Happy 2015!!!
Let’s do this.
This is my first official blog post of the new year and I am so excited to share with you. I spent the last two weeks of 2014 onboarding a new client and taking about 10 days off to spend with my husband in sunny Florida. I ended 2014 as a twenty-something and I began 2015 as part of the 30 crowd due to an early January birthday.
It was wonderful to have a block of time where I didn’t feel tied to my phone or email. I even lost my phone on Christmas during the Cavaliers vs. Heat game so I was pretty much disconnected the entire time. A hidden blessing.
As I look back at 2014, I think about many of the lessons learned, ups and downs and the hopes and fears I experienced as an individual and business owner. This past year was full of learning opportunities for me with both tremendously positive experiences and scary “what if” scenarios. I learned more than I can probably recount and I’m really looking forward to what this next year has in store for me personally and for our team as an agency.
5 Postures for Success in 2015 + 2014 Recap
Before I dig into a recap of 2014 goals and list my goals for this year, let’s start with the right mindset. Here are some resources to consider as we look to 2015 as our best year yet:
- The Problem with Perfection {It Sucks}
- 10 Things You Should Do Everyday
- The Secret to Success: Know Who You Are
- 29 Small Reminders for the New Year
- 10 Traits of Truly Inspirational and Effective Leaders
This past year was a time of stretching for me. I said before that I am an overachiever, recovering perfectionist and more of “Type A” personality. It seems like a lot of my time over the past year was spent growing in leadership and recognizing limitations I put it on my thinking. I declared 2014 as the year to THRIVE and I think I accomplished this mantra in many ways. In others, I uncovered areas that weren’t quite ready.
In 2014, our team doubled and so did our client list. We met together as a team in-person for the first time. We increased our retainers to be closer to where they should be but we’re still not where we need to be as far as industry standard. (That’s a growth point for 2015 for sure.)
Here’s how we did on goals …
2014 Personal Goals
- Complete another half marathon (May 2014) — This goal has been postponed perhaps indefinitely based on a knee injury I sustained last March. Instead, I’ve taken up biking and Pilates — which I love!
- Workout at least 3 times per week (CrossFit, running and yoga) — On average I worked out 2-3 times per week and am increasing this goal in 2015.
- Complete another Whole30 in late January — did not happen! 🙁
- Take a vacation with Daniel this year (since we haven’t had a vacation together since our honeymoon) — DONE and DONE 🙂
- Begin to blog on KateUpdates.com weekly — Didn’t happen. Still not sure what I’m going to do with this site.
2014 Business Goals
- Release our first e-book this month — This was a BIG project but we did it. You can download the book here.
- Double sales for the year — We didn’t double our revenue but we did increase it by 50%!
- Grow our media relations team — done x 2!
- Blog daily M-F (This is a BIG goal. Scary but I know we can do it) — We consistently blogged each week this year which is HUGE. We averaged 4 blog posts per week.
- Share a video each week. We shared 45 videos this year!! HUGE accomplishment and this is a major time commitment for me so its’ amazing we did this many.
- Send our e-newsletter at least once a month (12 per year) — we blew this goal out of the water with a weekly e-newsletter featuring a video and lots of marketing tips. Opt in here.
- Reserve one day per week for strategy and business development for Belle Communications (I started this toward the end of 2013 and it’s a huge help. I strongly encourage a designated weekly time of business development if you’re an entrepreneur or consultant.) — Done!
2015 Business and Personal Goals
So, that’s the recap! Now on to setting goals for this next year. I’m going to share my personal and business goals but I’d really love to hear what yours are so leave them in the comments below or send me an email: kate@thinkbelle.com. Remember, there is strength in numbers and accountability. The more people you tell about your goals the more likely you are to achieve them. Also, you have to make sure you review them throughout the year 😉
2015 Personal Goals
I will …
- Workout 4-5 times a week
- Get back to eating primarily Paleo (unprocessed)
- Interrupt less and listen more
- Make daily meditation and reading a habit
- Check in with my family monthly (we don’t live near each other so this can be hard)
- Be better at following up with friends and making time to catch up
- Read two books a month (one personal, one business)
2015 Business Goals
We will …
- Grow our retainers overall
- Grow revenue by 50%
- Blog Monday – Friday each week
- Launch a Guest Blogging initiative one a week
- Share video content each month
- Secure a consistent guest blogging role within one of our target audiences
- Increase website leads by 100%
- Obtain one prominent speaking engagement within the PR industry
- Exceed one million in revenue by year five.
- Grow to a team of five full-time team members by 2016.
- Grow thought-leadership within the PR industry.
- Explore additional streams of revenue (public speaking, webinars, e-book, etc.)
That’s it. Those are our goals and I’m excited to achieve and exceed them.
- What are your goals for 2015 personally and professionally?
- What do you wish you had given more time and attention to last year?
- What are three things you absolutely MUST accomplish this year?
Do share …
Happy New Year!
~ Kate
