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2023 Resolutions: Top tips from entrepreneurs & agency leaders

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People use a new year as a fresh start, evaluating the past year with introspection and making goals for a better year ahead.

Work-related new year’s resolutions for freelancers and business owners are created in this process. While many people choose weight loss, new hobbies, or personal growth as their goals, professional new year’s resolutions can be quite different beasts.

Improve Your Work Processes

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Running a business is more complex than it might appear, and finding new ways to get money can be stressful. Despite business owners’ challenges, there are ways to take an enterprise to the next level.

Samuel McGraw, founder and CEO of Design Hub, plans to take his venture to a new level in the new year. “I plan to set aside a certain amount of hours each week to work on my portfolio and improve my skills to better serve my existing and potential clients.”

Business goals can be accomplished by knowing your worth, being organized, and ensuring that your company is legally and financially compliant.

Know Your Worth

An essential part of business is knowing when to say no. Many people easily fall into the trap of accepting any project just to earn some cash. However, as a freelancer or business owner, you could be wasting time and energy that could be used on a project that is more suitable or profitable.

Because of this, McGraw says, “I will also be more mindful of the projects I choose to work on and focus on projects that align with my passions and skills.”

By saying no to the wrong opportunities, you can devote your time to more meaningful work and work on developing your business. Jacob Richard, founder of Camera Prism, has one of the best new year’s resolutions for a freelancer or business owner. He says, “I want to commit myself more fully to each project at hand as well as learn something new with each one.”

Accepting the right project goes hand in hand with being paid what you are worth. If your rates have remained the same over the last year, consider increasing them. As your skills and experience increase, your value and rates should reflect that.

According to Adam Fard, founder & head of design of Adam Fard’s UX Agency, “In terms of consulting retainers, I am not the most cost-effective choice. But now that I have a firm grasp on my value, my monthly retainer charge reflects that.”

Ensure Organization, Accounting and Legal Compliance

To be successful in business, entrepreneurs must be organized and must ensure accounting and legal compliance.

Freelance journalist, novelist, and owner of the Travel Blog, Jessica James aims to be more organized. Organization skills are essential for solo entrepreneurs and business owners. Improving these skills can help you to monitor work assignments and finish them on time.

Not only must business owners be able to prioritize work, but they must also mitigate issues that pop up to keep them from negatively affecting the company.

Jeroen Van Gils, CEO of Lifi.Co, highlights two important tips:

  1. “Make sure all contracts are signed and filed properly;” and
  2. “Get more organized with your records and invoices.”

Benjamin Osr, founder & CTO of Stress Reliever Club, resolves to build templates for regularly used documents, such as bills, contracts, emails, etc.

Contracts are an essential aspect of any company. Use contract templates to help ensure that all important terms and conditions are agreed upon and that there is a signed written record of the agreement. You can also think of using professional registered agents.

With all the paperwork that comes with freelancing, the right tools can help to keep everything organized. Use apps to manage invoices, monitor income and expenses, and analyze your business’s overall performance. This is why Jessica James says she will avoid leaving everything until the end of the year. 

Achieve New Levels of Business

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As an entrepreneur, you operate a company and want to ensure that it grows and evolves. You can more easily achieve your goals and new year resolution ideas for work by implementing automation, improving customer service, strengthening employee interaction, and fostering creativity.

Implement Automation

Humans have one major shortcoming: people can only do one thing at a time, even when multitasking. This is where automation comes in. Instead of taking everything on yourself, consider automating practical tasks that will help your company to be a success. Charles Floate, founder and CEO of CharlesFloate.com, advises that business owners should “automate as many parts of your business as possible, and this will free up more time to focus on other areas of your business.”

Automation also facilitates working smart. Jacob Briones, founder and CEO of headphonesblog.com, believes that outsourcing those time-consuming tasks that are not enjoyable is the way forward. When you operate a business, you should devote your time to meaningful activities and find ways to accomplish the other activities as efficiently as possible.

Strengthen Interactions with Customers and Employees

Customer and employee satisfaction is strongly correlated with a company’s success. Some common ploys to increase happiness are dated and, generally, do not work. Monetary incentives do not boost overall employee happiness. Their daily experience is the critical driver of satisfaction. Michael Hess, ecommerce strategy lead at Codesigningstore, correctly states, “When workers know they are valued as people, they are more likely to contribute to the success of our organization.”

Sean Harris, managing editor at FamilyDestinationsGuide, endeavors to improve his relationship with his staff because workers drive productivity and organizational growth.

Foster Creativity

Paige Arnof-Fenn, founder & CEO at Mavens & Moguls, shares her take on creativity. “I think as we age, it is important not to become a creature of habit and to keep your antenna up to be exposed to new and fresh ideas, products, ways of thinking, people, and experiences.” Creativity fosters innovation, and innovation brings growth.

