Autumn Tips For Small Business Owners

I love Springtime, the birds are singing, the garden is beginning to wake up and it is the time to spring clean and wash away the cobwebs from the long winter. Yes, I am talking about yard work and housework but it can be fun especially when you see how bright and sparkly everywhere looks and how tidy the garden is.

With our businesses we tend to think of it as all work and no play sometimes. We tend to get swamped and hide under our piles of paperwork, or have too many emails to answer and we sit at our computers for too long staring at the screen.

Now that October is almost upon us I suggest we all take a look at our office environment, and we schedule some time to reorganize, re-energize and rethink our future business plans. Maybe you need a new office chair or want to decorate your office in a new bright colour? Why would you take the time to do that though when you are very busy? The environment in which we work is very important to how we perform. If we are sitting in a dowdy, dusty, dark office we may feel depressed and tired.

Take a look at your pile of paperwork which you know you should have filed but never had time to do it and then think of a fun way in which to file the paperwork and whilst you are doing that you can also ensure that the paperwork is ready to be filed and that nothing outstanding is waiting to be taken care off. Maybe some of the paperwork was placed in the wrong pile and a client is waiting for a response? Think of this work as you clearing away the leaves from your sidewalk and you do that because if someone slipped on the leaves you might be looking at a very angry person. Also once the paperwork is filed away you know for sure you are up to date and you have a very tidy desk once again which can be polished and you can add a few photos or flowers to brighten up your environment now you have the extra space.

Now that your office space has been given a spring clean you feel brighter and can focus on your business plan for the next few months. Take a look at your goals, ensure that you are still on track and that your goals are being given the attention they need. Just like when you plant a seed in your garden and you nurture the seed and water the seed and watch it grow into something beautiful the same applies to your goals. If you set your goals a year ago and you have not revisited them how do you know you have reached your goal? Do you know how long it took to reach the goal and how you got to that point? All valuable information that can take you into the next phase of your business growth.

In your slow times at work take the time to get out of your office and go for a walk, eat lunch in a park, or your garden. Take the time to network outside of your office, talking to people on the phone and social networking via the computer works well but we all need a change in our routine. With the Autumn comes the changes you may or may not like, dark nights, more rain, less time to enjoy in your garden, but you know that this will not last forever. If you take the time when you are not so busy in your office to visit people in your community, network with them on a casual basis so they know who you are this will create lasting relationships that may lead to new growth when the New Year arrives.

Our businesses are very like the changing seasons, and if we take the time to enjoy the changes, to enjoy the work involved and to create new beginnings whether it is by planting a new tree or by changing the way we think about our business, then we know we are moving forward!

Happy October to everyone, enjoy all that it offers!