24 things to take into 2024!

Hello 2024!

The start of a brand new year full of ALL the possibilities!

As we enter 2024 I thought it would be fun to think about 24 things I'd like to take into 2024 and while I was making my list I also thought it would be a good idea to share them on the podcast. So, in this episode I'm sharing the 24 things that are most important to me this year.

Do you make a new year's wish list? Let me know what you plan to take into the new year and what you plan to leave behind.

Transcript

Speaker 1 0:01

You're listening to the Secrets of Successful Business podcast, your go-to source for business tips, tricks and proven strategies that will help you create a streamlined and profitable business. We chat to the best minds in business about their journey. It's my business and I'll do it my way, how they started, rather than going harder to get more focus on growing more with what you have, what they learned along the way. How long are you going to give this?

Speaker 2 0:29

What compromises are you going to make? Just because you can do it doesn't mean that you should do it.

Speaker 1 0:33

It's really important to remember that it's a long game and, of course, we'll ask them for their secret source for creating a successful business. If you're not feeling you're not doing it right, you should be struggling at times. That is part of the journey. Join us as we take a sneak peek behind the curtain, talk solutions for those business pain points Working smarter, not harder, mindset and the challenges of fitting it all in with the demands of today's busy lifestyle. If you're a business owner, side hustler or just starting your business journey, this podcast is for you. Now here's your host, business coach and content creator, justine McLean from Fawcys Creative.

Speaker 2 1:13

Hello and thanks for joining me on the podcast today. In case we haven't met, I'm Justine, a small business owner on a mission to uncover and share the secrets of creating and running a profitable, sustainable and successful business. I've been in business for over 20 years now and I get to use all that I've learned along the way to help other women in business reduce the overwhelm, gain visibility around their numbers, charge what they're worth and make more money. It's about designing a life you love that fits into your definition of success. So if I can help you create the profitable business you deserve, please reach out Now without further ado, let's dive into today's episode. Hi, everyone, and welcome to season six of the Secrets of Successful Business and 2024.

Speaker 2 2:08

I remember, back in the late 60s, early 70s, thinking that the new century seemed so far away. So here we are, 24 years into this new century. It's just mind blowing how quickly time goes. So save every single second of the time you have For this very first episode of 2024 and season six of the podcast. And thank you, by the way, for tuning in every week. We wouldn't be at season six without each and every one of you.

Speaker 2 2:45

I thought it would be fun to come up with 24 things that I am going to try and take in to 2024. But before we kick off, I wondered whether or not you are the sort of person who does a word of the year. So, rather than having a single word for this year, I personally love a word of the year because it keeps me motivated, it goes up on my wall and gives me something to reflect on during the times when you come up and can't be bothered or you don't quite have that motivation to keep going in your business. And this year, my word or many phrase, three words is empower with ease. Because for me in 2024, I am all about empowering small business owners so each and every one of you, in your businesses and in your lives, to do things that will bring you success, will bring you happiness, and to do it with ease. And hopefully, I am going to empower and inspire myself in my own business and in my own life and do that with ease as well. So I'm all about a simple business. Sure, a simple business can be a boring business You've heard that saying before but I love the idea of keeping things simple, not over complicating things. So we've gone back to the drawing board over the last few weeks on a lot of different elements of business, just trying to see where we can simplify things. So there's not a lot of back end processing and that's not one of the 24 things I have in mind. It's something that I thought I would share with you before we kick off. So what 24 things that I am going to take into 2024?

Speaker 2 4:38

The first one and probably no surprise to anyone who's a regular listener to the podcast is that I really wanted to find what success means to me in 2024. And while I've got a pretty good idea of what that is, I haven't quite nailed on the head yet exactly what it looks like. I've come up with my dollar figure for success. So, financially, if I'm going to be successful, this is what it looks like for me and it is a massive stretch goal. I also know that in simplifying my business, I want my course, business Money Magnet, to be the flagship of the business through 2024. And I have a target In terms of overall success. I'm not quite there yet. I'm almost there, but my aim is to really focus on and define what success means for me in this season of my life and business, and I think part of that might be doing it all in just a couple of days a week. So I'll decide on what success means for me for 2024 over the next week or so and I'll probably drop that into one of my newsletters to you, so it helps me stay accountable for my success goals in 2024. And if you're not part of the community yet, you're not getting emails from me and you'd like to, then there's a link below in the show notes where you can sign up and get a couple of non-spammy hopefully hopeful emails from me every single week. So that's number one, defining what success looks like in 2024.

