Growing up in the desert, summertime has always been slow. It’s the time of year when people get out of town, lots of places shorten hours, and everyone understands that the late afternoon can only be spent in air conditioning or the pool—there are no alternatives.

As a small business owner, I have worked hard to be able to embrace the slow! And that happens in two ways:

First: Prep, Prep, Prep

Slow time is the perfect time to get ahead. A great example? This blog. I wrote it on June 15th and scheduled it to post in July. I did the same for several clients in order to build up some space in my schedule.

I also work on organization during slow times. I clean out the box that holds all the things to be filed, I go through and organize all of my notes as well as client to-do lists. It’s a great time, too, to address organization with my team. One needed a better way to keep track of a client’s topics and notes that she sends via email, so we created a Google Sheet that houses all of the topics, links, even the title of the email that the information is in so that it’s easier to find (I desperately need Gmail to create a way to retitle emails that you save!). Another team member wanted to work out content calendars for a few clients so that she could build a buffer too. After a good brainstorming, we had blog topics for the next 4 months.

Second: Rest

In addition to building a buffer in my schedule, working way ahead allows me a lot of time to rest and enjoy this slow time. Getting to spend time with our kids when they’re not weighed down with homework and sports and social and reading and service hours is a treat, and I aim to enjoy every minute of it. I have a list of books I plan to read and to finally get to flip through the stack of Phoenix Home and Garden and Magnolia Journals too. Coming back from summer feeling rested is the key to a great Q3 and Q4 for me and my clients too!

Let’s Nail Q3 + Q4 Together

If you’re thinking that it’s too late in the year for business goals, you’re wrong. Let’s talk about what you have in mind and how my team and I can make it happen. My team and I can help with your website content, blogging, newsletters, social media creation and management, and more. Shoot me an email, and let’s set up a time to chat.