When I first started my business I must admit there was not much planning or goal setting. Everything was done on a whim, ironic considering my client weddings were planned to perfection!
But in 2009 I started working with a coach, way before coaches were a “thing”. I attended a 90-day planning workshop and started mapping out my year. It was a game changer for me ever since and thus I encourage all clients to embrace.
I know 90 day planning works incredibly well for the wedding and creative industries who invariably have peak seasons for enquiries and client work. Plus with how fast trends happen and technology advances, it stands to reason a yearly plan could well be “irrelevant” half way through the year.
WHY YEARLY PLANNING IS THE START NOT THE FINISH LINE
Having a year plan is vital for your business, but this is pointless if you do not have a strategy for reaching those targets. Writing your goals down is definitely the first step in reaching them, but this alone will not bring success. You need to break these goals down into tangible chunks, just how will you get to the finish line?
The problem with yearly planning is, you find that goals lose relevance 6 months into the year. It can also be really overwhelming to look at everything that needs to get done – leading to procrastination. Telling yourself there is no rush, there is always ‘tomorrow”.
Compare this if you will to wedding clients that book you far in advance or interior design clients. How often does their vision change throughout a 12 month period? Pretty frequently right? Same can be said for business. Who knows what challenges you will face in 6 months or 12 months time. So have an overall year plan but then really focus on shorter immediate goals. The other difficulty with 12 month plans is there’s “always tomorrow” to complete a task. Being more decisive with your goals ensures you complete them!
WHY 90 DAY PLANNING WORKS
Quarterly planning is not a new strategy, many industries map their goals every 90 days. Think about it – the fashion industry has been doing this forever, planning and running their businesses by the seasons and so do journalists, planning their publications 3 months in advance.
There has been a lot of research that proves working 90 days at a time is most effective. Create a year plan but then every quarter work out the top priorities for the next 90 days. This is far more manageable and allows you to laser focus on your top goals without losing momentum. From here you can plan your month, ideally you should have a mix of marketing + sales + client work. Remember if all you do is spend time on client work you’ll find yourself with no bookings for the subsequent months. Take time to review your business at the end of each month so you can reflect on what did or didn’t work for your business.
BEFORE YOU START
I know you are eager to start but before you do, have you an idea on your top goals for the year? It’s important to have an idea on what is important for you this year. What drives you? What goal would be amazing once you’ve ticked this off? The 90 day plan uses your yearly plan as its guide.
What do you want your business to look like in 90 days? What steps can you take to help this happen? And is this aligned with your life / business vision? What goals are you committed to achieving, no matter what curve balls are thrown your way?
Sometimes it can be helpful to journal this before you start planning your 90 day goals.
REVIEW + REFLECT
Before we move forward we need to analyse what worked well the previous quarter and needs tweaking.
- What enquiries did you receive this quarter ? And out of these what % of the enquiries have converted?
- Think about the orders you received, which ones were the most popular? Why do you think that is?
- Did you promote one service more than another? Perhaps you hosted a special offer or exhibited at a show.
- What are your financial numbers from this quarter, think in terms of revenue and profit.
- Thinking back to your goals the previous quarter, which ones did you achieve?
- What marketing / PR / Sales activities were successful?
- And finally what have you learnt?
- What will you do change going forwards?
SELECT NO MORE THAN 5 TOP GOALS
These goals should be the ones you are committed to achieving. No matter what curve balls are thrown your way, you will be ultra focused on these goals. If you have a BIG goal that is anticipated to take up a lot of time then reduce your goals to 3 not 5. Be realistic with your time if this is a busy season for you, bear in mind holidays, childcare, client projects. It can be all to easy to over commit.
BREAK THEM DOWN
The next step is to really break these goals down. All too often we set ourselves a huge goal but have no way of achieving it. By spending some time breaking your goals down, you’re able to determine actionable tasks in order to complete it. Check in with yourself on whether you can complete the task or whether you need to learn a new skill or outsource. Sometimes this is quicker than trying to fit projects into your already full daily life. Better to pay someone short term to reach longer term (profitable) goals.
MAP OUT YOUR TIME
Now you have your plan for the next 90 days begin to slot this into your calendar and set aside time each week to work on specific aspects of your goals. Go one step further and write your goals down on a wall planner and /or whiteboard. Seeing your goals written out on a daily basis really helps you remain focussed.
Download your FREE. 90 Day Plan Workbook
Unsure how to proceed but intrigued? DOWNLOAD my 90 day planning workbook to help you review and plan your quarterly goals.
Work with me: explore my services HERE or book a call or for more freebies to help you scale your business check out my everything I offer page HERE
