Every year around this time my email is filled with invitations to business planning clinics. I’m always fascinated by the level of distraction planning for the next year creates. Many people completely blow their fourth quarter because they’re so focused on what they’re going to do next year. As a newer agent planning at the end of each year may very well be a best practice however as your business grows your planning must grow with it. This is especially true if your business requires you to get results through people.
Often times these business planning clinics / workshops / masterminds or whatever you want to call them will encourage you to review where all of your business came from the previous 12 months which in turn would lead to making the decision to cut and/or double down on the things that are working and the things that aren’t. As a business owner knowing what’s working and what isn’t at all times is vital to the success of our business therefore we should theoretically know what’s working and what isn’t at all times allowing us to pivot each month, week, or even day. Furthermore, if additional people are part of the plan for next year those people need to be on board by October 1st at the latest which means you likely start interviewing in July and writing the job description in May / June. If you’re planning in October you’re already 5 or 6 months behind.
If you want to get out of the cycle of fourth quarter business planning the best thing you can do is look farther down the road. Take time now to write a 3,5,10, maybe even 20 year plan. Go out as far as you can see down the road. Once that’s done you no longer have to stop at the end of each year for planning. You simply back into what needs to be done next year and execute. January is just another month on the path to your larger plan and you’re constantly making adjustments along the way as things change.