Do you set new year’s resolutions for business? Whether you like the idea or find it a little overwhelming, the right mindset can help you set business goals you actually feel good about.
There’s no rule that your new year’s resolutions have to be related to revenue or profit. In fact, these kinds of surface-level resolutions could actually backfire. No one wants to start the new year with the added pressure of a stressful target. It might give you and your team something to strive for, but it could also lead to burnout and negativity that lingers the rest of the year.
Instead, try setting feel-good new year’s resolutions for your business. They might be goals, habits, routines, or mindsets that help you tackle your work with a healthy perspective and recharged attitude.
Here are a few feel-good resolutions for business you can consider adopting this year.
Only work with people you like
We’ve all had clients, partners, or team members we don’t enjoy working with. Maybe there’s a difference in personality, vision, values, or maybe they’re just unpleasant. You might think you’re stuck with this person because “that’s business”– and maybe that was true in the past.
These days, we have access to a global network of potential clients, partners, creators, and contractors. There is zero reason to work with someone you don’t get along with, who doesn’t share your vision or values, or worse– who blatantly disrespects you.
It’s not just your short-term mental health that’s at risk. Working with people you don’t like could actually hold you back in business. You could lose money, burn through energy that could be put to better use, or suffer the opportunity cost of not finding people you love working with.
This year, consider making a resolution to only do business with people you like. You don’t need to be best friends, but you should have a basic level of respect for one another. Ideally, the people you work with will complement your strengths, challenge your weaknesses, and inspire you to reach greater heights.
Donate to charity
For a truly feel-good new year’s resolution for business, commit to making regular charitable donations. This could be a monthly, quarterly, or lump sum donation at the end of the year based on your revenue or profits.
When your business donates to charity, you actually get a lot back. Besides the feel-good aspect of helping someone in need, you can:
- Increase brand awareness for your business
- Build positive brand associations in your community
- Give people another reason to support you
- Create compelling content around your charitable efforts
- Get word-of-mouth marketing from appreciative organizations and individuals
- Potentially deduct donations from your taxes
Finally– if your business regularly donates to charity, that means you must be earning enough to do so. Not only that, you must be clearing enough in profits in order to comfortably make that donation.
In this way, committing to donating regularly to charity forces you to step up your game. You’ll need to be on the lookout for more ways to bring in revenue, plus keep down costs in order to increase your profits.
Not all donations are monetary, by the way. If you own a business that carries physical goods, you could donate some of your inventory to a community in need. You could also…
Donate your time
Another feel-good resolution for business is to donate your time and/or services to a community, organization, or individual in need. This is a great way to give back, plus meet and potentially network with members of your community.
To donate your time, you could:
- Offer services or consulting on a pro-bono basis
- Mentor someone in your industry or who could benefit from your knowledge
- Volunteer with local groups or organizations
If you’re a service provider, you could provide your services or offer consulting on a pro-bono basis. Perhaps you could dedicate a certain number of hours each month to pro-bono work.
If you’re relatively successful in business, you could serve as a mentor or advisor for someone who could benefit from your knowledge and experience. Mentorship is such a rewarding experience, for yourself as well as the person you’re mentoring. Who knows, you might even find your next great employee or investment opportunity.
Of course, you could also do some good old-fashioned volunteering. It doesn’t necessarily have to be related to your business. Think about the skills, resources, and interests you have, and the needs of your community.
There are plenty of programs out there to help you donate your time:
- Taproot Foundation connects professionals with nonprofits who could benefit from their specific area of expertise
- SCORE mentoring matches qualified mentors with mentees that own or want to start a business
- VolunteerMatch helps you find volunteer opportunities in your area
Of course, you can also research and reach out to organizations in your own community.
Commit to a greater work-life balance
Here’s a new year’s resolution for business you can immediately look forward to: commit to achieving a greater work-life balance.
As business owners and leaders, we tend to put the needs of our business, clients, and team members above our own. This may accelerate your progress in the short-term, but it inevitably leads to that dreaded B word– burnout. Recovering from burnout can be a lot harder than you imagine– requiring not just physically taking time off, but allowing yourself the space to rebuild your mental, emotional, and creative reserves.
