Are You Making The Most Of EOFY?
Here Are Five
Opportunities You
Might Be Missing
Emma Bowdler
I’m a cheerleader for women and an accountant bursting with personality.
Year after year, we see business owners ‘set and forget’ their strategic plans in January, and by the end of the financial year (EOFY) – they are a tiny speck in the rear vision mirror.
Then, when June 30 actually does roll around, the airwaves and headlines are dominated by tax tips and nifty tricks encouraging you to ‘forward pay this’ and ‘defer that,’ all in pursuit of strategic and totally legal ways to reduce your liabilities and maximise returns.
Now, don’t get us wrong – we love a tax tip. In fact, we love them so much that we dedicated a whole blog to Ways to Fall in Love With Tax Time; designed a bangin’ free Tax Time Checklist downloadable; and created a jam-packed Masterclass on making Tax Time, Relax Time.
These resources are all designed to help you avoid the last-minute rush and put yourself in the driver’s seat of your business at this time of year.
But one thing that we rarely see is business owners using EOFY to do valuable business things other than cramming in as many tax deductions as possible.
What We Know To Be True About Running A Business
After many years in business, one thing we know to be true is how critical it is to grab regular opportunities to take stock of how your business is tracking. In fact, it’s a hefty part of being a successful and strategic boss.
Sustainability, profitability and longevity in business are built off the back of your capacity to zoom out and see the bigger picture, then zoom in to take action on things that really move the dial.
On that note, here are five opportunities you might be missing to make the most of EOFY as a time to reflect on and plan for business superstardom.
1. Review What Has And Hasn’t Worked This Year
One benefit about doing business in Australia is that EOFY coincides with the mid-way point of the year. Not only that – but we are smack bang in the middle of the freeze-your-bits-off winter months, which are perfect for slowing down (and drinking copious amounts of hot chocolate, of course).
At this time of year, our metabolism slows (don’t we know it), our energy levels wind down and we are *supposed* to rest and restore our minds, bodies and souls. The same should apply to our businesses.
Take this time to review and make a list of:
- What has worked really well for you this financial year?
- What hasn’t worked so well?
- What did you learn about doing business?
- What did you learn about yourself?
- What didn’t you achieve this year that you would have liked to?
- What do you want to sit here next FY having accomplished?
Whether you book in your EOFY stocktake for the last week of June or the first week of July, it’s important to remember that business planning is not just for January.
2. Audit Your Services And Reevaluate Your Pricing Strategy
The process of weighing up the value – both in a monetary and more esoteric sense – of your products and services on a regular basis is key to the ongoing profitability of your business. And what better time to review (and likely increase) your prices and take another look at your pricing strategy than EOFY?
The reality is that the cost of business has gone up over the last two years and with significant inflation in Australia, most of us have no choice but to pass those costs on to consumers or clients.
Many a business owner has torn their hair out over pricing, so if this is you – you are certainly not alone. Use EOFY to work through each of these questions one by one, and if you need a little help – reach out to us or do a little research to benchmark or compare your rates across the industry.
Some of the pertinent questions to ask of your services and pricing at EOFY are:
- Can I quickly articulate my pricing strategy? (If not, read this first)
- How much revenue did I generate this year?
- How much profit does that equate to?
- Which products or services were the most profitable?
- Which product/service brings in 80% of my income?
- Do I know my conversion rate, retention rate and average sale value?
- Has the market shifted or changed? Are people expecting to pay more/less for these services, or looking for added value?
- Have I had anyone say no to my prices this year?
- Have I had anyone say yes quicker than I could say ‘would you like fries with that?’
- Have I raised my prices this year already? Why/why not?
- How can I communicate the added value (aka more experience) that comes with upping my prices?
3. Get A Shovel And Go Goal-Digging
If you didn’t set any goals for your business this financial year, then it’s going to be bloody hard to measure how successful you were. After all, you can’t manage what you don’t measure.
So, before we go any further – if you don’t have any clearly articulated and specific business goals, then set some for the upcoming year covering everything from a brand awareness, revenue, profit margin, marketing, and even happiness and wellbeing perspective.
If, however, you did happen to set some goals for the year (either financial or calendar), then it’s time to check in and see how you’re tracking. That’s right – pick up those shovels, it’s time to go goal-digging…
- What were my three main business goals this year?
