlining the hiring process or something else? Stay realistic during this step especially. Setting an unattainable goal will only hurt morale in the long run, making you feel deflated and defeated. If it’s a large goal, be sure to break it down into smaller objectives to remained focused.

2. Make Sure Your Objectives Are SMART

Being specific, detailed, and purposeful is crucial to your success. Break down each goal and objective into SMART ones by asking:

S (Specific): What exactly are you trying to achieve?


M (Measurable): How will you know when you’ve achieved it?

A (Attainable): Is it genuinely possible to achieve it?

R (Relevant): Does it contribute to your small business’ revenue growth?

T (Time-Bound): When do you want to achieve this by?

3. Anticipate Setbacks

Setbacks happen to everyone. Another great step to avoid aspirational thinking clouding your goal-setting process is to list all the setbacks or issues that arose in the last year or two and then identify a plan of action for tackling similar situations in the future. Hindsight is 20/20, so use this knowledge to devise some strategies for overcoming any potential hiccups. Accepting that issues arise will ensure you will be able to move forward and not let them completely derail your efforts.

4. Use Deadlines to Promote Accountability

You have identified how you will know when you’ve achieved your objectives and overall goal, but to keep momentum going, set your accountability now with deadlines. Deadlines create a sense of urgency and importance to complete each step towards your goal. They also help you remain engaged and keep track of your progress along the way.

5. Reassess Your Goal Regularly

Those metrics you set in number 2 of this article will be critical in helping you reassess your goal. Each month you can highlight your accomplishments so far, address any hiccups that may have popped up and reassess your progress. Pulling your team into the mix, if you have one, can also help generate feedback and brainstorm ideas for next steps or adjustments that may need to be made. Reminding your team of the importance of the goal and the importance of their role in it can help forward momentum.

6. Celebrate Milestones

Whether big or small, celebrate those wins that are getting you closer and closer to your goal. You (and your team) are investing a lot of time and energy into achieving big things this year, don’t forget to also relish in the achievements along the way with a celebration proportional to the size of the milestone- lunch out, a non-work related celebratory event, etc. This will keep energy levels up, especially if you’re running a busy team, and show that the efforts are recognized and appreciated.

7. Stay Positive

Bad days, weeks and events are bound to happen. It’s the nature of business in general. Don’t let one bad day, week or missed milestone trick you into thinking that your goal cannot be achieved. Take a step back, collect yourself and pick up where you left off. You can achieve what you set out to in the beginning, simply reframe those setbacks as little speedbumps and keep on moving forward.

Conclusion

The beginning of the year can bring a rush of excitement and anticipation of new beginnings. Don’t let your goals fizzle out as the holiday high dissipates. Follow these seven tips to turn your checklist into reality for your small business.

*Of course this article is meant to offer broad support and suggestions for your small business. If you need individualized small business support, please contact your BATS Xpress team at 208-577-6665.