52 Fridays – #2 Identify Goals For Your Business, Plus Your New Projects

52 Fridays is a year-long series for equestrian professionals and equine business owners and managers, with marketing and public relations information, ideas, tips, & resources shared here each Friday throughout 2011.

Most horse people today are busy, busy, busy. ‘Time starvation’ is a near-constant state of being, where there’s always too much ‘do’ at the end of the day. So things just roll over into the next day, and the day after that. But, we can get caught up in the do-ing and allow too much of our day, week, or year to go by on things that are just time-suckers and that don’t actually move us forward to success. It’s true in life, and it’s true in your horse biz.

I’ve taught classes on goal-setting, teaching people how to unplug from the overwhelm of too much to-do and get in touch with what they truly want their lives and work to be focused on. It all starts with identifying what you want those goals to be.

Remember the Stephen Covey book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People? Habit #2 is Begin With The End in Mind; I highly recommend reading Dr. Covey’s description at that link, and if you’re interested you can read all 7 Habits here.

I remember seeing Dr. Covey in a televised presentation, and something he did has stuck with me through the years. He had on a table a clear jar, a bunch of large rocks, some smaller rocks, pebbles, and sand, plus a pitcher of water. He told an audience volunteer that all of it would fit into the clear jar, and invited him to fit them all in. It seemed impossible. In hindsight the solution is clear, but if you don’t know the strategy it would be difficult indeed.

Image courtesy Lisa Kemp

The solution? It’s to ‘put the big rocks in first.’ That’s right – if you put in the big things that are important, the smaller rocks, pebbles, sand, and even the water fit into the jar. Those ‘big rocks’ are the goals for your equestrian business. Those are the building blocks for your successes.

What are your goals for 2011? Do you need to increase revenues? Decrease expenses? Gain more clientele? Diversify into additional products and/or services? All of the above?

Most of the ‘big rock’ goals in life aren’t achieved overnight. They take time and effort, a willing heart and a tenacious determination. But, if you’re focused on the ‘little rocks’ of life, all the pesky, daily to-do items that are equivalent to the pebbles, sand, and water in life, you’ll never get to those ‘big rock’ goals. Unless you identify what they are, for your overall equine business AND any individual projects, and make time for them in your daily schedule.

What are YOUR ‘big rock’ goals for your horse biz? Click on the Comments button on this post to share yours.

Come back next week for 52 Fridays #3, about making a list of your resources.