Spring Ahead, Fall Back! We are now in the 4th quarter and companies are working hard to reach their goals before the end of the year. During the 4th quarter there are four quintessential things that small businesses can do to keep in mind and spring ahead.
Recap! Take some time to recap your first, second, and third quarter with your team. You can do this by looking at the goals set for each quarter, and what was accomplished. When recapping you want to ask yourself three important questions.
- What goals did we set?
- Did we accomplish those goals?
- What were our strengths and what were our weaknesses?
Recapping simply said is the act of reviewing your company’s performance. Recapping is important to do in the fourth quarter because it allows you to see areas of opportunity, and work to develop them. In addition, you will be able to take advantage of the time you have left in the fourth quarter to really accomplish the overall goals your company has set for the year.
Re Think! Rethinking should happen once you have taken some time to recap the past three quarters with your team. Rethinking is when you take what you have learned from the past three quarters about your company’s performance and strategize ways to increase your team’s overall performance. Key questions during your time of rethinking are as follows:
- Based on what your company knows after recapping, what strategies can be implemented to increase performance?
- How will these strategies benefit your team?
- What are some best practices to increase your team’s overall performance?
During the rethink phase, asking these questions can help your team devise a better way and or plan to accomplish your fourth quarter goals. Remember the focus is to finish quarter four strong.
Re Organize! After rethinking you will find that you may need to reorganize some thingsin your daily schedule and with your team. Re organizing is a sure way to create the kind of environment you need to succeed. Anytime you have to rethink, or re plan you have to re organize around the new plan and strategies in order to accomplish your goals. During the re organizing phase, take some time to prioritize projects and set yourself up for success.
Re Launch! Once you have taken the time to reorganize it is time to relaunch. This means it is time to execute the plan and strategies you have come up with to accomplish the goals you have set for the fourth quarter.
This process should be thought-provoking and you will need to focus some time specifically on these strategies. It should be thorough so that you can implement the plans you have come up with to accomplish your company’s goals more efficiently and effectively.