Setting business goals for 2015

It’s the start of a new year—have you made any New Year’s resolutions? How about setting business goals?

While I’m all about choosing a word for the year, I also like the idea of setting business goals for yourself throughout the year—especially for freelancers and home-based business owners! It’s a fun way to see the progress you make, set yourself up for success, and create and implement a plan of action.

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How to set business goals:

When you’re setting business goals for yourself, think about what your business is right now, what you want it to be one year from now, and the steps you need to get there. Break it down into manageable stages so that you have something to work on and work toward throughout the year. Keep in mind the following:

• What tools do you need?

• What is the best way to achieve your goal and what steps will you take throughout the year?

• How will you know you have succeeded with your goal?

Example of setting a business goal:

One of my big business goals this year is to finally speak conversational French fluently. I have a four-disc set from Rosetta Stone and a couple French-English dictionaries, and a friend of mine gave me three French textbooks which she no longer needs, so I have all of the tools I need moving forward.

Next, I need to think about the best way to achieve my goal of speaking conversational French fluently. To work towards that goal, I am committing to spending at least 30 minutes each day, at least four days each week, to practicing French using Rosetta Stone and the French textbooks. I’ll make sure I don’t neglect this activity by including it in my daily task list.

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Lastly, I have to think about how I will know that I’ve succeeded with my goal. If I can have a conversation with someone in French by this time next year, I will know that I have been successful! Luckily I have several friends who are fluent in conversational French, so it will be fun to practice with them once I have gotten far enough along in the Rosetta Stone to put together a few sentences.

How are you setting business goals this year? What is something that you intend to work toward over the course of the next year? Share in the comments section below!

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