Are you ready for 2012?
Owning your own business means constantly being “on the go.” It’s all about pushing yourself (and your product) to be the best possible, growing, meeting new people, getting your name out there and staying ahead of the trends. Phew… I’m exhausted and we haven’t even started the new year yet! :) In order to do all of these things well, however, I am true believer that you need to S-T-R (sit back, track and reflect)!
Now that the hustle and bustle of the holiday season is behind us, this is a great time to sit back and reflect what happened in 2011.
Here are 3 simple tips to get you in gear for 2012!
- S-T-R (sit back, track and reflect!)
It’s sooo important (and smart!) to take a moment to reflect before moving on. You can reflect on things such as any lessons you’ve learned this year and anything you might do differently in 2012. Set the intention to do this on a monthly basis for 2012 and you will cross many hurdles. Someone who I admire once told me that you can’t grow what you don’t track. You need to track your sales on a consistent basis this upcoming year and set intentions! If you did $75k in sales and you want to grow to $150, put the intention out there! If you sell to 5 stores and you want to be in 20 stores in 2012, set a goal for yourself.
- Coach
Work with a coach/mentor to help you develop a strategy to achieve your goals. Working with someone who knows your field can provide valuable insight and ideas through a different lens. As my mentor once said, “You can’t change what you don’t know.” I can speak from my own personal experience that hiring a coach was the best decision that I made for myself and my business this year. No matter what stage of business you are in, you always need to be in learning mode. Don’t be afraid to invest in yourself. When you start to up-level yourself and “live” in that zone, you begin to “play” in that zone.
- Saying no!
As creative entrepreneurs, we are all guilty of the bright shiny syndrome :) Just say no! You may think that you are walking away from potential business. However, if it is not in line with your goals for this year, it will only take away time and energy from doing what you love!
I would love to hear your goals for 2012! Please post here and let me cheer you on. Here’s to living a life of gratitude and doing what you love each day!
xo,
Grace Kang
Your Retail Product Mentor
p.s. A BIG, warm welcome to all of the new readers who joined our community! You are going to love the resources you will find here to help you make your product retail-ready… Enjoy!
My 2012 goal is to land 2 licensing deals, have my bracelets in 10 more gift shops and my prints in 10 more galleries! Totally doable!
Thanks Grace!
hey jen,
that sounds totally do-able! :)
xoxo
My goal for 2012 is not really about business stuff but rather about being active and sporty outdoors. I have been a super potato couch the past year and I want to take it to the next level and I really hope to do well on it. Thanks for sharing those items. It is such an inspiration. :)
hi angel,
you’re SO welcome!
i truly believe that your goals for your personal life directly reflects how you are in your business as well. you will see that your increased energy and focus will help improve the way you make your decisions..etc.
thanks for sharing! xoxo
My goals include ones for myself and for Cece Post in 2012. If I work on myself, it can only help Cece Post. Think before I speak so as not to offend anyone. Have patience that, “Rome(or Cece Post) was not built in a day”. Be grateful.
absolutely!
when you live a life in gratitude, everything happens effortlessly :) happy new year bee! xo
With havin so much content do you ever run into any problems of plagorism or copyright infringement? My blog has a lot of unique content I’ve either created myself or outsourced but it looks like a lot of it is popping it up all over the internet without my permission. Do you know any ways to help prevent content from being stolen? I’d really appreciate it.