5 Things All Business Owners Should Put on Their Jan 1 To-Do List

The dreaded holiday gray space- it’s that time at the end of the year when all the holidays mesh together and you’re not sure what day of the week it is, but you’ve been in pajama pants for 36 hours and you have no desire to think about all the things waiting in your inbox come the first day back at work.

Yeah, that’s not the time to start planning.

So allow me to hand over your January 1, 2023 to-do list NOW, so that you don’t even have to think about prepping when your brain is foggy from the holiday hullabaloo and you’re enjoying a few extra days of rest.

1. Set an Unavailable Notice for Monday

The best part about January 1st being on a Sunday is that it gives us a little more wiggle room before we head right into the first week of the year! So do yourself a favor and set an unavailable notice on your calendar for Monday.

This means you’re not accepting meetings, you’re on limited Voxer/Slack availability, and you’re instead putting all of your Monday focus into the bigger tasks on your plate that require head-down focus.

Telling your team or clients you’re unavailable may feel like an unnecessary step, but trust me when I say that it’s crucial to set aside dedicated CEO time at the top of the year!

2. Check in with Your Big Dates- Launch Events, Open Carts, Etc

On January 1st, take a solid bit of time (30 minutes, an hour, whatever you need) to recheck your entire Q1 calendar. Take it day by day to ensure you have every big event accounted for, as well as the ramp up activity that you’ll be doing for those larger happenings.

Nothing feels worse than realizing a sub-task was lost in the shuffle, so go through with care to make sure you’ve outlined every ramp-up event, open cart date, fast action bonus drop, and more during your Q1.

3. Scrub Your Inbox ASAP & Start a Re-File

You’ll thank me later when your inbox SPARKLES even through a busy launch period. Take a quick 20 minutes to scan your inbox and unsubscribe from anything that’s creating clutter, then go deeper into your organizational system and prep yourself for an onslaught of messages come launch time.

Create separate folders in your email for: client work (complete/incomplete), contractor communications, etc. all in the name of keeping your mind as clear as possible when working up to a busy launch.

4. Review Monetary Ins & Outs

You can call this a goal-setting time, or you can make this more casual by focusing on the numbers that are already on the books! Essentially what we want to do is take time to review where money is already budgeted and allocated for a specific use, and cross-compare with our projected income.

This is a great time to do a pulse check, as your major planning and goal setting was likely to complete in the prior quarter. If you do find discrepancies or feel unhappy with current budgets, this is your opportunity to address it before getting deep into Q1.

5. Schedule a Time to Connect with a Trusted Person

Look at things above a productivity and organization level- how are you taking care of YOU this season? If you’re like many online entrepreneurs who are deep into launch planning, you may find that hectic seasons disconnect you from yourself.

As you prepare to conquer your biggest goals, make sure that you’re fostering a supportive network of people who can be there to talk to (or commiserate with) when things feel difficult. So during your January 1 day of prep work, reach out to at least one person who you’d like to foster a relationship with.

Say hello, check in on them, and set a time for a 10-minute virtual catch-up or in-person coffee sesh if you’re in the same city!

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