It’s hard to believe the fourth and final quarter of the year is just around the corner. During transitional seasons, we naturally reflect on the state of our own small business—and we know you’re doing the same. Though we love the summer months, we feel the strain of time as we look ahead to the final quarter of the year.
Have you met your small business goals?
Are you on target to finish the year with a bang?
Has the strain of summer got you down?
Kids not back to school yet?
Too many distractions?
Does your To Do list grow daily?
Is this list making you twitchy? We feel ya! On all accounts. Evaluating goals, including what’s worked and what hasn’t throughout the year, is a crucial part of entrepreneurship. However, it can highlight the stress caused by the time crunch of the final quarter. Here are our tried-and-true tips for keeping stress at bay and conquering the strain of summer.
Take care of you
Your health and well-being should be your top priority. When you are not at your best, you can’t perform for your clients or your customers at a level they require and deserve.
Regular exercise, even if it is just a quick walk around the block can do wonders. Fresh air and a change of scenery helps clear your mind and gets your blood and creative juices pumping. You might find you mentally work through a solution to a tough problem or think of a different angle for a project. Even if you feel like you don’t have time to squeeze in exercise, do it anyway! You “earn” back that time with the increased focus it gives you, because it allows you to better focus on tasks at hand.
Remember that eating regular meals and snacks, drinking plenty of water, and even incorporating a multi-vitamin or a specific stress reliever, such as Olly Goodbye Stress gummies, can help maximize productivity. No one can function very well if they’re hangry. We also like to keep almonds, granola bars and fresh fruit nearby at all times; and adult beverages in moderation for after work hours.
Set boundaries
We know the hunt for the ever-elusive work/life balance well. It can be very challenging, especially when you have a small staff (if any!) and there is a lot riding on your success. In our experience, committing to dedicated work hours, vacation time, and time spent with family and friends is imperative. Though it seems counterintuitive, those times when you’re not thinking about your business help prevent burnout and help you renew your energy to be a better business owner.
Overlapping the ideas of setting boundaries and taking care of your health involves sleep. Make sure you are getting enough sleep! Putting away your devices at a reasonable hour, setting up a sleep schedule and sleep routine that quiets your mind and allows you to heave a restful night is so important. Our phone alerts are off by 7:00 pm each night. We don’t over promise or respond to emails the second they are received.
Find your squad
A group of like-minded entrepreneurs or friends that you can vent with, share ideas about how to grow your small business, and share your stress plus offer advice about theirs can be invaluable for entrepreneurs. Your squad works as a terrific way to test new ideas, resolve conflicts, and realize you are not alone. The relationships formed are reciprocal in nature, which separates them from the times you bounce ideas off friends in a book club or other areas of your life. Don’t forget to listen—and chime in with your own experiences. In helping others, you end up helping yourself.
Explore outsourcing opportunities
Don’t be afraid to ask for help. You may think you can do all the things, but you can’t. Trust us, we have tried. There simply aren’t enough hours in the day! When you’re mired down in every item on your to-do list, you get stuck there—and can’t see the larger picture about the direction in which your business is headed.
Stop putting your small business goals on the back burner. Think about the resources you need and focus on filling those needs. If you’re working without a staff or need a super quick turnaround on a specific project, check out freelance services like Fiverr or Upwork. For other needs, check in with that squad you’ve built. Often times people will work for trade or will work within understood budget constraints. You just have to ask!
Social media often turns into one of the small task items that sinks to the bottom of your list, but it’s also the lifeline connecting your business to potential clients and customers. When it comes to your social media, the Take Flight team has you covered. We can analyze your current social media platforms and provide you with a comprehensive strategy and tangible action items you can implement immediately. Contact us today for a free consultation and let’s get started.
How do you prepare your small business for seasonal transitions?