Businesses must take objective view on performance this year

Vincent Page, of Antiques on High, celebrates one year in business. Picture: Antiques on High (Image: Archant)

Have we seen the best of trade for the year or is it yet to come? As fuel prices start to fall, we may be watching an encouraging trend in encouraging visitors to venture a bit further than their local shops.

If we are to look at business and how it has performed this year, we must take an objective view as it has not been easy. In some circles success can be judged by those who have simply survived never mind those who have progressed or expanded.

We must remain focused on our progress and face the challenges that lay ahead with as much gusto as we did at the height of the summer which will no doubt soon be a distant memory as other factors like ridiculous energy prices quickly take priority.

Idle High Street gossip is exactly that and if you have time for it and pay any attention to it then you may be taking your eye off of the ball when it comes to your own business, let’s face it, we all like to think we know what we are doing when it comes to our own business and we know just a little bit more than everyone else.

Perhaps we do, but unless that extra knowledge can be put to good use then it becomes a little pointless and non-effective, which becomes the subject of slap stick High Street gossip on the “He said, She said merry-go-round” do we really have time for all that?

Worrying about others will not help your own business flourish, there are plenty of organizations around to do that for you and as fuel prices appear to be coming down, we have the opportunity to have a busier autumn than we may have first expected and remaining focused on your business may be of far more benefit than first envisaged.