Can’t believe I’m writing an end of the year post, but here it is! I wanted to post something for those of you with shops and small businesses before December because it’s so nice to end the year (and start the new one) on a high note. Even though it’s such a busy time, it’s important to think back on the year and prepare a bit for what’s to come—even if it’s just wrapping up loose ends and reflecting in your notebook. If the holidays are that insane—especially for those selling gifts—you might need to rearrange this a bit, but I guarantee you’ll be so happy starting off 2016 as a shop owner or even freelancer if you take a few hours to do these things before the ball drops!
Catch up on your records
Now is a good time to catch up with things like income and expense tracking, gathering receipts that are laying around and filing them away or downloading PayPal and bank statements. I always start off the year strong with housekeeping tasks but by December my Excel spreadsheets look as if June through November never happened! It’s easy to fall off. Get organized before the year ends so your finances are all wrapped up for the last quarter, leaving you with a clean slate on January 1st. It’s SO tedious but putting it off until actual tax season makes things even more stressful.
Wrap up nagging projects
For some, business doesn’t change much during the holiday season, but for a lot of us, it does. In addition to the above, I usually have things I want to check off before the new year, otherwise, seasonal projects will have to wait until the following year. For sellers, this might mean putting on sales or promoting seasonal product that HAS to get pushed this time of year. The season can sneak up on you and you realize you never had a chance to list x winter item before that teensy window of opportunity was over! For bloggers, it means going through your calendar and scheduling all time-sensitive content first. If you have anything that needs to be done before Jan 1st, make a note of it now and get started.
Reflect on what did + didn’t work
Spend a little time thinking back on the year (if you can, before things get really crazy at the end of this month). Self reflection is key if you’re your own boss, you don’t have anyone at the end of the year recapping the year’s successes and failures or giving you a pre-2016 pep talk. And pep talks are important friends. Taking time to think back on each and every month will help you reevaluate processes, policies, products, and more.
Start defining 2016 goals
Everyone starts thinking about the new year at different times but one reason I like to do it in November is because it helps me keep things in perspective through the end of the year and in January. That way no matter what happens with the rest of the year, I have a record of what’s important to me. If you’re not into resolutions, that’s totally fine! But now that we’re a month and a half out, it’s good to start brainstorming. It’s nice to be able to clear your head a bit and list out all your dreams for the year…Maybe you can even get started early!
Remember why you started
One last thing to do before the end of the year is to take time to think about the “why” of your business. It’s helpful for two reasons. 1) If it’s been a rollercoaster of a year, I can look back on the point above about what did and didn’t work—then compare that with the “why”. Suddenly things become more clear, and can be tweaked for the next year. 2) The why is, in my opinion, what should fuel you, so it really helps when it comes time to defining those goals I originally brainstormed.
What kinds of projects are you wrapping up this month and next?
Anna says
This is great, thank you! Definitely agree with wrapping up nagging projects…I have a couple of them that I would LOVE to get sorted before the New Year!
http://www.byrosanna.co.uk
Angela says
Yeah! Even if it’s stuff you’ve been really wanting to do but putting off, it’s going to be so helpful to have that checked off the list.
Bethany Austin says
This totally inspired me to get my act together blog wise for the end of the year – Thank you!
Bethany | Curly and Wordy
Tonya says
I’ve only been blogging for a year and everything has been new for me. I have learned a lot and most of it I never thought I could learn. So I’m not really wrapping up anything but more solidifying my ideas and goals for next year with a funny mix of more confidence and more fear
Chloe says
I really love the “remember why you started” part… It also helps to ask yourself this every time you’re stuck when writing a post, I find it helps point my writing in the right direction so that all my posts relate and are valid to the theme of my blog!
SugarLove Designs says
Fantastic post…great way to rejuvenate the mind and be planful for the year to come!
Angela says
Thanks so much :)