Intentionally Setting Time to Plan
As business owners, Q4 keeps us busy. Trying to boost year-end sales, keep up with holiday schedules, and keep your team on track with your end of year goals can keep you running at full speed. (Spoiler: it doesn’t have to!) There is one more important event you won’t want to miss this month: planning ahead for a productive, profitable first quarter.
It’s common for many business owners to fall into the trap of putting off planning in favor of handling the “urgent” tasks that seem to pop up every day. Don’t get me wrong – there are a lot of them, and they need to be handled – but as the owner, do you have to be the one handling them?
On the surface, the answer is probably “no” – but in reality, chances are these tasks take up far too much of your time and keep you from the tasks you should be focusing on, including planning. I get it – I’ve been there!
However, there are steps you can take to free up your time and plan effectively for growth. Here are some that I’ve found effective!
Delegate, Delegate, Delegate
At various stages of your business, you have to take on tasks in your business. When you first started out, you were likely the Admin, the Marketing Department, and the Sales Department. As you grew, you brought on team members to take on some of the tasks, which is great – and necessary.
Many business owners find themselves falling into the trap of only delegating some of the tasks their team members are capable of handling. This is comforting in a way, but it leaves you with far too much on your plate and keeps your team from helping you reach your goals.
Delegation isn’t easy, physically or emotionally. You built your business from the ground up and handing over parts of it, not knowing if they will be handled properly, is challenging. (Again, I’ve been there.)
It may not be easy, but it is necessary if you want to grow (and if you want to have a life outside of work). Without strong delegation skills, your business will plateau despite all the hours you put into it.
When you choose to delegate the tasks you don’t need to be doing – all of them – you’ll find that a number of great things happen. Not only will you reclaim a large amount of your time (allowing you to focus on the things that really do need your attention), you’ll also find that your team is capable of far more than you may have thought.
One thing is necessary for effective delegation, though.
Build Those Systems!
In order to trust that your team will perform their roles with excellence, you have to have solid systems in place. (Oddly enough, they can’t read your mind!)
Strong systems allow you to communicate clearly with your team. They indicate Who Shall Do What By When – who is responsible, what needs to be done and how, and when it needs to be done (and be done by).
They do more than this, though – they allow each member of your staff to really understand the why behind their job. This allows them to innovate, to anticipate bottlenecks and solve problems. It helps them to help you find ways to increase productivity and profitability, to find better ways to serve your clients and grow.
In short, systems help your team find more satisfaction in their jobs, which will in turn make it easier for you to delegate!
Calendar the Time to Plan
Choosing to delegate and building the systems your business needs is only part of the equation. Setting aside time to plan will close the loop!
The good news is you don’t have to find huge chunks of time. I’m a planner by nature, so I like to take an hour or two when I have time away from my business. It gives me a chance to take a look at the big picture, decide on my vision for the next few quarters, and then dig into the details.
You might prefer to schedule an hour or two sometime during the week when your Executive Assistant can guard your time, or you might decide to pull your EA or Admin into a planning meeting to bounce ideas and take notes.
However you prefer to plan, put some time on the calendar and hold yourself to it. Trust me, you’ll thank me for it down the road!
By the way, if you would like help writing your business plan (without all the extra time and questioning), click here – I’ve put together a free training to help you do it in just an hour!
Once you have your business plan sketched out, calendar some time with your leadership team and share your vision. (Remember, delegate!) This is a key step to the process; no matter how great your plan is, you can’t execute it by yourself. By communicating your plan to your key team members and equipping them to run with it, you’ll set yourself (and your team) up for success!