The following is a sponsored post I wrote for my partners at Staples. I’m so thrilled they are letting me represent their brand because I’ve been a customer for years. Everything I’ve written here is my own opinion.
Back to Business in 2016
It’s the beginning of a new year, where resolutions have been made, sales projects are top of mind, and we’re wondering what’s going to make the difference. How do we improve on the previous year’s results. It’s easy to get overwhelmed. I’ll walk you through how I do what I do, especially because it’s a fun way to highlight the parts of my business where I use Staples to help me succeed.
Map Your Big Goals to Your Day
I practice the 20 Minute Plan method of planning out my days. That means that I take my big mission and the goals associated with it and make sure I map my actions to those goals every day. I make sure that I work three hours every day on the core drivers of my goals so that every week and month, I’ll have something to show for my time. (To do that, I bought a 1” binder from Staples and used their Copy Center to print out my planner sheets.)
Switch to Monthly View
Another way our businesses get bogged down is that we look at the week and the day far more often than we peek at the monthly view. To rectify this, I picked up a big paper monthly calendar (yes, from Staples) and stuck it on the wall. Now, I use different colored markers so that I have a read on promotions, other people’s deadlines, sales windows, and more. It’s low tech in the best of ways.
Make Faster (and Fewer) Decisions
If I had to steal my president and business partner Rob Hatch’s big secret that he shares with his coaching clients, it’s the push to make fewer decisions. “Put success in your way” is probably the tattoo Rob would get (if he were a tattoo kind of guy). It’s a simple (but not easy) concept. I’ll give you some examples.
- Set up a “uniform” to wear. A shirt or two, one or two types of pants. Etc. That way, you know what you’re wearing the next day. No brain power required.
- Build out your editorial calendar for the year. Know what you’ll talk about all year long in service of your customers. Give them something THEY can use (whether or not they buy your product). After you brainstorm the themes, lay them into your monthly calendar and also write them into your planning pages.
- Build supply lists for your business. I’m throwing this one in for Staples, but it’s smart. Staples has a “Business Less List” providing the lowest prices on business essentials. They also do a Back-to-Business 110% price match. With all that in mind, I don’t see why you’d pick any other choice.
How many of these decisions can you make and have in place ahead of time? LOTS more than you probably have now. So what’s stopping you?
Get Back to Business
You’re looking to make 2016 really thrive? It’s in the basics, not the crazy stuff. Get back to business with some really simple (and with Staples’ help, easy!) actions that will set the stage for everything else!
The previous was a sponsored post on behalf of Staples. Like I said above, all of these words are my own and not edited/altered by Staples in any way. I love that I’m working with them on this project. They do a lot for small business owners like me, and I hope you enjoy what they do, as well.