Business resolutions for the New Year

To many, the phrase ‘New Year’s Resolutions’ brings a certain amount of dread. Often they signal your intention to end something in your life that you enjoy doing but that may be bad for you, such as smoking or drinking.  

On the flip side, they may contain promises that you are going to do more of things that aren’t particularly fun and perhaps even painful because they are ultimately good for you. This includes choosing a session at the gym over a session at the pub. 

Business New Year’s Resolutions are different though, they are a commitment to success. A promise that you are going to change things for the better and ultimately your business, or your role within a business, will improve. 

If you’re willing to make drastic changes, here are some ideas to get you started. 

1. Improve Communication 

It’s all well and good bombarding clients and suppliers with endless emails, or spending the majority of your time thinking up catchy Facebook or Twitter posts, but is this a productive way to spend your time? 

Focus on communication that is going to be interesting to those who you want to read it. Don’t bombard haphazardly, produce communication in a timely and effective manner.  

Remember, it’s more important to treat people as individuals and connect with new people than out is trying to communicate with everyone at once. 

2. Take Time to Recharge 

This is especially important if it is your own business and you are tending to get sucked into every possible facet. The workday doesn’t have to start at 9 am and finish at 5 pm. Work your own hours if you can and concentrate on getting the job done. 

Remember the amount of time you spend away from work, both mentally and physically, can be important in the success of your business. Plus, always remember that a good night’s sleep is essential. 

3. Be Proactive 

You’ve made a good start by thinking about your resolutions for 2019, but why not think about 2020? Or even 2021?! Not resolutions necessarily but maybe goals? Where do you see the business over the coming years? Where do you see yourself? What goals do you want to achieve and how do you expect to achieve them? When do these achievements have to be in place in order to achieve your goals? 

A simple calendar is a great motivator and something tangible for you to tick off as you eventually turn your goals into a reality. 

4. Improve Delegation 

As already mentioned, if you are a business owner you probably have the tendency to do too much. You probably try to oversee every call, every transaction, every decision. Don’t! That’s why you’ve employed people. It’s important to take a step back and let people do their jobs. 

Similarly, if you are an employee yourself, with an effective delegation to those under (and above) you can impact the efficiency of a business in a very positive way. 

Take time to step back and have a look at the whole picture. You’ll always find a new approach. 

5. Improve your Business Travel 

There are a number of ways to ensure that you and your employees can be more comfortable on a business trip. After all, relaxed employees are more likely to achieve the objective of the meeting they’ve taken the trip for in the first place! 

Allow employees to tack a family holiday on to the end or beginning of their business trip if they wish. If they would be out of the office for a week then two weeks together will likely be easier to deal with than two separate weeks at different times of the year. 

Employees travelling with family will also be happier. You’re also doing your bit for the environment, you’ve allowed your employee to reduce their carbon footprint by reducing their air time. 

Consider your business accommodation too. Who wants to spend time in a pokey hotel room when they have a house at home? Corporate housing provides a home from home and companies like thesqua.re have serviced apartments in London, Paris, Tokyo, New York and in many other major cities across the world. 

6. Learn New Things 

Perhaps your New Year's Resolution could be, ‘Learn something new every week’? 

Obviously, this would be even more advantageous if it were directly connected to the business you operate in, but it needn’t always be the case. Adding anything to your personal skills or hobbies will also improve your work performance by positively adjusting your work/life balance. 

New skills can also often involve meeting new people. People who could be new suppliers or clients.