Speaker 2 6:16

The second thing that I'm going to take into 2024, centers around pricing, and that's another strategy that I would really encourage you to consider, to look at in your business. How much are you charging for all of the products and services that you offer in your business? Because that, my friends, is the key to reaching the financial targets you want to reach, and doing it with ease. And so if you haven't looked at your pricing for three months or more, if you haven't increased your prices for three months or more, then have a look at what it's costing you to run your business right now Decide on the salary that you want to earn this year, decide on how many hours you want to work each week this year and how many weeks you want to work so what holidays do you want to have and then review your pricing so that you can work the number of days that you want through this year and earn what you want to earn.

Speaker 2 7:21

The next thing that I'm going to look at is customer retention, because for a lot of us, we are always seeking the new. We're looking for that new client, that new adrenaline hit of having someone come into our ecosystem, our business ecosystem. But the reality is, you might be leaving money on the table based on who is already within your orbit. So have a look at the people that you've worked with in the past, because we all know the 80-20 rule, that 80% of your business is going to come from 20% of your clients. So identify that 20%. What is it that you can do for them that you can offer them in this next year that is going to keep them coming back and working with you time and time again? But more than that, how can you motivate those customers to recommend you to one of their clients or to their friends so that you're bringing new people in organically. But also go back through your emails. Have a look at people that you might have jumped on a discovery call with but for some reason they said no to new, back last year or the year before that and see whether or not they might be motivated or ready to work with you again. Remember, people need to see you, experience you, seven or eight times before they finally make a decision to work with you. So have a look at the customers that are currently in your orbit, whether you work with them or not, and reach out to them and see if they're ready to jump on and work with you again. But, more importantly, focus on the customers that you already have and see if you can get them coming back for more.

Speaker 2 9:02

So number four on the list of 24 things to take into 2024 is to really monitor cash flow on a regular basis. So we're probably all tempted, as we kick off a new year, to clean up our finances, dive into budgets, really get hyper aware of what's going on on the financial side of business, and bravo to that, because that's my jam. I absolutely love that and if that's you consider business money magnet, it actually kicked off yesterday. I'll tell you a little bit more about that at the end of this podcast. If there's only one thing you're going to do in terms of your money this year, it should be monitoring your cash flow, because having cash in your business, being able to pay your bills, pay yourself, pay your staff that is the lifeblood of your business. So get yourself a cash flow forecast, fill it in, get sorted and go into this year knowing where you're able to spend and also where you need to pull back because of those ebbs and flows in your cash flow. Monitoring your cash flow is also going to allow you to work on the other strategies within your business, because when cash flow is dwindling, you might need to level up your pricing, you might need to add something different. So really important.

Prioritizing Self-Care and Client Appreciation

Speaker 2 10:23

The next one, also a strategy piece, but this time around marketing. So how are you showing up, how are you being visible in your business and how are you reaching your target audience, and are you doing it effectively, or are you trying to be all things to all people? So now, as we go into this year and we set up our plans for 2024, it's time to really think about how you're going to show up this year, how you're going to market your business, who your ideal client is this year and how you're going to speak to them. And then make sure all of your messaging, all of your comms, reflect who you're trying to target and what it is that you're selling. Another thing you might want to consider this year is working with a coach or a mentor to gain insights from people who have been there, done that before you, to help you get where you want to go faster than ever before. Now you don't need to spend a lot of money on coaching. You don't need to pay sometimes for a mentor. You can reach out to people you know and ask them to be in your world on your team, helping you reach the goals that you want to do through nurturing, maybe kicking your butt. Whatever it is, keeping you accountable is the key. So who is it that is going to be on your team this year? If it's a business best friend, reach out to them and ask them to be on your team this year and explain to them what it is you'd like them to do. But if it's a coach or a mentor, have a look around, see who resonates with you. Think about the area of your business that you really need improving and go for that person, because I absolutely guarantee you, working with someone who's been there, done that, it's just going to help you get to where you want to go faster and with less hassle.

