Skip to main content

A New Year Means a New Start: Resolutions for Business Owners

Every year, millions of people make the same promises as the ball drops. The most common ones are losing weight, saving money, learning more, taking more trips and managing stress better. All of these resolutions have a common theme – the desire to have a healthier, more prosperous year.

People’s lifestyles aren’t the only parts of their lives they want to change though. Most people have similar resolutions for their professional lives. It’s the perfect time for people to improve the health of their business!

If you’re interested in doing this for your business, a great place to start is with your business insurance plan. With this in mind, here are the top five resolutions for a healthy new business year.

1. Review Your Coverage

The best thing you can do is review your business insurance coverage. Once a year, schedule a business insurance audit. Use the information on the audit to make decisions about your coverage for the upcoming year. You may find through use of a policy review that you’re carrying more coverage than needed or not enough. Just like getting on the scales New Year’s Day, conducting an audit gives you a baseline to achieve the next two resolutions.

2. Shed the Liability

If your business insurance coverage is out of alignment, you could be dragging around extra policy coverage that’s no longer needed. You may also be toting around something far more impactful: potential liability. Taking a look at your coverage in the New Year will ensure you have the least exposure possible while conducting business through the year.

3. Maximize Your Premium Investment

As you look at your insurance program make sure you are getting the maximum value from your premium investment.  You may find some areas where you spend unnecessarily for fixed, low limit property coverage when there’s a significant Cyber, Employment Practices, or other Liability concern that could cost your business significantly.  Sometimes reallocating your premium dollars is a solution worth looking at.

4. Go to School

Educate yourself on changes in the law that could affect your business insurance coverage. Many changes over the year may mean you need to amend your business insurance coverage.

There are a few simple ways to educate yourself on the important changes happening in the law.

  • Read the publications from trusted associations or professional sources that review insurance issues.  This will keep you up to date on changes as they happen.
  • Reach out to your insurance agent periodically to check in.  Make sure your insurance agent understands how your business model is evolving over time.  New strategies can often create new liabilities which may require new coverage – make sure you keep your agent up-to-speed on new developments in your business.

5. Manage Stress

If you can achieve the previous four resolutions for your business, this one virtually takes care of itself. Putting in the work on your business insurance plans at the beginning of the year will set the stage for a successful year.  Nothing controls stress like peace of mind. Knowing your business is well protected because you took the time to get your insurance in order will allow you to focus on other initiatives.

Just like the New Year’s resolutions made by millions of people each January, the only effective resolutions are the ones in which you follow through. The health of your business relies upon your diligent efforts, including effective protection through business insurance. If you’re able to make and keep your business resolutions, you will be more likely to have success and financial health every day of 2015. Happy New Year!

All insurance policies are different. Be sure to review your insurance policy for specific information about coverages available to you. Nothing in this post is meant to suggest a guarantee of coverage.