Building Your Relationship with Your Business

Today I want to talk about the relationship you have with your business, is it a healthy relationship, or do you suffer from one of the following issues?

Do you have a love-hate relationship?

One day you’re in love with your business, the next you hate it and wonder why you started it. We’ve all been there. An exercise you could try would be to brainstorm what you like and what you dislike about your biz. Then, come up with ways to minimize the parts you don’t like. It could mean hiring some outside help, or getting rid of a service or product that causes you more grief then profit.

Are you co-dependant?

You are always thinking that you should be working when you’re away from your computer.  You get distracted when you’re spending time with your family, wondering if you have new email or thinking of what you want your next marketing promotion to look like.

If you can’t think of anything else you’d rather do then work, it may be time to take up a new hobby or join a book club. Make an effort to talk to people as people, and not just for the sake of business networking.

Do you cheat on your business?

If you want to be efficient at running your business, you have to commit to working hours. Do you spend time away from work when you know you should be working?

How’s your accounting? Are you borrowing money from your business account to get your hair done (and trying to justify it as a business expense)?

If you create content or material for your business, how much of it is 100% original and how much is “borrowed” or inspired from your competitors?

Take a look at your habits. If you don’t feel like you’re getting much out of the business, perhaps you aren’t as committed to succeeding as you should be.

Are you Growing Apart/Have you lost the spark?

If every day you dread working in your business, it’s time you take a look back at the reasons why you started it in the first place. Pull out that dusty business plan. What did you write as a mission statement? Did you set goals for the business? How far have you come to reaching those goals?

It may be time to re-assess your plan and make new goals. Re-word your mission if it is no longer meaningful to you. What? No business plan? Well, it’s high time you put in writing why it is you’re in business. This exercise could very well get you out of the rut.

Are you jealous of your business?

How can you be jealous of your business? Look at your relationships. Are you closer to your clients and talk to them more often then your friends? Maybe you’ve built a strictly business persona for yourself and are afraid to let your real personality shine through? Or, you could be at a loss to converse about anything other than business.

Consider what aspects of your personality make you good at what you do, and then think about how those same aspects make you an interesting person outside of work. What other traits do you possess that don’t necessarily apply to your job? Give yourself credit for having a broad range of gifts and talents in addition to your great business skills.

Like they say in couples counseling – being open and honest about the problems in the relationship is the only way to overcome the hurdles and strengthen the bond. What better time than Valentine’s Day to take your relationship with your business to the next level?

Thanksgiving starts a busy whirlwind of new to-do’s and list making and trying to get more done in less time than you’ve tried to do all year. How is it that with so much more to do, we somehow find time to get these extra things done? Instead of complaining about so much to do, we’re actually happy about it. Sure, we whine about it to our friends and worry that the holidays won’t be perfect, but most of us enjoy the holiday hustle and bustle. It’s different from the pressures we put on ourselves earlier in the year. Maybe it’s because we can actually visualize ourselves making the perfect turkey dinner and laughing off the snide comments that ruin many a family get together. We can see the joy in our children’s faces when they open the present that is “just what they always wanted”. This strong mental image pushes us through the unpleasantness of standing in long lines, never-ending trips to the grocery store, and unpacking and putting up decorations. This is what makes it all possible. What if we could do the same for the not so joyful tasks that we deal with throughout the year? What if we could really get excited about completing a project for work? It would be much easier to do wouldn’t it? This is how I think we should approach our goals. When you write down what it is you want to accomplish, be sure to close your eyes and visualize how good meeting that goal could be. The idea is not to simply cross a goal off your list, but to fully achieve it, that is, make it something worth celebrating!

If you don’t have specific goals written down, now is a great time to do so. Lots of people wait until the end of the year, but with so much going on, holidays and taxes and all, you should at least start thinking about goals now.

The first and most important thing is to write them down! Even if you aren’t sure how to word them get that idea on paper. The thoughts you have on the spur of a moment are often the most true feelings we have. You can always come back to review and better define what it is you mean later. The ideas you put down should have meaning and spark motivation. Don’t put down goals just because they sound good or they are the “popular” movement right now. It may not be the right time for you to act on those things. Remember, if you don’t want to do it, you won’t.

If you have trouble setting goals, one method to try is backward goal setting. Start with a big-picture vision of what you want your life to look like, and then break out the steps you need to make to get there.

When you are ready to review those goals there are a few methods you can use to help increase your chances of success. One key is to make sure your goals are SMART. Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-bound. Setting SMART goals ensures that you will know when you have succeeded in the goal and will help you along the way if you loose focus.

The last tip is to get some feedback on your goals. Often our friends or family members can be a great reality check. They can help us scale down our over the top ideas if needed, or help us find clarity in what exactly we mean to accomplish. If they don’t think you are up for a certain goal and it’s one you really believe in, chances are you’ll work harder to prove them wrong.