Many thanks to Chris Brogan and his inspiration for this article. After reading one of his insightful emails I’ve decided to take on his advice and include three (3) words as my goal setting for this year instead of the usual long-winded objectives. Here they are:
Build. Experiment. Mindfulness.
Truth be told I had a bit of shocking end of the year in 2015. I lost my biggest social media marketing contract (after 4 years together they decided they’d learnt enough to take it in-house, so I guess I’d done a good job). Shortly following, Johnny Veen Enterprises ended their contract due to Johnny Veen passing away (this was a very sad loss; John was a joy to work with). There was also a general list of sickness and other friends losing loved ones that made the end of the year a pensive mood to say the least.
So coming up with my 3 words was something very reflective for me. I’d had a lot of grand plans a month earlier that have been turned on their head. It’s all good. I’m totally fine with change. Enough of the preamble…here’s the guts of it.
1. Build
I’ve decided to take 2016 a little slow (for me) and spend the time working on my own marketing. In the four years I’ve been working as a social media marketer I’ve been so busy growing everyone else’s online presence that I haven’t spent any time working on my own. All other spare time I’ve had has been spent with family. Now it’s my turn to have some fun and see what I can do for me. I’ve got some new online packages I want to try out and I’m looking forward to building on those.
Funnily enough, this morning I told my brother I was going to take it slow for the beginning of this year and he replied, “Build momentum…yeah that sounds good.” It’s only 2 January and I can already see how breaking down your goals into simple words can help you stay focused.
2. Experiment
One of the reasons that I’ve delayed my own marketing is because I’ve been undecided about exactly what I want to be selling. There’s so much I can do, and I want to make the biggest difference I can for social media and small-medium businesses. The message needs to be simple and that’s a lot harder to do for yourself than for other people. I don’t know why this is, but it’s something that’s true for me.
This year I’m not going to think about it any further, I’m just going to dive in and experiment, and let the metrics tell me. I’ve finally got the time, so let’s give it a go.
3. Mindfulness
When chaos happens and it feels out of your control, I’ve always found in life that listening to your gut leads you in the right direction. I have 3 kids under 7 and an ambitious, active mind, and it can be hard to hear your heart when you have a lot of distraction.
Mindfulness makes my third word because I want to make sure I’m taking time to be quiet on a regular basis so that I can stay focused on the business objectives that will yield the most effectiveness.
As I write this blog, I’m getting really excited about 2016. I can’t wait to get stuck into it! I wish you all as much fun as I’m planning to have.
