Spring Growth

Given that it's spring time I figured that it was a good time to talk about growth. We all know that we're supposed to work hard and that hard work is supposed to produce results (at least in most cases). Recently I heard someone put that idea into one simple sentence. The person said "growth only occurs in a state of discomfort". Everyone knows that we should and need to work hard, but what does that look like? That's why this stuck out to me. Working hard should challenge and push you out of your comfort zone. It should cause a little discomfort. It's like exercise, if you don't push yourself out of your comfort zone then you'll never improve. So as spring takes off, think about your comfort level, what it would take to get out of it, and then get moving.

Planning Time

We went from cassette tape to cd to download and now to streaming. The music industry, as with all other industries, has had to adapt and change. As time goes on, as technology improves and advances, we have to adapt and keep up or get left behind. As, the year comes to an end, be thinking about how you could improve. What technology could be implemented? How could you make your business more efficient, more effective? This will look different for everyone, regardless of whether or not you’re in the same industry.

The following are a few things to remember and to help guide you in your thoughts about planning:

  • Adapting to new technology is becoming increasingly more important. We’re moving faster than ever and new technology gives us the tools to be more efficient and effective at both our daily tasks and big picture strategy.
  • Online tools are amazing and can give us access from anywhere we need it. The downside? With more and more web based apps will inevitably come more cyber attacks. This means that security protocols will become increasingly important.
  • Cloud strategy. I know that we sound like a broken record, but things happen. Every company needs to have a disaster plan and part of that could and probably should be a cloud service. Whether all information is hosted and/or run off of a hosted server or all files (not just the critical ones, space is cheap) are backed up and accessible from off site, every company strategy plan should involve the cloud.

Just remember that even a small step is still a step, so take that step forward as we plan for and get ready to move into a new year.