Hey there,
As we step into a brand new year, it’s the perfect time to pause, reflect, and set a course for a successful 2024 (more on this in juuuust a second). I’m excited to share with you the first in a series of four emails, each designed to guide and inspire you in different aspects of goal setting and achieving success (on your own terms!) in your photography business.
The Power of Clear, Achievable Goals
Setting goals isn’t just about dreaming big; it’s about making those dreams attainable. Clear, well-defined goals act as stepping stones towards your larger vision, helping you focus your efforts and measure progress along the way. We’ll talk a lot more this month about how to break these goals down into itty-bitty-baby-steps so they don’t seem so daunting. For now though, go ahead and stretch yourself a little out of your comfort zone.
My Success is Different from Your Success
I want to be sure to get to this up-front: Success looks different for everyone, and it’s important to understand what it means for you.
Is it about hitting a certain income level? Or perhaps it’s about achieving a work-life balance that lets you spend more time with your family?
Balancing your monetary ambitions with your lifestyle aspirations is key to setting goals that truly resonate with you.
What “Success Season” are you in?
Perhaps more importantly, I want to encourage you to look at your definition of “success” as a living, breathing thing. It can change. In fact, it should change. I like to think of my life being a series of seasons. Right now, I happen to be in a season that prioritizes family time and calm, simple business strategies over “growth at all costs” and maximizing my impact with my businesses.
That will likely change one day when the kids are out and I’m ready to step on the gas again with growing and optimizing my business. And that’s ok. That’ll be the right season for that definition of “success”.
The SMART Way to Set Goals
A useful tool in goal setting is the SMART framework. This approach ensures that your goals are:
Specific: Clear and well-defined.
“I’m going to photograph 48 families in 2024” vs “I’m going to shoot more”.
Measurable: Quantifiable to track progress.
This is the “48 families” part from the above example. We can’t really measure success if we don’t give ourselves a metric to check in with.
Achievable: Realistic and attainable.
I like to think of achievable as more than just “can I do really do this?”. Instead, I like to consider this more along the lines of “is this something I can do without having to rely on outside forces or entities?”. Let’s focus on the things we have full control over for right now, we can tackle the rest later.
Relevant: Aligned with your broader life and business objectives.
I’m about to talk about this in detail, so, let’s move on…
Time-bound: Having a deadline for accountability.
This is the “in 2024” in the above example. Give yourself a hard deadline. Again, we’ll work on making these goals much more attainable in the remaining emails this month. So dream big, friend!
What’s Your North Star?
Ok, last thing before we dive into goal-setting the rest of this month: take some time to really to think hard about what’s most important to you, both personally and in your business, in this season of life. Your values are the compass that guides your decision-making process and should be reflected in the goals you set.
Write this North Star down and put it somewhere you’ll see it often. Anytime you have a decision to make, check your map… Is the thing you need to do clearly on the path between where you are today and that North Star? Is that business decision going to move you in the direction of that North Star? Does it fit squarely within your values and goals in this season in life?
By keeping one eye on that North Star, you’re ensuring that everything you do and every decision you make is aligned with where you want to be at this point in life. This ensures you’re moving forward in your business (and life) with intention and helps create clarity in every decision you make.
Don’t Just Sit There…
I encourage you to take some quiet time to reflect on what success looks like for you. Think about your personal and business values, and start formulating that SMART Goal that isn’t just about financial gains, but also about personal fulfillment, growth and finding the balance that makes the most sense to you in this season of life.
Next week, we’ll dive into creating a practical and effective roadmap to turn these goals into reality. Stay tuned!
All the best,
Chris
Co-Founder/CEO, Swift Galleries