Speaker 1: 0:26

Welcome back to Plan Like a Boss. Today, we're talking about something that will completely change the way you approach your business how to plan like a CEO, even if you're a team of one, because, let's be honest, most solopreneurs well, we are not lacking in hustle, but what we're lacking in is a true strategy. So if you've been feeling like you're doing all the things but still not making the kind of progress you want, this episode, my friend, is for you. When you're a solopreneur, it's easy to spend all your time inside the day-to-day Client work emails, invoicing. You've got Instagram posts. You need to fix the broken links on your website, respond to all the dms, make sure you're uploading reels, editing your website at 11 pm for no good reason because, let's face it, we've probably all done that. What I'm saying is you get stuck in the doing, but running a business isn't just about executing tasks. It's about leading your business, and that's where the CEO mindset comes in. Even if you're not managing a team yet, even if it's just you in your leggings, with your laptop and a messy bun, you are still the CEO of your business, and that means you need time and space to think strategically, to set direction in your business to evaluate what's working and what's not, and then to decide what's going to come next, because I've got news for you no one is going to swoop in and do it for you. So let's get into what that actually looks like in practice.

Speaker 1: 2:22

When I say plan like a CEO, I mean, first of all, creating intentional time to look ahead, not just right now, but next week, next year, five or 10 years from now. What is your business going to be doing? If you're not looking ahead, you're going to get lost. The second thing you need to do is make decisions based on hard data, not just vibes or what's trending at the moment. Data doesn't lie and that's where you're going to find the real truth and how your business is performing, and it's going to help you make the decisions you need to make. The third thing you need to do is focus on impact, not just busyness. You see, we get so caught up in being busy. We feel like as long as we're busy, we're making forward progress, but so many times we just get stuck on a treadmill. Being busy and making an impact that moves you forward are two very different things. And then the fourth thing you need to do to plan like a CEO is treat your future self like your most important team member, because, at the end of the day, you wouldn't give your best employee one giant mountain of tasks, day after day after day, until she gets burned out and quit. So why are you doing that to yourself Now if you're over there thinking, whoa, I am feeling so seen right now?

Speaker 1: 3:50

Here's the thing. Most solopreneurs are stuck in this reactive mode. It's not just you. You wake up, you check your phone, you answer a few emails and suddenly it's 3 pm and you're like what even happened today? I don't even know what I accomplished. Planning like a CEO puts you back in the driver's seat and running your own business instead of your business running you.

Speaker 1: 4:17

So today I want to give you three practical ways to shift into CEO mode, starting this week, and the first thing I want you to do is schedule a weekly CEO hour. First thing I want you to do is schedule a weekly CEO hour. This is a non-negotiable time where you step out of the weeds and work on your business, not in your business. During this hour, you can look at your KPIs, and if you don't know what a KPI is, it stands for Key Performance Indicator, and I want you to know you're not alone. The very first time this is an embarrassing story. The very first time I started working with a coach, she asked about my KPIs and I just smiled and nodded and then, as soon as I got off the call, I got her on Google and Googled it to find out what a KPI actually was. So I don't want you to be in that position that I was in Key performance indicators and this is basically the report card for your business what is going well and what is not.

Speaker 1: 5:16

I want you to review your revenue. How much money are you making? Are you actually making money or are you in the red? Look at your content performance Now. When I say your content performance Now, when I say your content performance, I don't mean your Instagram likes, I mean your leads, because all the likes in the world are just going to make you popular. They're not going to make you profitable. So look at the leads. How many leads do you have coming in from your Instagram content? That is the content you want to be recreating, because the content that gets lots of likes but not lots of leads is just a waste of your time.

Speaker 1: 6:59

I want you to check your progress towards your quarterly goals during the CEO hour. And if you're not setting goals quarterly, you are missing out. Annual goals are great, but quarterly planning is how you break down those annual goals and gain momentum. And then I want you to ask yourself what's working, what's draining me and what needs to change. Don't be afraid to pivot if something is not working in your business. And then, finally, the CEO hour that you have scheduled. I want you to protect this time like it's a client meeting, because it is just as important as a client meeting, if not more important.

Speaker 1: 7:47

Okay, so the second thing that I want you to do I want you to set a single, clear priority each and every week, because CEO energy is focused energy. Pick one thing that truly moves the needle and build your week around it. There's this book I love called the One Thing by Gary Keller. I will link it in the show notes and in this book he talks about most of the things we do every day. Don't give us forward momentum, but usually it's just one thing. So think about the one thing that you can do to move the needle in your business and tackle that one thing this week. So what is your one thing. Is it prepping your next launch? Is it outlining your next offer? Is it onboarding a new client with intention? Because, here is the honest truth, not everything on your to-do list deserves to be urgent. So what is the one thing you're going to do for forward momentum? And then the third thing I want you to do is give yourself space to think.

Speaker 1: 8:59

Planning like a CEO isn't just about spreadsheets and systems. It's also about vision. So I want you to take a walk or pull out a notebook, or maybe just sit with your thoughts for 15 to 20 minutes, and during this time, I want you to ask yourself where is my business headed? Is it moving in the same direction it was when I started, or has it made a pivot? Is what I'm doing right now still aligned with what I actually want, and what would success look like for me six months from now? I want you to really think about those things, and some of them may surprise you. Maybe the direction your business is moving in is where it originally started, but that's not what you want anymore. Things change, and that's okay. That is how organic growth happens.

Speaker 1: 9:54

So grab a notebook and journal on these questions, or maybe make a few voice notes while you spend some time in nature, whatever gets you into the zone. This is one of the best things you can do for yourself. Most people never slow down long enough to even ask those questions, but that is what CEOs do every single week. Now I know what you might be thinking I don't have time for a CEO hour, I'm barely keeping up. But here's the hard truth. Now I'm 47, soon to be 48, so I'm going to mom you just a little bit right now.

Speaker 1: 10:33

If you don't make time to plan like a CEO now, you will always feel like you're behind. We don't accidentally build sustainable businesses. We do it by making space to lead, to decide exactly what will move us forward, to focus on the exact things that will make that movement happen and get the momentum swinging in your direction. And that starts with building a rhythm where planning is the business. Planning like a CEO is not just for big companies, it's for you. It starts with small but powerful habits, that weekly CEO hour, one clear priority, and that space and time to really think. When you make these shifts, you stop reacting and instead start leading.

Speaker 1: 11:27

Now, if this episode sparked something for you, I want you to do two things for me, number one block off one hour on your calendar right now, right this minute. Call it your CEO hour. Give it a name and protect it like it matters, because it does. My CEO hour is every Friday at 2 pm. And then the second thing I want you to do is I want you to take a screenshot of this episode and share it on Instagram and tag me at drtanyalawson. At drtanyalawson. Let me know your biggest takeaway from the episode and don't forget to hit subscribe so you don't miss next week's episode where I'm going to walk you through my full weekly planning ritual, from messy to mapped out. You do not want to miss this. Thank you for being here. And remember, just because you're building solo doesn't mean you have to figure it all out alone. Until next time.