Break Out Of That Rut
Is your home business trodding along, having lost the spark that drove it in the early years? Break out of the rut and re-energize your operation.
- Create your "Big Target on the Horizon." This is a long-term project, something that once completed will be a powerful reminder to your clients and peers of the businessperson you are. It can be a book, an audio cassette series, a new promotional package for your business, a new Web site, a proprietary research project about your industry, a new business – any long-term project that you can complete in 12 to 24 months. The project has to be hands-on; you can't just pass it off to a subcontractor to create. Unlike the roteness of daily work, the Big Target focuses your energy on a single, unique project, and enlivens your spirit every day to complete it.
- Break out your business plan, and read and revise it. Remember that document you wrote way back when you launched your company? The one that said what the company was all about, what its product was, who its clients or customers would be, what the marketing would entail and cost, how much the company would grow, and how much money it would make? Call up the file, read it over, revise it, and print it out. Keep it close at hand. It's a great motivator, as well as a reminder of what you're all about.
- What, no business plan? It's OK if you didn't write a plan; many people don't. Take this opportunity to write your plan, create your vision, put it to paper and find guidance from it. The document doesn't have to be long; a couple of pages will suffice. But it has to be your realistic view of what your business can achieve.
- Write a mission or vision statement. This is a brief description of your company's purpose. One paragraph, two sentences. Choose an attractive font, bump up the type size to 24 point, print it out, frame it and mount it on your office wall -- preferably in a place where you'll see it every day. It's a great source of inspiration.
- Get away. A short trip or getaway with family or friends – for relaxation or business brainstorming – can revitalize the mind and the business. It can be a day at a day at a park, or a weekend away. The goal is to get yourself into an environment away from the office where you can think more freely.