There are many steps you can take to achieve a greater work-life balance. You could:
- Commit to only working certain hours of the day
- Put your phone away during non-work hours
- Remove work apps like email or Slack from your phone
- Commit to taking weekends off (or at least one weekend day)
- Give yourself permission to take Fridays off, or maybe every other Friday
- Commit to only taking a certain number of meetings each day or week
These suggestions may be easier said than done, especially at first. When you’re used to putting work ahead of your own needs, you may feel guilty even for taking the most reasonable window of time for yourself.
Keep the long-term view in mind. Business is a marathon, not a sprint. If you commit to maintaining a decent work-life balance throughout the year, you can achieve great things without sacrificing your mental health and crippling your future progress.
Schedule time for deep work
It’s easy to spend our days moving between tasks without taking time for deep work or big-picture thinking. If you want to get ahead in business and foster above-average results, you need to make time for deep work in your schedule.
According to Cal Newport, “Deep work is the ability to focus without distraction on a cognitively demanding task.” It’s critical to our ability to produce great things, progress in our goals, and remain competitive. The average modern professional does remarkably little deep work– an advantage for those of us who build it into our schedules.
What could you build into your schedule that would accelerate the progress of your business?
- Maybe it’s more creative time, when you’re able to create without the added pressure of a deliverable or deadline.
- Maybe it’s big-picture planning, where you focus on your business’ long-term vision and goals.
- Maybe it’s business development, where you finally make time for all that research, outreach, and strategy you’ve been putting off.
Whatever form your deep work takes, you need to build it into your schedule if you want it to happen on a consistent basis. Consider devoting a few hours every week or month to deep work, creative thinking, or big-picture planning. It’s a new year’s resolution for your business that will pay dividends over time.
Keep a running “wins” list
Here’s a new year’s resolution you can turn to in times of despair or discouragement. Keep a running list of your “wins” in business– from big accomplishments (like that big client contract you landed) to small moments (like getting positive feedback or a good testimonial from a customer).
It’s so easy to let our wins– both big and small– pass by without so much as a mental high-five. Even when we achieve something we’ve been working toward for a while, so many of us will jump immediately to the next thing. This kind of ambition may keep our eyes on the horizon, but it can also deprive us of the acknowledgment and confidence boost that we deserve.
A “wins” list can come in many forms. You could:
- Keep a note on your phone that you update with positive happenings on a weekly or daily basis
- Screenshot positive feedback or testimonials and keep them in a folder on your phone or computer
- Use a planner that prompts you to enter your wins every day or at the end of each week
Maintaining a “wins” list offers dual benefits. As you might expect, it will boost your mood and increase your confidence when you review your list each day or week.
Plus, the simple act of writing down your wins will get you in the habit of noticing those wins as you move through the day or week. Over time, you can actually train your brain to notice and appreciate your accomplishments.
This will lead to greater confidence, a more positive outlook, and an easier recovery from any disappointments or setbacks you might encounter. You’ll know that the next win is just around the corner.
Make time to work on “that project”
You know what project we mean. Whatever project came to mind when you read the above sentence– that’s the one.
That idea that keeps coming back again and again. That thing you notice other people doing, that you would love to do yourself. That project you would love to start. That half-baked idea that you would love to bring to fruition. That book, blog, online course, app, or video you would love to create.
If there is something pulling at your imagination and heartstrings– go explore it. Build it into your schedule. Make the time.
These kinds of passion projects don’t always seem practical or realistic in the short term. But they are exactly the kinds of projects that we need to pursue. They keep us engaged, ignited, and excited. They challenge us, hone our skill set, and expand our horizons. They make us grow as people, and as professionals.
Maybe your project ties into your business, or maybe it’s something completely out of left field. Either way, making time for “that project” will offer benefits that trickle over into other parts of your life– and business.
Get outside help
Whether your new year’s resolutions for the business center around growth, giving back, greater work-life balance, higher creative pursuits, or all of the above, getting some outside help can make all the difference.
At the end of the day, you’re only one person. There is only so much you can take on yourself. You have your strengths and areas of expertise, and you have weaknesses and gaps in your knowledge. Bringing in some outside help allows you to fill those gaps, get more done, and drive results for your business.
If your areas of need include marketing, branding, or website design and maintenance, consider browsing our services or reaching out to our team at Wholeheart. We are passionate about helping wholehearted businesses reach their goals in 2022.