Speaker 2 12:16

Okay, number seven is to really focus on loving up your clients. So so many of us work with people and we forget to say thank you or we forget to tell our clients how much we appreciate them. You know we finish a job, we're keen for their feedback, we're keen to get them to give us a review, but how are you showing up and appreciating your clients? So, when you finish working with them, are you sending them a small gift? Are you offering them a discount on your next service? Are you just reaching out to them with an email to say, hey, I know we worked together X weeks ago. Thanks very much for putting your trust in me. I hope you really enjoyed the process Full stop. Not asking for them for anything, not asking them to do the next step, not badgering them for a review, but just showing them some love. They're the people who have the best customer experience and who are going to want to come back to you, because they know that working with you is more than just a transaction. It's actually a relationship. It's something that they've enjoyed because you've taken the time to reach out to them and tell them how thankful you are for being allowed into their world.

Speaker 2 13:34

So the next one, number eight, is self-care rituals, and prioritising your wellness. This year is something you might want to consider. It's certainly something that I'm not just considering, but I will be doing this year. So making sure I get up each day, I move my body, I make time to meditate, I teach myself how to remain calm because that's a big issue for me, staying calm, not being stressed for big chunks of the day and so, for me, I'm going to work out how I can build more self-care rituals in it to my life, not just here and there, but each and every day. And so that starts with moving my body, with meditation and, of course, the next one which is on the list, and that is sleep Getting good sleep, prioritising sleep is really the key I have found to wellness and having the energy to keep going.

Speaker 2 14:32

So number nine on the list is to prioritise quality sleep so that I can be rejuvenated and wake up feeling fantastic. So that, for me, involves a very particular bedtime routine. I need to sit quietly, I need to read for at least half an hour before I go to sleep, because that enables me to get rid of all that clutter, all that stuff that would ordinarily be sitting in my brain. And as entrepreneurs, I think we can be classic overthinkers. We can lie down to close our eyes and then all of the ideas start coming into our heads and before we know it, we've been lying there for an hour and a half and we're just exhausted when we wake up the next day. So eight, nine self-care rituals and prioritising sleep are really important for the new year. The other one that sort of goes hand in hand with that is really fuelling your body with nutritious and delicious meals.

Speaker 2 15:38

Now what I've noticed for me is that I have gone through menopause, so there has been a weight gain there. That's a hormonal weight gain. Initially I thought it was me just overeating or not moving enough, and so depriving myself of food and moving even more than I'd ever moved before just didn't work in terms of losing weight. In fact, it had the opposite effect. I think it was slowing down my metabolism. So part of this whole idea of looking after myself. This year is going to be really focusing on nutritious and delicious meals that are going to look after my gut and help me go forward with the energy that I need to stay focused Now. Once upon a time, I thought that meant cutting out all the junk, and while it means cutting out most of it, I'm not going to be discriminating. I'm not going to be having foods that are off limits for me, because that's like a red flag for me to go and eat those foods. So my one indulgence is dark chocolate, and that turns out to be quite good for you. So I am definitely going to be munching on some dark chocolate as part of the nutritious and delicious focus that I'm going to have for my diet this year.

