How to Set Small Business Goals for the Rest of 2019

Any freelancer or small business owner knows that it's all too easy to get caught up in the day-to-day grind of running your business. You’re answering clients’ and customers' questions via email and social media, researching and pitching ideas to existing clients, emailing freelance pitches to new editors and letters of introduction to potential clients, trying to keep up with social media, and oh yea, tracking down that payment that’s three months late. (Been there!)

It’s certainly enough to keep you busy, but, if don't take the time each week and month to plan ahead for your freelance business, you're bound to have an unwanted slow season show up at your doorstep. (Like during the holidays when you could use the extra cash and your fourth quarter estimated taxes are looming.)

That’s why I ask my freelance coaching clients about their short-term and long-term goals during our sessions, especially when they tell me that they're struggling with motivation.

Here are some ways small business owners and freelance writers can create short-term and long-term business goals to ensure they have objectives they’re aiming towards and can visit them weekly.

To quote the wise words of the late Zig Ziglar, “If you aim at nothing, you will hit it every time.”

How Freelancers and Small Business Owners Can Goals They’ll Actually Hit

1. Think about where you want to be a few years from now.

Do you have an idea of where you want to be with freelancing in five years? Does your small business plan have sales projections that you're excited to hit?

The gig economy is expanding quickly and if you want to run a freelance business from home, you need to think about what that business venture requires. Do you want to make six figures freelancing in 2020? Have you thought about the skills you’ll need to get there? If you plan to leave your full-time job (with health benefits and a retirement plan) to work for yourself, you’ll need to set a salary goal that’s about 25% higher than you’re making right now in order to make about the same money working for yourself. Here are six money decisions I encourage you to think about before going full-time freelance.

2. Decide how much you want to earn freelance writing for the rest of the year.

You probably already have a general number in your head of an hourly rate or monthly salary you want to earn as a freelancer, but do you set aside time each month to see how that’s going? As we're more than halfway through the year, have you revisited your income goal to see if you’re on track? Are your small business sales where you want them to be? Do you need to modify your forecasts for the rest of 2019? I think it's wise to look at your business's financial statements weekly, but at the very least, block out time on your calendar for a monthly check-in. This is why freelance writers need to always be marketing -- even when they're busy.

3. Set goals that have nothing to do with income.

One of the beautiful things about freelance writing is that you can work for a variety of clients and outlets and write about topics that mean something to you. One of your goals for the year might be to get a personal essay published. (Mine was! Here’s one about my adopted dog, Jackson, and how he cost us over $3,000 the first year we had him.) Another good freelance writing goal is to break into a new niche. Look for ways you can start building up clips for a new niche with topics you’re already covering. Here are some tips on how to find a lucrative freelance writing niche. Another goal might be to increase your social media audience or to work fewer hours and make the same income.

 4. Consider setting a goal that's associated with time.

There are a number of ways to think about this freelance goal. It could be a long-term goal to take three weeks of vacation from your full-time freelance writing career in 2020. (You'll need to start hustling more now if you want that to happen early next year.) Another goal could be to work fewer hours per week. (How many hours do freelancers work per week?) A goal for the next four months might be to take time off around the holidays while still earning the freelance income you want for the year.

Need more freelance pitching advice or one-on-one help with setting your freelance goals and creating the path to achieving them? Check out my freelance coaching services or get tons of freelance writing tips in my new getting started guide, 100+ Tips for Beginner Freelance Writers.