What will you accomplish in the next 90 days?
I'm kinda embarrassed to admit this, but sometimes I'll see a group of early 20-somethings and think 'oh we're the same age' then I remember I'm almost 40 and I could, literally, be their mum.
Time flies and this year is no different. The fact it's almost the end of September is insane - where did this year go? I know I've been in a bit of a newborn blur the last three months, but still...time just marches on, doesn't it?
It's around this time of year I find that many of my clients - particularly those in retail - start freaking out as there's only a little over 90 days left until their most frantic (and hopefully, profitable) period.
Having worked in senior roles for retail companies (Amazon and Country Road Group among them), I understand the pressure that can hit as the countdown to the seriously "silly season" gets underway.
But instead of stressing out, I ask that my clients work on mapping a 90-day plan to inject calm into the chaos. Even if you're not running a retail business, September is a great time to stop and reassess where you're at with your business goals for 2019 and cement your focus for the rest of the year. This not only ensures you finish 2019 strong, but sets you up for starting 2020 a little ahead of the game.
(Side note: I graduated high school in 1997 and the theme of our last day was "Cosmic Girl" (thanks Jamiroquai). I genuinely thought we'd be able to go into space more easily by 2020).
Sounds great Fiona, but how do I actually make a 90-day plan? Exhale, and review the five steps below. They may not completely remove the overwhelm, but they'll help in separating the maybes from the must-dos.
NEED HELP GROWING YOUR BUSINESS?
SIGN UP BELOW TO RECEIVE A FREE DOSE OF BIZ INSIGHTS AND TACTICS DELIVERED WEEKLY!.
1. Let's go back...
Review the goals you set for the business at the start of the year. What's worked? What hasn't? Were they all realistic? Do you need to readjust any figures? If you could only focus on completing one of these goals in the next 90 days, which would it be?
2. Map out the mess
Write a list of every single thing you need to do between now and 31 December. This should include any personal tasks such as family events, health checks, planned holidays or exercise. Put a 1, 2 or 3 against each in order of priority, then focus just on the 1s. What will you need to do to make sure these get done? Who else may need to be involved in your planning (i.e. spouse, business partner, staff)? How will you feel if they don't get done? (If it's not that bad, consider moving them to a 2.)
3. Break it down
Look at your list of 1s. If you could break down these tasks into 12 smaller steps (one step per week) what would this look like? If your goal was to get featured in a national publication this year, this may look like 1. researching relevant journalists and publications, 2. reviewing an angle/hook for your pitch, 3. speaking with a PR agency (if not DIY), 4. getting your press release together, 5. creating a media hit list, 6. submitting pitches and so on. Input these 12 smaller steps/tasks into a calendar (I've made this nifty 90-day PDF for you here) and look for where the bottlenecks and gaps are. Consider how you can adjust dates to give yourself a little more breathing room. When this has been done, look at where you can slot in some of the 2s and then - ONLY if you really feel it won't stress you out - the 3s.
4. Stay accountable
Goodness me, we can fool ourselves, can't we? Saying we'll do this or that and then just letting those goals slide because, well, #life. Having someone to stay accountable to can be the best way to stick to goals we have set, especially if you work alone. Reach out to someone you feel will help you stay on track and who you could help stick to their goals. This could be someone within your friends/family network, someone from a business FB group you belong to or even someone you're IG friends with. You can meet up once a week / fortnight on Skype or have a quick 15-min check-in over the phone. It's a small time investment that can make a huge difference. (If you're really struggling to find someone, email me and I can hook two of you up!).
5. Time for the woo-woo
It may sound a little naff, but setting time aside to actually visualise how you'll feel when December 31 rolls around and you have achieved your goal/s can be an amazing motivator. Likewise, imagining getting to the end of the year and not having hit one or two main goals can be enough of an incentive to get up and make stuff happen. (I quit my last full-time role after spending 30-min visualising a life where I ran my own business, so I can vouch for the power of imagination.)
Ok, it's actually 100 days until the end of the year, give or take your timezone, so you can breathe a little easy and get started on the above anytime in the next week or so. This shouldn't be another "thing" to stress over, but rather a way to calm the chaos and create a 3-month plan you can actually stick to. I wish you every success.