So the first day of a new year what steps should you be thinking about first? Well to save your brain (as you may be nursing a headache!), my good friend and colleague Doug Emerson – The Profitable Horseman had these words of wisdom in his recent e-zine – equally applicable if you are a horse business owner or not.
1. Buy A Full size Year at A Glance Wall Calendar. Time is an illusionist. If you don't keep your eyes fixed on Time, it disappears just like a magic act.
Unlike a photo calendar that serves as art and a reminder of what day it is, a large year at a glance calendar is a planning tool and measuring device for your work for the entire 12 months of 2011. Good planning followed by action for implementation demands you know where your are on your schedule. Hang it on your office wall.
2. Get Fear Out of Your Back Seat and give it a free bus ticket out of town. Fear is a hitchhiker you mistakenly picked up at some point in your career and later hired for the role of backseat driver. While fear protects us from danger, it holds us back from the joy of adventure. Fear never led a business forward for growth and profitability.
3. Capitalize on your strengths and get comfortable with your weaknesses. You are what you are and you ain't what you ain't. Delegate the work skills you are weak in. Hire a bookkeeper, an instructor, a part time maintenance person, a website designer, a marketing expert, even a housekeeper!
Have a Healthy and Prosperous New Year!