Drea Knufken
This is a guest post by a writer a Money Supermarket
To bring success to your business in 2011, you better be motivated and prepared. But with enough elbow grease, you can get a step ahead of your competition. Perseverance and a clear plan of action are crucial for your success in the new year. Here’s how to know what you want for your business in 2011, and how to get it.
Identify what success means to you.
Success means different things to different people. Depending on the current state of your business, you may have different aims and objectives. For 2011, set smaller goals for your business that lead to an overall main objective.
For example, the first goal could be to cut down your supplier costs. That could then tie into your overall objective to improve operating profit by 10%.
Setting goals that lead to bigger objectives for your business gives you two fundamental things. One is a clear idea of where you are heading. The second is a vision of where you want to be.
Be SMART when setting your business objectives
When it’s time to set your business objectives for 2011, being SMART is incredibly important. SMART is an acronym for Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic/Relevant and Time Bound:
- Specific – Your business objectives should always be specific. By identifying what success means to your business, you know exactly what you want to achieve
- Measurable – If your business objective is not measurable, how will you know when or if it has been achieved?
- Achievable – Your business objectives should always be based on the current state of your company. They should be achievable based on the resources available to you.
- Realistic and Relevant – The objectives you set should be relevant to where you want your business to go, but they should also be realistic.
- Time Bound – If you don’t have a time limit on your business objectives, then they could run on and on without any real progress. Setting a time limit helps to keep you focused.
Have a plan
After you have identified what success in 2011 means to you, and you have written down your business objectives, it’s time to ensure that you have a plan.
Having a clear plan of action keeps you motivated and focused on the tasks at hand. Write down each of your business objectives. Then identify how you are going to achieve of them. Voila–that’s your plan! Try and stick to your plan of action as much as possible, and watch as your desired results unfold.
Some examples of business success objectives
- I want to demonstrate my business growth by putting together various reports in January 2011
- I want to cut supplier costs by 10% over the next 2 months
- I want to improve business revenue by 20% over the next 12 months
Be positive! The method above will bring success to your business in 2011.
This guest post is by moneysupermarket.com