Speaker 2 16:56

And, of course, the other part of the self-care routine is to just be mindful, so really to incorporate mindfulness into everything that I do within my daily routines and in my business and just generally in my life. So how am I showing up? Am I showing up happy and helpful? Am I showing up as Oscar the Grouch every day, just having those mindful moments thinking about how the way I approach other people is going to impact not only on them, but on me as well, and not taking things too personally. I think that's really important, because one thing that I absolutely know for sure, and that I have learned as I get older, is that nobody really gives a damn about you. We all worry about what people are going to think of us. It stops us from doing so many things, but at the end of the day, what you do is a blimp on somebody else's radar because their focus is them. That's what they care about. So don't underestimate that inward focus being, you know, concerned about yourself and not really caring what other people think of you. Dance like no one's watching. You've heard that. So go ahead and do that this year, but be mindful in the way you go forward. Now networking We've all heard of the magic of networking and normally we think about networking as heading off to a function and handing out a whole lot of business cards if you're old school, or swapping social media handles, trying to get people into our network.

Speaker 2 18:37

But sometimes networking doesn't have to be on such a massive scale. We don't have to be heading out, especially for my fellow introverts who are listening right now, going to function after function. I can't think of anything worse. I find that when I go to these networking events, I'm the one who's hanging around the people I know rather than going out there and introducing myself to everyone. Probably doesn't really work in my favour and defeats the purpose of the networking event, but you get the picture. So I'm going to be consciously networking through 2024. Reaching out to people that I already know, nurturing those relationships and seeing where we can find some synchronicities. So how can we work together? Because when you network on a more personal level, that's where the magic happens, in my opinion. So who are the 12 people, for example, that are close by that? You know that might be good to work with, where you can work out some sort of collaboration that is going to be mutually beneficial. And can you reach out to those people and bring them into your world, because that could be the start of something wonderful and bring more business into your world in this new year.

Speaker 2 20:00

The next one is to delegate, and delegate when you can, but do it wisely. So so many of us, as small business owners, take on all of the load ourselves, why? Because usually when we start we're stuck for cash, but then it sort of becomes a habit where we think we can do this better than everybody else. So we'll just keep taking on the load after load, and when you want to do more and more things, that can become really tiring and can lead to burnout, and I learned that the hard way.

Speaker 2 20:36

Last year, while I had staff here and there, most of the staff that I worked with went with the business the part of my business that I sold to the new owners, so I was no longer able to use those amazing people within my business. I had to start from scratch. My default was you know why do I need to do that? I automatically went back to that position that I'd been in 30 years ago when I started my business, thinking I'll just do this myself, but what I soon discovered was that overload led to overwhelm, which led to burnout, and I had to take a whole chunk of time off towards the end of last year. So this year I'm going to think about all of those things that I need to get done that I need help with, like social media, for example, and I'm going to delegate, but I am going to do it wisely so that I share the load efficiently and can reach one of my success goals, which is working only a couple of days a week.

Speaker 2 21:37

The other thing that I'm going to be doing this year is to work on boosting my visibility. It's visibility online, it's at in-person events, and I'm doing that for a very specific reason, because I have two different books coming out this year. I have Business Money Magnet Hitting the Shelves Round the Middle of the Year and at the same time, I also have an anthology that I'm writing with a whole group of amazingly talented business women court women making a difference that is actually going to be launching in London in May. So I really need to boost my visibility, to get myself out there, to take myself out of my comfort zone, so that I give myself the best chance of selling my books. But, more importantly than that, the books that I'm writing particularly Business Money Magnet, designed to really help business owners increase their financial literacy, and so, for that reason, I want to get that book into the hands of as many people as possible, because when we've got money to do things, we can make a real difference in the world and, let's face it, we all deserve to earn money in our business. So stay tuned for more information on that, one of the other things that I'm going to do this year 2024, is to continue to educate myself by attending workshops, by buying courses, and I know that so many of us buy those courses and we do nothing with it.

Speaker 2 23:10

We never open the course, we never even start the course, but I'm all for buying something, consuming it and then buying the next thing. So if workshops and courses are something that you're interested in, or if you're all about educating yourself, this is the year to do it. Get curious Where's the gap in your business knowledge and look to plug that hole in your business and do that through a quick workshop, maybe a one hour workshop or a course Now this year. For me, time management is key. I want to spend more time doing more of the things that I love. So I am all about working smarter, not harder, and that is going to be a key focus for me in 2024. So I am going to really manage my time and I guess that's a whole other point about guarding my time but when I am working, I'm going to make sure I work smarter, get things done, because I've got great systems and processes in place. I know exactly what's happening when it should be happening, but I've got things that are going on automatically in the back end, so I run my courses out of Kajabi. I've got a great Kajabi expert that works with me and we have worked on making our back end systems and processes really efficient and really easy. So hopefully that is going to save us a big chunk of time this year. And that leads me to guarding my time learning where to say no, and I would encourage you to do the same.

