New year, new you, or so the saying goes. When we change our calendars, it feels like we have to change ourselves; a fresh start is here, and the drive to become someone better is renewed. You can argue that the time for change is always here, and that the new year is an arbitrary point to start enacting those changes. While that may be true to some extent, we can feel change in the air in January; everyone else starting on their resolutions, asking what ours might be. It’s motivating. When you’re an entrepreneur, your resolutions don’t just affect you; they affect your whole business.

Start by resolving to have a better work life balance. That phrase is funny, because it promotes some kind of dichotomy between the two, as if your work isn’t a substantial part of your life, or that your life doesn’t have a profound impact on your work. That’s why it’s right to unplug; you need to charge your batteries so that your business will be more successful. Don’t be afraid to delegate tasks to others; you put the effort into hiring a competent team, so don’t hesitate to trust them to use their abilities. Delegating will help you avoid burnout, which is the last thing your work or your life needs.

Put the focus back on why you started your business. During the day-to-day hustle and bustle of entrepreneurship, it can be easy to forget the core of why we became entrepreneurs to begin with. You did it for the love of the thing, for the passion you have for it, for the belief that your business can make a positive change in the world. Drop products and services that aren’t serving that goal, and get rid of ideas and plans that don’t serve the greater cause of your business. Refocus, re-energize, and go into the new year with a profound sense of who you are.

With focusing on the core of your business in mind, the new year is also the time to let go and say no. Let go of products and services that aren’t making you money. Say no to ideas you don’t feel will work out. Drop the services you purchased last year that you thought would help your business, but that you didn’t end up using. Look over your budget and see where you can make cuts; an efficient Winnipeg accountant from Compass Accounting can help you streamline this process.

With the excess dropped and your renewed focus on your passion, consider realigning your business to what matters; new year, new business plan. Try new services, buy new equipment, test out that bold marketing strategy that you’re not sure will work, but that feels right. Put faith in yourself and your business, and be bold this year! Some of what you try will work, and some of it won’t, and that’s all part of growth. Next year, you’ll shed what didn’t work, align yourself with your passion again, and you’ll keep growing. Renewal is a beautiful thing.