Are you a New Year’s resolution person? Do you come up with things that you want to change at the start of each year?
How does that work for ya? Have you ever stuck with any of those goals long-term?
I’m not a New Year’s resolution person, but I am big on goal setting. I don’t think you should wait for a specific time of year to set goals and make changes.
You should make changes in your life and in your business whenever necessary, and you should always plan ahead. Without goals, what are you working towards?
In this week’s video, I’m encouraging you to think about what goals you’ve accomplished this year and what you want for your business for 2012. Start planning now. If you don’t, it’ll be March before you know it and you won’t have done anything different.
I want big things for you. Do you want big things for yourself?
I’ve put together a fun, downloadable worksheet to get you started!
Let me know in the comments below one goal you have for your biz in 2012. And, if you enjoyed this week’s bit of wisdom, please share it with others.
Im not the kind to set new year goals either..I set mini goals for myself throughout the year. The whole resolution thing just isnt me. My biz goal for 2012 , is to get more people interested in what I do – locally. The global scenario is great, but I want to reach out more in the community that I live in. Something along the lines of – Think globally, act locally.
Love that goal. Do you have any plans on how you’re gonna do it?
Hey April! I actually sat and did this yesterday…well started as it’ll be a work in progress. One of my main goals is to hit a certain financial mark to make bigger decisions in my life. It’s scary yet fueling. I.cannot.wait!
Great minds 🙂
It’s definitely scary to set those big goals, but you have to do it. It’ll make a difference. I know that it does for me!
I love your new backgrounds & the bloopers clips. Excellent! Also, I agree with setting goals throughout the year & not just for New Years, but there is something so exciting about starting fresh & having a blank slate. I set goals whenever I need to but I definitely love doing it for New Years.
Thanks Danielle! I’m having fun with the backgrounds 🙂
Hmmmm…that’s an interesting point and one that I didn’t think about. Starting fresh is exciting!
My goal is to try to figure out all this social media stuff. I have a small cake and confections business, trying to figure out how to reach new potential customers and not annoy my friends!
Hey Rae. That’s a great goal. On Facebook, it’s easy to reach new potential customers and not annoy your friends if you have a separate page for your business. And on Twitter, I don’t think it really matters. People pay attention to what they want to pay attention to and things go by super quick. I hope that helps a little bit. I know social media can seem overwhelming at first. You might want to check out Laura Roeder. You can find her site at lauraroeder.com. She has some amazing programs all about social media and her weekly email newsletter has specific, actionable steps to take for social media and it’s free.
My goal right now is to find some time to set goals :-)! I’m super-busy with holiday orders — which is great — but I was a little caught off-guard. There are definitely some changes I need to make and new projects to implement. I’ll be making plans for next year as soon as I can breathe again. I love the worksheet, and it will be a great starting point for my “regrouping” session.
That’s exciting that you’ve gotten a rush of orders for the holidays! Something you might want to consider for next year is hiring an assistant {or some extra help} just for the holiday season, so you don’t feel completely overwhelmed. I know many creatives who do this and it makes the holidays a lot more enjoyable for them.
I’m glad the worksheet will help you with your regrouping session!
I’m just starting my business as an artist right now, so next year I want it to grow! I’m taking it slow, so in 2012, I want to be making enough to cover my bills so that I can supplement “extra money” with a few private tutoring clients instead of 25 hours a week of online tutoring. I’m focusing on painting sales and my website right now, and by the end of next year I’d like to also distribute my art in a digital or printed format.
That’s really exciting McKella! Congrats on getting things up and going!
Love this! What great questions! The worksheet is actually helping me figure out what goals I need to accomplish before January first so that I can hit the ground running in January with my 2012 goals.
Thanks!
Yay! I’m so glad!
Great worksheet! I’ve been thinking so much about where I want to go in 2012 so now it’s time to get it all outta my head and onto the paper.
I intend to grow my community, build my client base, and add to my revenue streams. Because I want to quit my job and be a full-time artist and designer!
