How to Give Your FEC a Fresh Start in 2023

Gaining a new perspective, eliminating negative self-talk, and making a clear plan will help propel your business forward in 2023.

Don’t you just love new beginnings? If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably got a list of goals and projects you want to accomplish in 2023.

But the gap between setting goals and achieving them can be vast. Sometimes it’s because our goals are unclear or too lofty, or because we don’t plan the steps necessary to get there.

Other times, our biases, past failures, and similar experiences can prevent us from getting and staying on the right track toward success. And to combat those, you and your business might need a fresh start.

Read on for the steps you need to help you give your business the fresh start needed to succeed in 2023.

No. 1: Gain a new perspective.

Whether you know what you want to accomplish or want to improve in weak areas, attacking your business with a fresh perspective is important.

The next time you arrive at your facility, take a moment before you get out of your car to close your eyes, then take a deep breath and imagine what you want to see when you get inside.

As you approach and move throughout the facility, note things that detract from your vision, including less-obvious issues like disorganized stock rooms, inventory, storage closets, and offices. Where is there clutter or inefficiencies that would benefit from a bit of attention? Make a quick list of things that could use maintenance or decluttering.

Do the same exercise with your list offerings, regular meetings, and your marketing collateral. Are there products or packages that should be removed from your database? Do you need fresh images, a new menu, or new signage to make your offerings pop again? Do you have a lot of meetings that are redundant or waste time? Continue to jot notes down, so you have a complete list to review before you begin tackling projects.

No. 2: Conduct inventory and make a plan.

With a little downtime now that the holidays are over, take time to assess what you physically have on hand. If you don’t have a regular inventory management process, you could be at risk for waste, theft, and higher costs, so it’s a good idea to make creating a process a high priority for the first quarter.

No. 3: Assess your new year marketing efforts.

Like with your offerings and collateral, now is the time to assess what initiatives worked for you last year. You likely have some revenue goals for the year, so take the time to analyze which programs will help drive revenue, what can be improved upon, and which should remain in the past.

No. 4: Get new ideas.

Brainstorming sessions are my favorite way of getting new ideas with your team, but when you’re thinking of a fresh start, sometimes you’ll want to think outside the box. Take a few minutes to research trends and forecasts for the new year and see if anything jumps out that you want to explore. Trends in marketing, consumer spending, travel, entertainment, buying habits, hiring, team recognition, and even leadership can give you valuable insights into where you want to focus next year.

No. 5: Cull your list.

If you’re starting to get overwhelmed with everything on your list, don’t! You can’t possibly focus on everything, and that’s ok. Now it’s time to prioritize. Number from 1-5 the top five things that will make the most significant difference in your success this year. Not 10. Not 20. 5 at the most. 

No. 6: Get rid of the emotional clutter.

You likely see things on your list that you’ve tried to focus on in the past, with varying degrees of success. The most critical component of a fresh start is clearing the mental and emotional clutter weighing you down. Things like “should have’s,” overgeneralizations about failure, and negative self-talk can prevent you from seeing issues and solutions clearly.

Instead of:

• That promotion was a stupid idea … 
• We shouldn’t have tried to do that promotion/contest/event in Q1…
• Those team member trainings never work…
• We always fail to stay organized….

Try:

Rather than attacking the idea or initiative, stay objective and focus on what, specifically, would need to happen for it to succeed.

“The spring promotion wasn’t as successful as it could have been. Do we still believe it could succeed? Do we want to try again? If so, what will we need to do differently to ensure greater success if we try again?”

or

“Our Q1 promotion/contest/event was too rushed last year. Given where we are now, we know we need four more weeks to make it run smoothly. Looking at the calendar, that puts us in March. With Spring Break and other events, it’s probably better to move it to Q2. We can get started on X, Y, and Z, now, and then we’ll be ready to finalize and implement it by April 20 (mark the calendar or enter into a project plan).”

Eliminate words like “always” and “never” entirely because, in addition to being factually inaccurate, they’re also demotivating. Is it true that you always fail? Is it true that something never works? Instead, focus on what has worked and try to leverage those successes.

“In the past, we’ve started out great giving team member recognition because it was fresh in our minds. Let’s attach recognition to our established shift huddle and add it to our meeting agendas so that we can keep it top of mind and build a strong habit of feedback at the same time.”

No. 7: Make the plan.

Once you have your top five priorities, determine how they will get accomplished – and by whom. What has to be done yourself? What can be delegated? Once you know who will work on a project and the timeframe, establish your milestone deadlines and checkpoints. Then put your plan in motion. For help tackling individual projects, check out this step-by-step guide. Hint: There’s even a project plan template!

No. 8: Revisit your list.

Once you have your first five projects or initiatives doled out, go back to the list. Do you have the capacity to take on more now? If so, choose the next 2-5 that will make the most impact. If not, keep the list within easy reach and revisit it periodically, so you have a consistent focus on improving your business.

Once you’ve taken these steps, you’re well on your way to giving your facility a fresh start to new success. Good luck!