This time of year is always pretty good. We are generally feeling relaxed and refreshed and filled with anticipation about the year ahead (this time last year many of us were filled with trepidation so anticipation is certainly a step up). Something I have done for quite some time now is to pick a theme for the year ahead. I find that it gives everything I do in the year direction and clarity as I work on improving one main aspect of my business and my life.

Now some of the themes for me over the year’s have included -

FINISH THE UNFINISHED – I spent a year tidying up lots of things that had been irritating me and taking my attention away from the important stuff I needed to be doing.

THE YEAR OF SIMPLICITY – I found that I had ended up with an overly complex business with lots of processes and procedures that weren’t really needed in a business of my size. So this was the year of simplifying everything I could. It was a good year and my brain felt much lighter at the end.

FEEL THE FEAR AND DO IT ANYWAY – This was a year when I needed to make some big changes in my life and I was feeling afraid to them. So I started the year off by embracing the fear – and going for it. It was a tough year but made easier with my new found motto (thanks Susan Jeffers – Author of Feel the Fear and Do It Anyway).

CHARGE WHAT I AM WORTH – Like many small business owners I found myself slowly going broke because of under charging – not valuing my services accordingly. So during this year I removed my emotional attachment to the outcome of getting projects (or perhaps the fear of not getting them) and I charged virtually twice what I would normally charge. Did my business go up or down? It went way up and I learnt a great lesson. Someone has to be the most expensive – it may as well be you as long as you can deliver the goods.

The point I am making here is that when we have a really strong central theme that guides us during the year we tend to achieve more. It may be a theme that focuses on fixing up problems or a theme that is all about striving forward. Develop your own theme for 2010 and put it everywhere – on the wall by your desk, on your dashboard, in your wallet or purse, in the toilet, on the fridge….. put it every where. Do this and your chances of achieving this dream will be dramatically increased.

So what is my theme for 2010 – LISTEN TO MY INTUITION. I intend to become a better listener so that I can hear my intuition loud and clear, in every single aspect of my life.

I wish you well for the coming year and I will do my utmost to give you as many ideas, tips, pieces of advice and so on to help you build the business of your dreams and the life you deserve.

Cheers,

Andrew

Related items

• 5 Free Small Business Building Videos – to watch at your leisure.
• The year ahead…my three recommendations for making the most of it.
• What can a Small Business do as the European Financial Situation gets worse?
• Smart businesses are always one step ahead of their customers…
• Don’t become obsessed with your competitors