Podcast 45: Lessons Learned from 2020 in Your Holistic Business

business marketing mindset podcast Dec 24, 2020

And what a year it’s been - we’ve all had to make changes to the way we work and live. There have certainly been some challenges but there have also been some amazing lessons learnt.

So, it’s time to reflect on the last year and identify what went well, and what you want to change. Understanding the lessons learned will help you to shape your business for the future and find the clients you love working with.

Here are a few questions to ask yourself:

What are you most proud of?

With all the changes you’ve had to make, it can be easy to lose sight of your achievements. What have you achieved that you are really proud of this year?

Here are three of mine:

Publishing my book – I never, ever thought I would ever write a book in a million years. And here I am, a published author.
Moving both my business fully online from a place having previously mainly worked in person. Both will help shape my business into the future and help it to be resilient and sustainable.
Launching my podcast 'Holistic Business Matters' and I'm now on episode 45!

What aspects of your work did you love?

Think about those things that really inspired you and put a great big smile on your face. What left you feeling really good about yourself and the work you do? It’s important to recognise and reward yourself for a job well done. Take time to remember these and re-connect with why you do, what you do.

I’ve had new opportunities present themselves to speak and run workshops for different groups of practitioners this year. It’s boosted my confidence, as well as help to grow my business.

Which bits didn’t you like?

We all have certain tasks that we have to do in our business but would rather avoid – I call them ‘necessary evils’. Consider exactly what you don’t like about these jobs. Is it your lack of confidence, or knowledge, or are they just plain boring?

Identifying these things will give you the opportunity to find better ways of doing them next year, whether that’s utilising technology, or delegating them to others.

What ran like clockwork?

Where did everything work seamlessly? Maybe it’s your system for booking appointments, creating social media posts – anything where it just worked as it should.

Create a framework of how you did them and take the ‘how’ and apply it in other areas of your business to get those working brilliantly too.

Where have you really struggled?

Within your business, there will be things you really struggle with and these will zap a huge amount of your time and energy. Instead of keeping on struggling along, work out what the struggles are. You’ll then be able to create solutions to free you up and save you energy.

I’ve struggled this year with tech and how to get all areas of my business to talk to each other. So I’ve recognised where my struggles are and with the support of a tech VA, I’m in the process of rebuilding my website and other marketing platforms to provide a brilliant user experience for my future courses.

Are you earning enough?

There is no getting away from this topic – you have to be able to earn enough to pay to run your business and to pay yourself. Think of money as the energy that flows into and through your business, so you need to ensure it is working for you.

Understanding your numbers will help you to make great decisions for your business and ensure it’s future. Earlier this year, I created a mini-series of blogs and podcasts around money that will help you own your value and make sure you’re charging your work:

What marketing activities worked?

List out the marketing activities you’ve done over the last year, and how often you did them. Make a note of which ones worked and bought new clients to your door, and which ones didn’t.

Marketing isn’t rocket science - identify what worked and do more of that. Stopping the activities that didn’t work will free up your precious time and resources.

Where do you need support in your business?

Whilst you may work for yourself, you can’t do everything alone. Review the areas in your business you could delegate to someone who is a specialist at that thing. They will be much more efficient than you and free you up to do the work only you can do. You can find help per project or for a few hours on an ongoing basis – whatever works for you.

Projects I’ve outsourced are a brand refresh to a graphic designer and have a tech VA supporting me with my new website. I also have a general VA for a few hours a week to help me with some of the repetitive day-to-day tasks.

Create your plan of action

Now take your lessons learned and work out a plan of action for next year. Consider what's not serving you so you can plan to let go of them to make time for the things that will help you grow.

We’re creatures of habit and can easily find ourselves operating on autopilot. Taking the time to reflect on and review your business will help you make the necessary changes to thrive next year.

If you want support to make 2021 amazing, book a discovery call with me and find out how I can help you.