Where Do You Want Your Business to Be 12 Months From Now?

I'm writing this article in mid-September. The summer holidays have been over for a couple of weeks, and many freelancers are "just getting back into the swing of things."

You might think this seems a bit early to start talking about 2027, but I think it's the perfect time because I see freelancers fall into the same trap every year.

They put too much pressure on January.

"New year, new me"

"This year I'm really going to focus on getting my business in shape"

"I'm going to have a big push on marketing this year"

And so on.

But then there's the "getting back into the swing of things after Christmas" period, and you don't have time to work on your goals just yet.

Before you know it, it's Easter, so you might as well get all the bank holidays out of the way. After that, you can really crack on with your big plans.

But suddenly, summer arrives, and you've made barely any progress with your goal. It's ok because there's still time once summer holidays are out of the way.

And that brings us to this part of the year.

Guess what happens? You take a bit of time getting back into a proper routine after the summer, then next thing you know, we're heading into November. And, well, there's no point starting anything major this close to Christmas, is there? So you promise yourself you'll definitely make time for business development/marketing/writing your book/launching that new idea in January.

Does that sound familiar?

Do you keep planning to make changes but never actually getting around to it?

It's fine if you're perfectly happy with your business.

But if you're not happy, you're going to keep getting stuck in the same cycle. And those big dreams you have for your business will keep getting pushed back until:

"after Christmas"

"after we've got these bank holidays out of the way"

"once I get back from my holiday"

"once the kids are back at school"

"after I get through this busy period"

So now you have a choice:

You can write off the rest of this year and make a promise to yourself that 2027 will be different.

Or you can take action to make sure 2027 is different.

And if you're opting for the second one, I can help because I've opened registration for my 12-week challenge.

This starts on 9th October - exactly 12 weeks before 1st January.

Each week, you'll get an email from me and a short task to complete. Every task is designed to help you figure out what you want, how to get there and how to increase your chances of success.

And completing these simple tasks means that rather than starting 2027 with a big goal and no idea how to achieve it, you'll start the new year with:

• a clear idea of what you want from your business (and what you don't)
• a plan for making it happen
• the groundwork already in place

Plus, you can email me at any time during the challenge if you have any questions or need a little nudge in the right direction

Why "Build a Business that Makes You Happy"?

Back in around 2018/2019, I was stuck in a rut with my business, and it started to make me miserable. But I didn't know exactly what was wrong, so I didn't really know how to fix it.

Eventually, I got some help. I worked with a mentor for a few months, and this got me thinking more about what I wanted from my business. I raised my prices and worked on my marketing messages.

A year later, I got a different mentor, and he really helped me get my business where I wanted it.

And after a few months, I realised the biggest change was how much happier I was. I was earning more and working less. I had a great work-life balance, and I loved the work I was doing.

That inspired the title of my book, The Freelance Fairytale: How to Create Your Happy Ever After. And it's the reason I focus on helping my clients build a business that makes them happy, not a business that other people might view as successful.

I believe your happiness is more important than other people's ideas about what your business should look like. And what makes you happy won't necessarily be the same as what makes someone else happy.

For me, happiness is earning a decent income doing work I love for people I like, so I have the time and money to do all the things I enjoy.

That's it. And I'm fortunate that I am in that position.

Now I help other people achieve their version of happiness, and my 12-week challenge is the starting point.

But I don't run it all year round. If you want in, you need to register before 9th October. Otherwise, you'll need to wait until next year.

So what's it going to be? Are you going to write this year off and wait until next year to do anything significant with your business? Or are you going to pop your email address below, complete 12 simple tasks and start 2027 with a goal and a plan?