Yes! Get it out of your head and onto paper–research shows that you’re more likely to reach your goals if you write them down! I wish you lots of success in 2012!!!
Looks like you got a full-on tv studio there 🙂 Really love what you’ve done w/ your vids.
I’m glad to know that I’m not the only one who doesn’t wait until January 1st to start planning. I like to reassess things in my business every 3 months or so to stay on track. Next year I really need to get my time management down b/c I want to be able churn out new collections something that has been hard to do with the high demands of my full-time job and gain more exposure +customers. It’s a tall order but I ‘m so excited by the challenge.
Take care!
(p.s. chickpea cutlets turned out great and now I’ m going to try a Chinese sweet and sour version that I found another vegan site. Yum!)
Hahahahaha! Thanks 🙂 I’m having so much fun making new backgrounds for each video and taping with man. It’s been reinvigorating.
When you focus on time management, consider how you’re managing your energy, too. You can get a lot done on your creative work in one hour if you’re energized to work. On the opposite end, you can end up just turning your wheels and not getting much done even if you have three hours to work on your creative work if you don’t have the energy.
I’m so glad the chickpea cutlets were a success! We’re making a batch for Thanksgiving 🙂
Hi April…my big goal for 2012 is to learn to really take care of the small details in order to make the most of the BIG opportunities. Already lined up in 2012 I have my first international exhibition in Koh Samui Thailand in January with television and media exposure, my first international teaching tour in the U.S and Mexico next fall and my first online teaching gig with Tamara Laportes LifeBook. I’m so excited by all of these wonderful happenings but I need to tie up my loose ends like organising my mailing list, business cards, flyers, website etc…maybe its time for an assistant! Thanks for all of your inspiration! xo
That sounds sooooooooooo exciting Tracy! Congrats! When you feel like it’s time for an assistant, it’s probably well past time for an assistant 😉
I’ve never really had any goals. Sure, I set a monetary/financial goal, but for some reason, they don’t seem “solid” to me. Just recently (within the pat week), I’ve decided that one of my goals for 2012 is to do a craft show (in the Spring)! It’s an exciting goal for me because it’s also opening my mind to create other things -things that might do well in a craft show. I’m also excited because I had set the goal without aiming to set a goal. ha! Definitely going to set other little goals too and am impatiently waiting for the planner I ordered to arrive to start mapping things out!
..and thanks for the extra tip about Twitter in the previous comments: “People pay attention to what they want to pay attention to and things go by super quick.” I’ve been trying to figure Twitter out as well.
I totally get where you’re coming from when you say that your monetary and financial goals don’t seem solid. Whenever I set monetary goals, I follow that up with, “how am I gonna make that happen?” Then, I set out a solid plan with actionable steps. For instance, I know how much money I want to make in 2012 and why. Now, that I know that, I know how much I need to make each month and I’ve put steps in place to make it happen with launching products and programs. I might not reach those goals–but I’m much more likely to because I’ve got a plan in place that includes actionable steps.
Congrats on setting a goal to do a craft show this spring. I hope you come back and let me know how it goes!
Twitter is definitely confusing at first. Jess Van Den just published a digital guide {that’s affordable} on Twitter. I’ve checked it out and it’s really good. You can check out the details here if you’re interested: http://epherielldesigns.com/e-books/the-crafty-guide-to-twitter
I’m so excited about 2012. I’m planning to introduce a “ready to ship” line and a “special occasions” line with baptismal gowns and such. But…I definately need to plan ahead. I can’t wait to sit down with your worksheet and spend some time planning.
That sounds really exciting! I wish you all the best with it.
Yes! When you focus on time management, consider how you’re managing your energy, too. Thanks! Do you have any plans on how you’re gonna do it?
I manage my energy by taking breaks at least every 90 minutes. During these breaks I usually exercise, listen to music, read, or play with my dogs outside. It keeps me energized and focused throughout the day–and I still have energy in the evenings 🙂