Get All Access for $5/mo

It's Time for Your Small Business Half-Year Checkup

By Carol Tice Edited by Dan Bova

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Where does the time go? Half of 2010 has bitten the dust. Time to take a look at your business goals and review your progress.

Have you achieved half of your smaller goals? Are you halfway to achieving your big goals? If not, maybe it's time to regroup and revise your business plan to get real for what can still be done in '10.

Setting annual goals seems so much sexier, and there always seems to be oodles of time in which to get things done with the whole year stretched out in front of you, doesn't there? Then suddenly, June is here.

Often, summer is about the time business owners admit defeat and sort of give up on any goals that seem too far out of reach. It seems like it's already too late to get them done this year. They throw that business plan in the back of the drawer and make a date to look at it in December, when they can set big, annual 2011 goals.

But six months is still a nice chunk of time. Sure, you may have to whittle down the priority list. But there's still time to take a few of the steps you wanted to take to move your business to the next level. Maybe find that partnership, get that new ad campaign off the ground, debut that new product.

How's your half-year checkup going? Leave us a note and let us know if you're on track, or maybe setting a new course for the rest of the year.

Carol Tice

Owner of Make a Living Writing

Carol Tice, a freelance writer, is chief executive of TiceWrites Inc. in Bainbridge Island, Wash. She blogs about freelance writing at Make a Living Writing. Email her at carol@caroltice.com.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Editor's Pick

Fundraising

Working Remote? These Are the Biggest Dos and Don'ts of Video Conferencing

As more and more businesses go remote, these are ways to be more effective and efficient on conference calls.

Growing a Business

The Best Way to Run a Business Meeting

All too often, meetings run longer than they should and fail to keep attendees engaged. Here's how to run a meeting the right way.

Business Ideas

There's a New Wave in Online Shopping — And These Strategies Are Fueling All The Success

Here's why niche marketplaces are becoming a new trend and growing rapidly, gaining 67% of consumers' trust.

Growing a Business

He Left the Corporate World to Pursue His Passion for the Outdoors. 25 Years Later, His Business Is Thriving Thanks to These 4 Principles.

Cliff Bressler shares how he started Nature's Friends Landscaping — and continues to thrive today — on a recent episode of 'Behind the Review.'

Growing a Business

5 Strategies for Building a Business Dream Team in an Early-Stage Startup

Both founders and candidates navigate a journey filled with risks and rewards. How can these paths align? Discover practical tips to build a strong team from day one.