Setting Goals: Recipes for Success

May 7, 2009 by thinkhappy

Recipes for Success!

by Melissa Foster

After the new year begins, many business owners find it difficult to get back into the swing of their business routines. Growing a business is hard enough to do, maintaining that growth after taking some time off can be even more difficult.

Here are a few ideas to help get you back into the game:

Set Goals

You’ve heard it a million times. Plan to succeed. It’s true, you truly do need to plan in order to succeed. Setting and achieving your goals are important ingredients to success. This year, reach higher than you have before. Is there a client that you have felt is out of your league? List three of them. Then pursue them. Achieving one of them as clients for your business will be a huge success.

Spend 20 minutes each day on at least one of your goals. You have to work to achieve success. 20 minutes each day is enough to get you back in the swing of things. After a week you’ll probably be running with  the bulls!

Revisit Previous Clients

The new year is the perfect time to get in touch with past clients. Don’t send a vague email or card that will be thrown into the slush pile. Pick up the phone. Take them to lunch, have a laugh, share a few of your new business ideas with them. Re-establishing old connections may prove vital for your business’ growth.

Make it Personal

Many people believe their businesses are separate from themselves. Forget that notion. Make your business personal. If your business succeeds, you succeed. Would you give up on looking for your lost child after just three phone calls? Of course not! So why would you give up on finding new clients after just a few calls? Push yourself to succeed and you will.

Network

If you have not been active in networking environments before, this is the year to do it. There are thousands of networking websites on the Net for you to join. Spend 10 minutes each morning networking on them and you’re sure to find many more clients than you would have thought possible.

Share the Wealth

Become connected with a worthy cause. Sponsor that cause in any way you can. You probably won’t earn money by sponsoring, but you will become affiliated with a worthy cause, and more people will want to work with you. Even better – donate a percentage of your profits to that cause. People will notice. Add it to your website – let the world know you care.

Believe in Yourself

This is perhaps the most important part of achieving success. You must believe in the services you provide or the products you sell. If you are confident, others will feel that confidence and have faith in you. Instead of thinking, I’ll never get this client, believe you will get them before you even open your mouth to speak with them.

These are just a few of the things you can do to achieve success in the upcoming year. Practice makes perfect. Practice a few of each of these ideas a few times each week and you’ll be back in the swing of things before you know it!

You can do it!

About the author:  Melissa Foster is the founder of The Women’s Nest, a free on-line community for women. Come escape the chaos of your daily life, connect with other women like yourself - Share a laugh, gain advice, friendship, and fun! Book club, scrapbook club, forums, blogs, and free medical, financial, and relationship advice. Join us at http://www.thewomensnest.com

Permalink