Is it true that customers go into hibernation in winter?

The answer is yes… If you let them.

Here are a few tips will “Spring” your business into action:

Create a culture of conscious change. Change is not an action, it’s a consciousness. As the seasons change, so should we. You know when your business is busy throughout the year, and when it is not, compensate for that by changing the way you do business in the times you are busy, and slow.

Feel it out vs. Figuring it Out. Businesses leaders aren’t born, they evolve. Leading your business is less about figuring it out and everything to do with feeling it out. It is an “awareness.” Allow yourself to be open, honest and real. And feel the reason, or the season, your business is going through, and seek to find solutions based on the truth of the matter, not the excuse you’ve made up to justify it.

Manage the money you’ve made. We often worry about making money in the good times, making hay while the sun shines – but then spend almost no time managing the money or the business we have.  Manage your cash flow by gettingfinancial rhythm in your business. If spring is the lift you need in your business, then be prepared to store some of those nuts for the next, inevitable, winter.

Take responsibility to learn. At one point in my life I had to face the common denominator between success and failure in one of my businesses – it was me! Now I take the time to learn from a challenge and make sure I don’t make the same mistake twice. If winter was tough for you, what can you learn from the past, apply to the present, to prepare for the future?

Don’t wait. Don’t wait until the end the first quarter to review your position, if you know something is not quite right, fix it now. If you’ve made up your mind to do something different with your business, then do it today- before the summer gets here.

 

About Troy Hazard: I am the founder/owner of 12 businesses over the last 25 years, current CEO of Troy Hazard International, author of the book Future-Proofing Your Business, and the former Global President of the Entrepreneurs’ Organization. I have been a franchisee twice and a franchisor while consulting with over 300 brands in 6 countries. You can find me on Twitter @TroyHazard.