McBean, author of The Facts of Business Life: What Every Successful Business Owner Knows That You Don’t (Wiley, October 2012,) says the reality is that the season is actually a great time to do a half-year review and make some smart moves for your business, rather than indulge in the summertime lull. Take summer’s opportunity to learn what’s working and what’s not throughout your organization.
“I’m suggesting you work smarter, not harder. Often, employers think they can just wait and review or implement needed changes after they’ve enjoyed the summer. But what happens is, they come back from their vacations, and they are ‘slammed’ trying to catch up and deal with past problems, instead of getting ready to ramp back up after Labor Day.
“They end up trying to succeed with the same troubled systems, processes, and/or employee(s), so nothing changes. Suddenly the year is almost finished, and valuable opportunities have passed them by. But trust me, there are many benefits to taking the time to do a half-year review right now—before time runs out to adjust.”
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According to McBean, summertime is a great time to “identify what can be done quickly and implemented easily,” he says. “The more difficult challenges begin once you get these initial improvements in place. It’s also important to check in on the goals you made earlier in the year and make adjustments as needed.”
Changes will take a while to fully implement
If you want to make changes in your operation, like hiring and training new employees, it will take time to really get them rolling. “You might think, Oh, as long as we get this or that going by fall, we’ll be good to go for the rest of the year,” says McBean. “But why wait until fall? You probably have a little extra time right now to make things happen. So take advantage of it!”
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In tomorrow’s Advisor, we’ll look at motivating employees during the summer—plus invite you to an information-packed webinar on creating rock star managers.