The holiday season is often filled with shopping, parties, and many good times with friends and family. However, what’s good for one aspect of your life can be detrimental to your business progress.
While many people believe that nothing valuable can be accomplished during this time of year, we believe you can actually make significant progress with the right mindset and plan.
If you want to make progress and set yourself up for success in the new year ahead, implement the following 5 intentional actions.
1 – Be Intentional With Your Time
When seasons are busy, how you manage your time is essential. If you want to keep your momentum going into the new year, make sure to block dedicated time to work on your business. If you allow yourself to stop altogether, it will be difficult to get moving again. You may not be as productive during the holidays as you are during other times of the year, but you need to keep moving forward. Being intentional with your time is critical for that to happen.
2 – Give Yourself Freedom and Flexibility
The reality is that we need to slow down and enjoy the season for our health and relationships. If we are truly committed to building lifestyle-friendly businesses, we must give ourselves permission to enjoy this time of each year. It’s easy to remain so driven that we miss the significant moments with those we love and value most. This can lead to damaged relationships and a life of regrets. Be wise about how you navigate this time of the year.
3 – Take Time to Dream and Plan
The end of each year and the holiday season is a great time to think ahead and dream about what the next year could bring. Block time in your schedule to slow down, think, pray, and dream. What would you like to accomplish by this time next year? What opportunities do you see? What challenges do you anticipate? What steps do you need to take to progress? What do you need to learn and implement? Give yourself the space to dream and plan amidst the busyness of the season.
4 – Keep Your Valued People Informed of Your Plans
Because there are so many parties and get-togethers during the holiday season, your schedule is likely not just your own. Family and friends want you to participate in activities with them. A key way to navigate the tension of advancing in your business while maintaining healthy relationships is clear communication. While this is valuable any other time of the year, it’s vital during this time of the year. Whether you utilize a shared calendar or simply keep people apprised of your work schedule and appointments, make clear communication a priority.
5 – Stay Connected With Your Prospects, Customers, and Clients
In business, it’s easy to fall into the trap of seeing everything as transactional. The holidays give us an opportunity to be more human. Reach out to your prospects, customers, and clients just to wish them well and tell them you appreciate them. Build relationships with them. Thank them for doing business with you. Share what’s going on in your life during the holidays and ask them what they are doing and excited about. While your communication with them may be different than other times of the year, it’s a great opportunity to build rapport.
The holidays can certainly be tricky when building and running our businesses, but we don’t have to be taken off-track. Implement these five intentional actions and watch how you gain momentum going into the new year!
If you need help determining what your next best moves are in your business heading into the new year, we invite you to check out our Design Launch Grow coaching and training program. This in-depth business program offers a supportive community of like-minded entrepreneurs, as well as, an all-access pass to an expansive vault of training videos, live weekly coaching calls, and monthly online workshops. Consider joining us at Design Launch Grow today!