You can also be inspired by nature. “Spend more time outdoors to help inspire new ideas,” advises Molly Hottinger, owner of Hottinger PR. We can gain clarity and focus by taking a break from our screens now and then.

Communicate Better

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Healthy communication is crucial in any venture. Effective communication fosters strong relationships and facilitates the completion of important projects.

Boost Networking

Networking means interacting with other people to facilitate the exchange of information or establish contacts. In 2023, Samuel McGraw will focus on communication skills and building new connections among freelancers. Networking is one of popular new year resolutions ideas 2023 for freelancers, so plan to go to social and industry-specific events whenever possible so you can build your network.

Invest in Communication with Clients

Client communication can make or break a venture. “Many times, as a freelancer, we are focused solely on producing the best product in the fastest time, which can lead us to overlook the benefit of building strong relationships with our clients,” says Jacob Richard.

Your written emails, spoken tone, and body language all affect your ability to grow trust with your clients and demonstrate your worth. Trouble with communication skills can negatively impact your company’s growth.

Ensure Communication with Family and Friends

Marie Ysais, founder of Ysais Digital Marketing, states, “Humans are social creatures, and social interactions that allow us to discuss our issues and thoughts with others help us to stay sane and go forward in life.”

It is crucial to have a support system. Anyone would want to feel supported, especially when navigating the struggles of running a company. Director & Marketing Strategist Oliver Goodwin of Synthesys.io recommends contacting old buddies. “Make a pact with yourself to call one person every week or as often as you can manage. You won’t believe how much of a difference this makes,” he shares.

Anyone can benefit from having loved ones around. When you are happier and more fulfilled, your productivity will increase.

Nurture Your Personal Life

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Often, the lines between our professional and personal lives are blurred. While new year resolution ideas for work are essential, to maintain harmony, maintain work-life balance, follow a healthy lifestyle, set financial goals, and love yourself and others.

Maintain Work-Life Balance

Maintaining a healthy work-life balance can seem like a fairytale. However, it is crucial to a person’s well-being. You can follow the wisdom behind these entrepreneur’s thoughts on the topic:

  • “My New Year’s Resolution is to be more productive by improving my work-life balance by establishing healthy boundaries between the two. As a result, I can become a better leader in my company for the benefit of the organization and its employees while also keeping my well-being and becoming a better person.” —David Farkas, founder and CEO of TheUpperRanks.com.
  • “My experience has taught me that one of the best ways to reduce stress and build resiliency is to set aside five minutes every few hours to focus on oneself and find inner peace.” —Andrew Priobrazhenskyi, CEO of DiscountReactor.
  • “Not all of us are taking full, deep breaths. As a result, our brains receive less oxygen than they need.” —Jaden Oh, director of search at TRAFFV.

If you maintain this balance, your whole life will be in sync, which can positively impact your health, your relationships, your work, and more.

Follow a Healthy Lifestyle

Neglecting your health is unsustainable and detrimental. That’s why resolutions like that of Eva Decker, Relationships and Marketing Manager​ at Idigic, are so important. He intends to make his health a priority.

Joshua Feinberg, CEO of SP Home Run Inc., has a goal of “staying on track with my daily fitness workout routine and nutrition goals, continuing to update my professional skillset as a go-to-market content strategist for B2B tech startups, and intensely focusing on my company’s product development and revenue growth goals, both short-… and long-term.”

A healthy lifestyle will help to ensure that you can perform at your very best.

Set Financial Goals

Financial aspirations can help freelancers and business owners stay on track and improve productivity. Salim Benadel, director at Storm Internet, says, “When you’re struggling to make ends meet, you might be inclined to indulge as soon as your bank account is refilled. Even if they seem inexpensive at the time, impulsive purchases can pile up, so deciding to create a savings account as a New Year’s resolution might provide you peace of mind.”

Another wise decision could be to find passive income, as Alli Hill, a freelance writer and founder of Fleurish Freelance, recommends.

Love Yourself and Others

Lastly and perhaps most importantly, remember the importance of love. In the words of Jonathan Merry, director at CRYPTOMONDAY, “Consider how you can sprinkle some optimism into your day and others’ before you go about your day.”

We humans are affected and influenced by love and optimism, which is something to consider when making everyday decisions for your business and your life.

Conclusions

With a new year on the horizon, consider the resolutions of those in the know. They have critical insights for improving and developing your enterprise, career, communications, and personal life. Creating quality resolutions and following through will ensure that your 2023 goals will be inspiring, helpful, and achievable.

By Veronika Pshenychnykova, PR Manager, at Lawrina

Images by Thom Sevalrud

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