1 Planning your next steps
This is a good point to pause and work out what you need to do next in your journey to becoming a freelancer. For example, you might want to investigate the small business support in your local area or perhaps you’re ready to register with HMRC as a sole trader. Whatever you decide your next steps are, you will need to set yourself some specific goals.
When you are setting yourself goals, it is important to make sure they are SMART. That means:
S = Specific – is your goal specific and clear?
M = Measurable – how will you measure your success?
A = Achievable – is your goal attainable, do you have the ability to achieve it?
R = Realistic – is your goal realistic in your context? Will it fit with other priorities in your life?
T = Time bound – make sure you give yourself a deadline for achieving your goal.
Depending on what resource you use, you may see different words, e.g. ‘agreed’ instead of ‘achievable’ or ‘relevant’ replacing ‘realistic’. The version of SMART used in this course has been chosen due to its relevance to freelancers building a solo business.
This Goal Setting tool [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)] takes you through the SMART process and helps you to write down and plan your goals.
Tables 1 and 2 show another way of breaking down each goal using two different scenarios.
| Goal | To identify small business support organisations available in my local area and arrange a meeting. |
|---|---|
Current status:
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| Development/training/knowledge needed to reach my goal | I need to identify the right organisations and find out how to make an appointment. |
| Action plan | Research the options:
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| Outcome | There is a Growth Hub in my area, and they can support my specific needs. I have had an initial appointment and enrolled on a subsidised small business start-up course. |
| Evaluation | I’ve learned a lot about the various types of support available to me and I’ve joined a network of other creative freelancers. I feel more supported and confident about my plans. |
| Next step | To attend the start-up course at the beginning of May and register with HMRC as a sole trader straight afterwards. |
| Goal | To find appropriate funding for the event that I’m planning. |
|---|---|
Current status:
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| Development/training/knowledge needed to reach my goal | I need to increase my knowledge of potential funders and learn how best to approach them. |
| Action plan |
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| Outcome | I have met with staff at several venues and made three provisional bookings. I have generated a list of relevant funding organisations and reviewed their application processes. I’ve secured support from the local small business support service to help me with my grant applications. |
| Evaluation | I feel confident that there will be funding available for my event and supported in making applications. |
| Next step | Make two funding applications by April. |
These examples are of relatively short term goals that will move you forward with your immediate plans, but you also need to be thinking about longer term goals, such as what you want your business to achieve. In Week 2, Activity 5 you considered your goals for your business, so you may want to work on those in a bit more detail in this week’s first activity.
Activity 1 Achieving your goals
Now it’s your turn! Use the template below to set your goals and work through your next steps. These could be short or longer-term goals depending on where you are with your thinking and planning. If you have an alternative format you’d prefer to use, please do. You could also use the Goal Setting tool to make sure your goals are SMART.
| 1 | 2 | 3 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goal | |||
Current status: a) Experience b) Knowledge c) Skills |
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| Development/training/knowledge needed to reach my goal | |||
| Action plan | |||
| Outcome | |||
| Evaluation | |||
| Next step (include dates) |
Discussion
If you have identified more than one goal, prioritise your plans. Are they sequential or can you do them all at once? Make sure you don’t take on too much – if you don’t achieve all your goals within the allotted time, this can be a negative experience.
You should now have a set of SMART goals, and an action plan for achieving them. In the next section, you’ll look at the importance of clearly articulating your goals in a business plan.