Your First 10 Business Acumen Actions Will Tell You A Lot about Your 2017
Welcome back and Happy New Year! It’s hard to believe how fast the holidays went and here we are 
already up to our eyeballs trying to catch up and get ahead of the things that have piled up over the break. Many of us spent some time over the break reflecting on the year that was and preparing for the year that will be. Some of us may have made a list of “New Year’s Resolutions” that probably include eating better, sleeping more, and bringing more flowers home to our significant others. However, different than these resolutions, I believe that your first 10 business acumen actions will tell you a lot about how your 2017 will turn out. Whether or not you have already made a list, or are waiting to see how the first few weeks back at work will go, you will make decisions and decide to do things that are either proactive or reactive relative to the business. No matter if you are an Executive Leader, a Leader of a Business, a Leader of Leaders, a Leader of People, or an Individual Contributor, the first business actions you take will say a lot about your priorities and set a tone for everyone around you.
Based on some research, interviews, and our own observations, here are 10 of the most important business acumen actions you can take as we start 2017. How does this list compare to yours?
Respond to customers contacting you
If a customer is contacting you the first couple of days back from break, there is an important reason! It says that you are top priority and you need to respond immediately. You may never have this chance to make an impression, follow-up on an opportunity, or react swiftly to a problem like you will today. Don’t put it off for any reason…especially a reason that is related to something internal.
Get in touch with existing customers
Pick up the phone, send an email, or leverage your social media to say hello, let them know you appreciate them and thinking about their needs for 2017 and beyond. If you can present some value (other than your thoughtfulness) then that is a great bonus.
Target new customers
You, your competitors, and your customers all have increased sales targets for growth in 2017. But where is that new revenue going to come from? New customers. How are you going to get new business? What’s your plan? Who are you targeting? Move from plans to actions.
Strategy reconfirmation
It’s a New Year and if one thing we have learned about Business Acumen and Business Leadership is that you can never talk about and confirm your business strategy enough. Take bold and aggressive business actions to share and re-confirm your strategy and value proposition to your customers with your team.
Embrace your goals and objectives
With a New Year come new goals and objectives. You need to take immediate business actions to understand your goals and figure out how you are going to achieve them. At the very least, you need a plan to embrace them and a plan to execute them.
Work on your personal development plan
What are your developmental plans for 2017? What training are you going to take? What books are you going to read? What conversations with your HR business partners are you going to have? You need to take a positive business action on your own development plan ASAP.
Plan to plan
In a world where we are bombarded by constant information, it is easy to get caught up in our inboxes, voice mail, and social media accounts and never plan for anything. Take time to make sure that you are planning to plan; ever 15 minutes a day can help you prepare and get ready for what you need to do.
Throw out stuff
There is no time better than now to throw stuff out. Look around your work area and if you haven’t used it in 5 years or more, throw it out. Also, go through your digital files and clean up your folders and digital work areas. There is nothing like a clean start to keep things moving forward effectively.
Work on your social brand
No matter what kind of role you are in, your social brand is important for your company and for you personally. Take a look at your current brand from an outsider’s perspective and make the adjustments needed to be on top of your social brand game. If you aren’t sure, then find a buddy who you have a good relationship with and understands social media branding to help and advise you.
Feed your curiosity
There are a lot of business actions to take, but there is still one more important action to focus on; feeding your curiosity. With so many distractions in your world it is easy to starve your curiosity. Starving your curiosity will hurt you in the short run and long run as your curiosity is what helps you learn. Take an immediate business action to feed it and develop a plan for keeping it feed and alive. Buy the Wall Street Journal, sign up for Google alerts, or subscribe here for the Advantexe bog.
