Since October, I’ve been asking sources for the magazine, ‘What is your key to get 2024 off on the right foot?’ This is a magazine for businesspeople and, internally, we thought this could make for a compelling cover story and get our own year off on the right foot.
Here at my fingertips, I have about 50 different sources telling me what they saw as the key to starting off 2024 strong. The answers were quite diverse. As you can imagine, many were about overcoming labor difficulties. A lot of landscape and lawn care business owners told me they need to better organize their systems to get the job done each day. Improving marketing efforts and educating homeowners came up more often than I expected.
My story on starting 2024 off right takes some twists and turns but includes a diverse cast of sources speaking on a variety of topics. Hopefully, some of the advice in that story can help you as we all get ready for what is sure to be a productive, busy, and, at times, challenging year.
I’ll play along with our own issue theme and tell you a few things I want to do here at Landscape Management to help us continue our upward trajectory as the premier publication covering the industry.
Participate on LinkedIn more. Whenever I need to take a mental break from work, my go-to social media is X, formerly known as Twitter. In recent months I feel like that platform has become more random with less content that I find useful. Meanwhile, when I visit LinkedIn, I see more thoughtful content. I learn about the people in my network and the good work they’re doing. Maybe this is comparable to just growing out of Saturday morning cartoons in favor of the news, but I hope you see me on LinkedIn more in 2024, and I hope to see you and your noteworthy business stories there too.
Make more meaningful connections. I meet a lot of people each year, particularly during trade shows and industry events. But I’m hopeful to make more meaningful connections in 2024. There is strength in numbers, but a stack of business cards means very little if that stack doesn’t result in sources I can trust and rely on. I’ll do this by slowing down, listening (hopefully over a meal or a drink) and less running from place to place, with a fear of missing out. Be present, Seth.
Speak at industry events. I’ve raised my hand a couple of times and soon I think I’ll be able to take the stage at a few of our industry events for longer than 30 seconds. What will I speak about? Well, you’ll have to be there to find out.
Stop to take the photo. One thing I’ve learned about my new iPhone 13 is that what it lacks in cell service (my signal is lousy out here in the country) it makes up for with the camera. In fact, my iPhone 13 might be more camera than phone. But it takes amazing photos and videos that reproduce beautifully in the magazine and on our YouTube channel. Now I just need to remind myself that, while I’m slowing down at these industry events to make more meaningful connections, I’ll need to pull out the iPhone 13 to commemorate the moment with a couple of good pictures.
See more live music. OK, this one doesn’t fit in as a goal for the magazine, but as a goal for me personally. Rarely do I regret spending money on seeing a band I enjoy. I also love traveling to a different city to see a great show, as it adds to the experience when I’m in unfamiliar territory and at a venue I’ve never visited before.
But maybe I can still make that one about the magazine. Who knows? Maybe some LM readers and I can find an excuse to see a show at the new Las Vegas Sphere. The Grow Group, McFarlin Stanford, Envisor Consulting, Jeffrey Scott … I think someone needs to incorporate this idea into a peer group meeting agenda.
Whatever steps you’re taking, let’s make 2024 a year for the record books. I’ll see you out in the field soon.