- Do I know exactly what success looks like for these goals?
- How did I go? Smash them? Almost get there? Nowhere close?
- What did I learn about how realistic and useful these goals were?
- Do I need to shift or revise them for the year or months ahead?
- Have I set a mix of standard goals and stretch goals?
- How will I feel when I have achieved these goals? How will I celebrate?
And if you need a little extra accountability or ‘zhuzhing’ for your goals, write them down and share them with us: [email protected] – we love nothing more than to cheer women in business on! And you definitely get bonus points for specific and measurable financial goals 😉.
4. Gather Feedback That Takes You Forward
We can change the future but we can’t change the past. That’s why we love the concept of ‘feedforward’ coined by business educator and coach Marshall Goldsmith.
As opposed to the judgy, generalised and often unhelpful feedback we often get that focuses on the past, ‘feedforward’ focuses on soliciting specific and solution-focused insights that give us the momentum to move forward.
“Feedback: it focuses on a past, on what has already occurred—not on the infinite variety of opportunities that can happen in the future. As such, feedback can be limited and static, as opposed to expansive and dynamic.”
– Marshall Goldsmith
EOFY can be the perfect time to request feedforward from your colleagues, customers, business mentors or anyone you feel can help you and your business truly improve and get better.
Soliciting feedforward involves picking a specific behaviour or practice that you want to improve, say: ‘be a better listener’ or ‘get better at time management.’ Then, usually in a one-on-one setting, articulate to your colleague or customer what you would like to get better at and ask them:
What are two things I can do in the future to be a better listener / time manager / boss lady / project manager?
The best part about feedforward is that it is supposed to focus on the performance, not the person. Feedforward is not meant to involve a personal critique because it is discussing something that has not yet happened!
This is particularly good news for those of us who often take feedback really personally (we feel you!). because as Goldsmith says: “almost all feedback is taken personally, no matter how it is delivered, because successful people’s sense of identity is highly connected with their work”.
And remember: all you need to do to respond to feedforward is simply say “thank you.” There’s no judgement or arguing with the suggestions. Just say ‘thank you’ and move forward.
5. Reaffirm Your Non-Negotiables
In business, as in life, we all have non-negotiables. They are the ‘no-gos’, the ‘sacred cows’, and the ‘nuh-uh no way, not gonna happens’ that we simply cannot cop, either for our clients or for ourselves.
Some common examples of non-negotiables we see in business are:
- Not working weekends or turning notifications off after a certain time
- Never giving a client or customer our mobile or home address
- Profit-first, always, and paying yourself a salary from day one
- Only working with other women-led or purpose-driven businesses
- Using only local or ethical suppliers
- A daily gratitude or meditation practice; boxing or exercise class
According to Carole Bozkurt, when we are designing our business non-negotiables, it helps to be crystal clear on the difference between the ‘nice to haves’ and the absolute deal breakers. She suggests writing down a list and asking yourself whether you could ever see yourself breaking your own rules.
- How would you feel if you had to break them?
- What would be the consequences?
- Is someone depending on you and if you let them down what would it mean for them (and for you)?
Next, your non-negotiables need to be communicated out loud so that others know what is expected of them and they know where the boundaries are. Only then can you see if or when one of your non-negotiables has tried to be negotiated.
And finally, you must keep your list of non-negotiables current and review often. That’s where EOFY comes in!
The end of the financial year is the perfect time to reaffirm your business (and life!) non-negotiables, interrogate whether or not they still apply, how you’ll enforce them, and whether or not you need to reiterate or communicate them more broadly.
We’ve even had clients who create ‘this is how to work with me’ manuals, which is a pretty next level brilliant way of sharing your non-negotiables with others and keeping yourself accountable.
What are your business non-negotiables? We’d love to know. Share in the Kick Arse Women Doing Business Facebook Group!
Making The Most Of EOFY For Your Business And Growth
June 30 or EOFY as the chilly halfway point between Happy New Year sparklers and New Year’s Eve sips is truly the perfect time to dive deep into reflection mode. With a stronger idea of what is and isn’t working so well for your business, and taking the time to design a plan to take action – you might just be able to make the next financial year your best one yet.
If you’d like some extra support and cheerleading to get your ducks in a row for tax time and EOFY, book an obligation-free session with our Head Bean Counter and Founder Emma Bowdler, or download our free Tax Time Checklist.
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