The beginning of a new year brings thoughts of improvement for many in their personal lives. Have you taken time to do the same for your business? It is never too late to evaluate your business and set goals for the future. 

To start, do a financial review. Important and useful documents to use for the assessment are your profit and loss statement, cash flow statement, and balance sheet. These documents will give you an overall view of where your business finances stand. With this information, you can track trends in your profits and spending to use that information for planning purposes. If there are months that aren’t as profitable, make a plan to offset this by ramping up marketing or having a sale. Digging deep into the numbers and evaluating the reasons behind the trends can set your business up for success in the coming months and year.

Now that you know where your business finances stand, it’s important to set goals for the business. They can be big or small. When thinking about goals, keep in mind the business mission and core values and ensure your goals align with both. Goal setting will also help you determine who you need to reach out to and rely on for the coming year. Do you want to expand your brick and mortar? You may need a realtor and loan officer. Do you want to improve your online presence? You may need a digital marketing firm. With a clear view of your finances in hand, this will make setting attainable goals easier. 

And finally, while preparing your business for 2024, don’t forget to take time to celebrate the successes and learn from the challenges. You and your business can learn from both and create opportunities for improvement. There’s never a better time than the present to evaluate your business and set goals. I’d love to hear about how your business year went and be your financial partner in 2024!

Brad Roling is the Columbia Market President for Mid America Bank. Brad has more than 10 years of banking experience that he uses to help businesses in and around Columbia thrive. When he is not helping your business with its financial needs, Brad is serving the community in a variety of capacities. He is proud to serve on the Ronald McDonald House Mid-Missouri Board of Directors as Treasurer, the Columbia Chamber Foundation Board, and Beta Theta Pi Advisory Board. Brad is a proud Mizzou grad and loves cheering on the Tigers!

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