Hustle & Heart: 3 Ways to Refocus Your Efforts to Grow Your Brand

BY TARYN JEREZ

“If you want to fly, give up everything that drags you down.”

When you read that quote, what are some of the things that immediately flood your mind? Can you feel the weight on your shoulders suddenly lessen as you imagine those things being removed from your life? The truth is, the longer we’re in business, the more we think we have to be doing to be successful. In reality, keeping your to-do list tight to your chest and remembering to focus on only the things that are aligned with where you want your brand to be is really an art form – especially as the world around us whispers “more” from every corner. 

You can set goals all day, but if the projects you take on and the time you spend working don’t point directly back to those goals, are you really growing at the rate you could be? Take time to reflect on how you’ve spent the last quarter. I bet you will find a few things here and there that haven’t exactly led you to where you want to be and that’s ok. Imagine now what the next quarter can look like as you refocus your efforts to be as effective as possible in getting your brand to that next level. 

#1 Say No to the Things That Aren’t Serving You

It’s all about being more intentional in every sense of the word. We need to stop putting things on our plates that are taking space away from the things that really need to be there. Take a deep breath and clear it off, make the room and don’t be tempted to add anything that isn’t getting you closer to your goals and what you really want. Sometimes that means being a little ruthless and saying the word “no” more often than you may want to. If a project sounds fun but doesn’t directly impact your end game, it has to go. The time you’re spending on social media, industry education, or other content you’re consuming may need to be limited. Don’t forget to embrace the saying “out with the old, in with the new” when it comes to your product or services, and there may be some things that need to be removed from your brand goals now as well. 

#2 Challenge Yourself to Dig Deeper  

When was the last time your goals scared you? Think about what’s on your list right now that you want to achieve and ask yourself, if failure wasn’t an option, would your goals be different? If the answer is yes, try to reevaluate. Sometimes that same world that whispers “more” at us can also yell “less” when we imagine what’s possible. There is a real fear in setting the bar too high that others might laugh if they saw our true dreams. Give yourself permission to dig deeper and push towards the growth that you really want as a brand! The same goes for letting go of old goals that may not serve you anymore and creating new ones that do. Imagine what life would look like once you achieved them, the impact you could make on your customers, the financial outcomes as a business, what success would feel like, and how that would influence your next move. 

#3 Make Baby Steps Your New Best Friend

If you find yourself feeling unfocused in your business, just going from thing to thing, not seeing a clear path to the goals you once set, baby steps are the way to go. Look at each of your big goals and one at a time, create the path that leads to their achievement. (I’m not talking about visualization for the sake of visualizing here, but actually doing the concrete work to find those steps.) You have to know what you need to do to accomplish each of your goals. What are the kinds of things you need support on? Add that to the list. What kind of timeline makes sense? Include those dates. What are the little things you can’t forget that may not seem important at first? Include each of these. Baby steps are how you get to that final destination you’ve been working towards on the journey to the brand you really want. You can’t expect to do it all in one fell swoop! 

If you consider yourself a creative, chances are that you often allow yourself to get distracted by the next exciting creative idea. (Don’t worry, we all do it!) Have a plan to check in with yourself every few weeks to review what you’re working on and make sure it is aligned with the progress you’re working towards. Reevaluate your goals as often as you’d like, remembering that just as the year is evolving, so are you and your brand’s needs!

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