Speaker 2 24:45

You've heard that saying when you're saying yes to something, you're saying no to something else, and when you think about what success means to you as we go into this year, there is always going to be a price for the next level of success in your business. So if your plan is to grow or to scale this year or to change things up in your business, think what is the price for that next level of success for me, because you can't do everything even when you want to do everything. So what is the price that you're prepared to pay to reach where you want to go? Is that time? Is that money, because you choose to pay someone else? Is that energy? Is that relationships? Are you going to be able to spend less time with your family, for example, because you've got to travel more for work. So think about you know the price that you are prepared to pay for the next level of your success in 2024. And as you're doing that, think about how you can guard your time so that you're saying yes to the right things and no to the things that are not going to serve you.

Speaker 2 26:01

So the other thing that I'm going to be working on this year is really diversifying my income streams. It's something that I have always done successfully over these last 30 years in business. This year, 2024, is the 30th anniversary, the 30th year in business for me, and so I've always had lots of different income streams. I got rid of one of my biggest income streams in 2023. So I'm all about diversifying income streams and finding more income streams to put into my business this year, because I'm a big believer in not having all of your eggs in one basket. So have a think about when you can diversify your income streams Back to a bit of wellness, and you know, for me, it's important to find something to do that you absolutely love outside of business.

Speaker 2 26:52

I'm a bit guilty of spending a lot of my time, focus and energy on my business, so for me, this year, I am going to find something that I love doing and I'm going to try and make it a habit, and I would absolutely encourage you to do the same, because investing time in those activities that bring you joy, that bring you happiness, are going to really help you take a break from your business, help you avoid burnout and, you know, allow you to have the energy that you need to keep showing up in your business. And while we're on that, this doesn't necessarily have to be, you know, it doesn't necessarily have to be a hobby that you're bringing in. It could just be moving your body. And so, if you're thinking about what is it that I can do? I know I talked about moving your body before as one of the things that you can do to keep yourself healthy, but if you're the sort of person who finds work a little stressful, or you get stuck in the minutia of the day to day, set an alarm five minutes before the end of every hour and get up and move around, jump around like a fool, because it's going to make a difference. It's something that I know the most successful entrepreneurs do and it's something that could help you in your business as well. So moving your body. Another thing that I am going to make sure I do this year is to keep up with my health appointments, so regular appointments with the dentist, making sure that I go and have all of those annual health checkups like mammograms and hapsmere's and blood tests and all those things that I need to be doing to make sure that I can keep myself healthy. And it's about sort of getting proactive for me about my health as I get older, so that I don't have some illness creep up on me and find that I'm unable to keep going. Because when you're a business owner, if you fall over, then everything else is going to fall over as well. So keep those regular checkups, keep up those health appointments really important as you go into the new year. Okay, we're almost there. Just a couple more to go.

Speaker 2 29:06

Number 22 is to create an emergency fund. So if you don't have an emergency fund in your business and in your life, my recommendation to you is to build a financial safety net that is going to give you the peace of mind to keep going when it all hits the fan. And I know, with the economy the way it is, that it's easier said than done. But the most important thing to do here is to start. So I have an emergency fund for my personal life, I have an emergency fund for my business, and my aim is to get three months worth of expenses into each of those emergency funds. So if it hits the fan, I'm going to be okay. Now you obviously don't need to do both of those, but I would encourage you to at least have one emergency fund in your life. Start small, keep adding. It will lead to big things, I absolutely promise you.

