After the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season, it’s straight back to it for many creative freelancers and small business owners. Hopefully, you’ve had time to reset over the festive holidays and are raring to go in the New Year — and what better time to look at setting new goals?
You may already have some resolutions in mind and be wondering how to get the ball rolling. Or perhaps you know you want to increase your client base, improve your marketing, or get your schedule organised, but you’re unsure where to start. Either way, read on for tips and inspiration to start the new year on the right foot and boost your freelance business.
Reflect on the past year
Before you make a start on your New Year’s resolutions, take a moment to reflect on the past 12 months. Think about what has gone well with your freelance business, and make sure you celebrate those wins. What have you learnt this year? Is there anything you would have done differently? This can help you work out where to improve over the next year.
Write your resolutions down
It’s also super helpful to write your goals down. Whether it’s a note on your phone, a post-it above your desk, or a full-on mood board, the physical act of writing your New Year’s resolutions down can help you reach them.
Did you know that writing down a goal can improve your chance of achieving it by 42%?
Not only does writing resolutions down help you remember them more, but it also enables clarity and gives you a sense of accountability.
Make sure your freelance goals are achievable
Being ambitious is wonderful, but it’s also vital that your New Year’s resolutions are achievable. We previously looked at how the SMART model of goal-setting can help you be more productive.
SMART goals are:
Specific
Measurable
Achievable
Relevant
Time-bound
By setting an achievable goal, you’re more likely to reach the desired results and create motivation to strive further.
Find a way to track your progress
The ‘M’ in SMART stands for ‘measurable’, and this is another key element of succeeding with your New Year’s resolutions. How can you keep an eye on your goal progress? Perhaps your aim is to increase your freelance profit margins, in which case you can track your revenue and expenditure. Or maybe you want to onboard and retain a certain amount of clients — another resolution that’s straightforward to track.
Inspiration for your New Year’s resolutions
Wondering where to start with your freelance resolutions in the New Year?
Here are a few ideas to inspire:
Learn a new skill
Is there a relevant skill that could help improve your business results? Whether it’s embarking on a copywriting course, developing your logo design skills, or finding out how to track your website traffic, trying something new can be an engaging and useful goal.
Harness your social media
If you don’t already have a social media presence, setting up profiles and looking at developing a social media strategy can be an invaluable way to find new clients and customers. You can, of course, adapt this resolution to your freelance business and your work goals. One option is to commit to posting once a week. Alternatively, you might set a goal to reach a certain amount of followers by the end of the year.
Outsource tasks
When you run a freelance business, there’s no getting away from multitasking. From self-marketing to customer service, you’ve always got a host of jobs to complete. And it’s easy to get bogged down with everyday admin, taking precious time away from the creative side of your work. By outsourcing tasks to a virtual assistant, you can make time to focus on the parts of the job you truly love.
Make next year the best yet
As the year draws to a close, it’s time to take stock and think about your goals for the forthcoming 12 months.
Whether you set one New Year’s resolution or many, January offers the perfect opportunity to grow, learn, and get results. Remember, if you need a hand with any admin, online media management, or lifestyle management, a virtual assistant like Erin can help.
Happy New Year!