2024 has been a year of transition for many UK businesses.
Navigating an election year with a subsequent budget announcement, a later than usual Black Friday and Christmas, a recession, a cost of living crisis, and many internal issues that require consideration from the business owner. Mobility brings failure, but it also brings learning.
What did you learn in this year of navigation? My first tip: keep it fun! For the first three quarters of this year I was absolutely miserable. By the end of the third quarter, I was ready to quit, due to ongoing staffing issues, massive rising costs with no room for price increases, general turmoil in the economy, and having to constantly try to stay ahead of the curve. But then I realized that life is too short. We need to tone it down and try to bring back the fun factor. These events will happen around you either way. You can choose to face them with a terrible attitude or smile and bear it.
Second, learn the difference between being nice and being nice. I have been guilty many times in the past of feeling sorry for an individual and putting their individual needs before those of their colleagues and the company. He never pays. If people aren’t bothered by their bad behavior, you give them implicit consent to continue that behavior, and the problem always gets worse.
My third learning is to make sure everything is measurable. You have a photographer, for example. What is their production requirement? For each project, for each month, for each person in the company, you need specific quantitative goals.
Fourth – Look for the low-hanging fruit. When times are good, it’s easy to fill the team with “nice to have” statements. As we head into a year of rising wage costs and a significant increase in employer national insurance, do we really need these roles? Does the salary at least add that money to the bottom line, either directly or indirectly? If not, do we need this role or can it be combined into another role? We know that individuals can fill their day or become stuck with a certain workload, this does not mean that people do not work hard, but the question has to be asked. Are these jobs a “nice to have” or are they essential to the company’s operation?
The fifth thing I learned is what Tony Robbins always says – you should spend time working for the company and not for the company. You can become so entangled in everyday life that it becomes difficult to stop, step back, and look at higher-level work that requires special focus. I spend the quiet time between Christmas and New Year strategizing on how to reach new markets.
Sixth: The most difficult (for me at least) are procedures, procedures, procedures. Most entrepreneurs (myself included) hate procedures, but without them, you leave your company exposed to one risk after another. If any member of staff is taken out of work, are there adequate procedures in place for someone to step into that role seamlessly? Does their role include clear step-by-step guides and expectations? This is something that should be prepared for every job role. This will also support tip four. When you know what goes into a role, you can gauge how important each task is.
Finally, my seventh tip. Either trust your employees or let them go! There is no point in hiring employees to do a job and then micromanaging them. If you surround yourself with good people, they should know more than you in their chosen field. Let them keep working.
It’s been a really tough year, but the reason growth has stagnated this year is down to me, the leader. Yes, the market is tough, I mean it’s really tough, but it’s up to me as a leader to navigate that. Half a leader’s job is being able to hold up the mirror and recognize your failures, and then instead of beating yourself up about them, look to the team around you to make up for some of those shortcomings.
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