Speaker 2 30:02

Try and set a target for a year. Think of fun and different ways that you can save. It might be collecting all the empty plastic bottles and doing a run down to the return and earn every now and again and you might think, oh, why would I bother doing that? It's only a few dollars, but believe me, those few dollars are going to really help. The other thing that I would suggest you do is to learn about investing. This can be one of your different income streams, how you choose to diversify, but investing your money becomes a long-term growth strategy. So reach out to a finance professional, reach out to someone at the bank and talk to them about investing. There are lots of fantastic courses out there on how to get started with investing. I would absolutely recommend it as an option for you, and that is a great way to build a little nesting for future you as well.

Speaker 2 30:58

And finally, number 24 is to always acknowledge and reward yourself every time you succeed. They're the small wins as well as the big wins, and this, to me celebrating my achievements is something that I've not done very well throughout my business career, but I plan to do really well in 2024. Now, my way of celebrating is not buying a bottle of champagne and toasting myself, and it's certainly not going out and doing something flash, but for me, it's doing something simple. So and I'm going to change it up every time it might be going to have a facial, it could be going to have a massage, get my nails done. It could be something like that. It might be taking myself up to Sydney and going to see a show.

Speaker 2 31:46

I'm going to think of lots of different ways that I can celebrate my achievements. The small achievements might just mean going out and getting a tie takeaway. The big achievements might be doing something on a bigger scale, but I would absolutely encourage you to reward yourself, particularly when you reach those financial goals, because it just sets a tone for you to celebrate yourself, to pat yourself on the back, because so often we don't do that. We go, yeah, okay, I achieved that, move on. What's the next thing? So take the time, stop, celebrate your achievements and let everybody else in on your celebration too. So that's it. That's 24 things that I am going to be taking into 2024 and in my business this year. There'll be a couple of different ways to work with me. One of them, obviously, is going to be by buying a copy of my book when it comes out. The other one is going to be business money magnet, the program, which is actually live right now. So if you want to change up your finances in, you know, this year in your business, then consider business money magnet.

Speaker 2 32:58

It's eight weeks of education, but for one fee you get 24 months worth of access to the program. You can start at any time. The modules will be dripped out two at a time over a four week period, so you can dive in and get them done. But I wanted to give a longer time to work on the program so you could keep coming in and going back to the areas that you were struggling in or cherry picking what you needed as you needed it throughout the year. So that's the motivation. So eight modules, 12 months access.

Speaker 2 33:34

But the magic in this program is that I will be running group sessions 28 times through the year. So each school term I will be doing seven weeks an hour or so a week. It's usually an hour but we often stay on for longer where the whole cohort can come along ask questions. We talk about different aspects of business, particularly the financial side of business, but the bottom line is you'll get your burning questions answered and you get 28 opportunities to come along and be part of those sessions throughout your one year membership in the program. All the bonuses, any improvements we make to the program throughout the year and there'll be lots of those are included.

Speaker 2 34:23

There's already some great bonuses attached to the program and the idea is that we want to improve this program.

Speaker 2 34:33

We want to make business money magnets something that you can really enjoy, that you can use in your business time and time again, so that you know how to supercharge your profits, make more money, pay yourself more in wages, pay yourself super and really start to kick those financial goals.

Speaker 2 34:54

So if you are interested in business money magnet the program. The link is below. I would love to see you come and join us, and if that's not quite for you yet, but you want to get a feeling for what it's like to be in the you know network of Justine McLean, then I've got a free Facebook community, that is. There's also a link down below that you can come and join. It's a closed community, but you can come in there, ask your questions and I'm in there every day answering. So I would love to work with you to be in your world in some capacity in 2020-24, because I believe that money in the hands of small business owners, particularly women, has the ability to change the world. So come on over, come and work with us, come and be part of our community or come and join us in the Facebook group for free. I hope to see you soon. Here's to a wonderful 2024 for you, your family and your business. Until next time.

Speaker 1 35:59

Thanks for listening to the secrets of successful business podcast. For more information on all things business, head to focicomau and make sure you hit subscribe on the show so you don't miss another new episode. If you're enjoying the show, please give it a quick rating or review, share it on your socials or with friends who might enjoy it. Catch you next time.