Just as we were winding down for the December holidays, I sent a proposal through to a potential new client. In the preliminary meetings that we had had, much stress had been placed on the fact that this was a make-or-break period for this business, and that the next 3 to 6 months would be crucial in terms of whether or not this business would continue its existence.
Imagine my surprise when I received an email from the Managing Partner acknowledging receipt of my proposal, thanking me for my efforts and professionalism, and advising me that the company was shutting down for the Festive Season and that the project would be picked up in January 2012!
My giddy aunt! I would have thought that this would have been the PERFECT time to get a head start on the competition! This is the best time of the year to do that quality thinking, planning and execution of strategy that you never get around to during the hustle and bustle of the rest of the year. With modern technology, you can be sitting on a beach or chilling in the bushveld while you create a blog from scratch, link it to your brand new Twtter account and already have traffic coming to your site by the time your opposition is just easing back into the New Year.
With the wonders of WordPress, you can write a couple of blogs a day and schedule them to go out whenever you please – making it look as though you are a WordPress-Wunderkind and are blogging far more regularly than you really are (some fabulous advice that I dispense regularly, but am guilty of not acting upon!). Similarly with Twitter – download the free Tweetdeck dashboard and you can manage multiple accounts and set up Tweets from now to next Christmas should you wish to do so (just remember to try and ensure that your Tweets encourage readers to visit your other online presences every now and again.
But back to my original beef about working on your business rather than in your business over the Festive Season: I also feel very strongly that everyone needs a break sometime, but if you are an entrepreneur and are trying to build a business, there are some things that you sign up for during the first few years of a fledgling business’ life, and one of them is that – when the rest of the world takes time off, that is your gap to get ahead of the game. As world famous golfer, Gary Player once said: “The harder I practice, the luckier I get.” I’m sure every successful entrepreneur will agree with me.
