Conduct Quarterly Planning

Planning your quarter can feel daunting, especially for independent consultants who balance client work and personal business development. However, a structured quarterly planning process can transform your approach, helping you prioritize tasks, manage time efficiently, and achieve your business goals. We’ll explore a straightforward, effective method for quarterly planning, drawing from my experiences and insights as a consultant and fractional professional.

Before planning for the next quarter, take time to reflect on the past three months. This reflection will provide valuable insights and set a strong foundation for your upcoming plans.

What were your goals for the quarter?

Write down your goals for the previous quarter. If you had goals for each month, note those as well.

What went well? Why?

Jot down your impressions in a few sentences. Celebrate your progress.Remember Dan Sullivan's advice: “The way to measure your progress is backward against where you started, not against your ideal.”

What didn't go well? Why?

• Write a few quick impressions. Acknowledge any emotions and feelings such as disappointment, frustration, irritation, anxiety, regret, indifference, or weariness.
• Sit with these emotions for a few moments, then imagine them draining away. Release a big, audible breath, and let it all go.

What three lessons, insights, or moments would you like to remember?

• Identify three key takeaways from the past quarter.
• Reorient Yourself to What’s Most Important

What do you want more of? What do you want less of?

• What would you be crazy to stop doing? What would you be crazy to keep doing?
• Is there anything you’d like to restart?

For each priority, list 4-5 specific, actionable tasks. Vague goals like "get better at marketing" won't suffice. Break these down into granular, time-bound steps like:

1. Select three marketing experts to learn from
2. Choose three resources from each expert
3. Consume resources from expert #1
4. Consume resources from expert #2
5. Implement one new tactic with an existing client

Notice any themes or patterns that emerge from your calibrated direction, and jot them down to absorb and internalize their lessons.

Next, consider key changes or projects to prioritize in the next quarter. Take two minutes to write out some high-level, holistic changes and identify a few more specific, granular projects.Now comes the hard work: pinpoint three concrete priorities for the next quarter.

More than three dilutes focus, decreasing achievability.

Look holistically across your priorities and plans. Make any final tweaks to ensure the utmost specificity, achievability, and alignment with your business objectives.

Key Tips

• Leverage the Pareto Principle: Identify the 20% of activities producing 80% of results and double down.
• Focus on inputs you can control (e.g., marketing activities) over outputs (e.g., new clients).
• Explore delegation and partnerships for activities outside your core strengths and pinpointed priorities.

With this straightforward but thoughtful approach, you'll convert experience into antifragile planning that sticks despite the chaos of the consulting life.

Remember that the journey is the destination. Each quarter, recommit to this cycle of reflection and action for sustained strategic focus.

Planning your quarter can feel daunting, especially for independent consultants who balance client work and personal business development. However, a structured quarterly planning process can transform your approach, helping you prioritize tasks, manage time efficiently, and achieve your business goals. We’ll explore a straightforward, effective method for quarterly planning, drawing from my experiences and insights as a consultant and fractional professional.

Before jumping into a new quarterly plan, hit "pause" to reflect on your current priorities, progress, and any derailments. This recalibration lays the foundation for an insightful, relevant plan.

Review long-term vision and annual plans

• If you have a 3-year or 1-year plan documented, revisit these to reaffirm or adjust your direction based on recent progress and changes.
• Spend five minutes assessing your current progress and identifying what's still relevant or has changed.

Reflect on existing priorities

• Document important priorities across business and personal dimensions like health, relationships, and mental well-being.

Diagnose past derailments

• For unmet goals last quarter, identify root causes like external factors, overcommitment, or shifting priorities.
• Gather insights to prevent future derailments.

Strategic decision-making

• Review your reflections and sort potential priorities into "yes" and "no" buckets.
• Emphasize rejecting good opportunities to laser in on critical priorities.

Simplify your business model

• Evaluate your business for complexities that emerged organically.
• Identify top-performing service offerings, marketing channels, and client types to simplify.