Oct 8

Seasons

In New England the third quarter coincides with the visible change of seasons – leaves falling, crisp autumn air moving in and the animals preparing for winter.   For many businesses this quarter is their time to stock up for a slower season while for other businesses it’s time to ramp up for holiday sales.

Do you monitor and measure your seasonal trends?

What is your plan to finish this season strong?

What preparations have you made for the winter months?

Many business owners fill their hours with the urgent unimportant demands of the day and neglect to properly prepare for their next business cycle.

If the third quarter marks the beginning of your slow season:

• Make the most of the time you have left – regardless of your season don’t give up before the year is over.  Make the most of the next three months.  The momentum you build now will carry you into 2015.
• Conduct a year in review – the slow time is the perfect time to monitor and measure what worked and what didn’t work from the previous year; create your plan for the next season now while the experience of the current season is still fresh.
• Celebrate – regardless of your overall results for the year it is important to celebrate your wins.  Pick 3 successes from this past season and celebrate what you did well.
• Plan for your next season – go into the next season with the result in mind.  Create a powerful results statement that will pull you toward 2015 instead having to push your way into it.  Keep in mind your result is more than you number goal, it’s the feeling you will have when you arrive at your destination.  

If the third quarter marks the beginning of your busy season:

• Appreciate your customer today – when we are busy it’s easy to take clients for granted.  Appreciate your customers during your busy season and you will create clients for life.  What can you do to “WOW” your current clients today so you don’t have to prospect for new clients tomorrow?
• Monitor and measure success – it feels more difficult to find the time to monitor and measure when we are busy, and yet unless you monitor and measure you won’t see the patterns that help you stay busy.  Look at what’s working, what’s not and adjust accordingly.
• Celebrate – Take time to celebrate successes while it’s happening and find a way to anchor that feeling.  Pick a song, ring a bell, make a power move; find something that will allow you to recall the feelings of success during your slower seasons.
• Plan for your next season – You don’t want to come to the end of the busy season without a plan.   What is your next season?  Do you have the proper provisions to thrive during the next cycle?

“Embrace the current season of your life” Gabrielle Blair