It’s around about this time of year that we promise friends and family that “next year will be different”. You tell them that you’ll make more time for them, exhibit a more carefree disposition and stop putting work first all the time. They are well-meaning promises, but, unfortunately, they are so often broken within a few weeks of the turn of the New Year.

Perhaps this year you will have a firm plan for coming good on your goals and intentions? Here’s what I’ve found works for me when trying to be my best self:

Be more discerning with your time and energy

As a business owner or leader, it’s far too easy to expend vital time and energy on forging relationships which will have little bearing on the success of your company, on the basis that they could “lead to something”.

It’s high time that you redirected some of that energy spent on maybes into more definite things – or coming up with new ideas for your business – so that you finish the day feeling productive.

Tally goals with actions

Every leader has their goals for the year or the next five years – they know where they want to be, but let everyone and everything decide whether they get there or not. It’s key that once you’ve envisioned the life that you want, you then align all decisions and actions according to this mission.

So, when you sit down to make a major decision for the company, your thought process should not only be dictated by whether it will be a good move for the business, but also if it is in-keeping with your personal mission.

Have somebody look out for you

While you’re ensuring that everybody in your team has the work-life balance that they desire, do you have somebody who is doing the same for you? Unfortunately, for so many leaders, the answer is ‘no’.

Try and find someone who cares about you and your business as much as you do. That might sound easier said than done, but it is possible to find fellow business owners who are as invested in your journey as you are – and we’re talking emotionally, not financially.

Ensure Christmas/New Year 2017 is the final time you utter the words “next year will be different” – drop us a line to find out how we can help you take the bull by the horns in 2018.