EMyth Annual Plan 2023
EMyth Annual Plan 2023
Annual Plan
Financial Resilience Edition
2023
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
Put simply, an annual plan is the bridge between the vision you set for your business and the actual work it’ll
take to move your business toward that vision. But often, annual planning is a rote, static exercise that—if it’s
done at all—results in a document that gathers dust in a file cabinet.
You’re about to discover a new kind of annual plan—one that actually serves you and the health, growth and
security of your company. It works because it starts with your passion and gives you the tools to translate that
passion into specific actions. This annual plan will also grow and evolve with your business. It’ll allow you to
adapt to sudden changes such as a loss in a revenue stream or supply issues, helping you learn and improve
your process along the way.
Creating a successful annual plan that boosts the financial resilience of your business relies on two things:
clearly seeing how each business system is tied to financial health and effectively translating each of your goals
in clear projects and tasks. If you can do both these things, you’ll head into 2023 with a solid yet flexible
roadmap for success, whatever comes your way.
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
Worksheet
I M AG I N E W H AT I T W O U L D B E L I K E TO H AV E R E A L F I N A N C I A L
RESILIENCE
Take a moment to imagine what you want to accomplish in the coming year. Answer the following questions:
Do any of your targets not serve the goal of building more financial strength or flexibilty? Note that here
and include why that target feels like a priority for 2023.
How and when will you roll out your plan to your team? Think of how you’ll demonstrate for your team
the connection between each of your annual plan goals and greater financial resiliency.
Keep in mind, this isn’t your final version. You may want to revisit these questions after you’ve
completed the following assessment to make sure your plan is in line with what your business really needs to
tie each of your quarterly goals and projects to the larger goal of financial strength. Don’t be afraid to rework
and revise. This plan will be your guide for the year ahead, and it should accurately reflect your goals and
priorities while also giving you space to be flexible in case you need to pivot.
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
Notes
Here’s where you can capture whatever comes to mind as you consider your goals for 2023
and how they work to both move your company forward and build greater financial flexibility:
What’s the impact you want your business to have on your customers, your family, your life and
all of your business’s stakeholders? This is also a great place to add any assumptions you have,
and contingency ideas in case unseen obstacles block or change your planned goals.
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
A S S E S S T H E C U R R E N T S TAT E O F YO U R B U S I N E S S
One of the most important steps in creating an annual plan that’s anchored in building financial
resilence is to take an honest look at the current state of your business. You can’t achieve your
goals and key targets on top of ineffective or broken systems. Keep this in mind as you answer
the following questions to assess how each of your Seven Essential Systems currently supports
the financial health of your business.
For this exercise, answer each item honestly and objectively so you have a clear and truthful
understanding of where you and your business stand now. This will uncover opportunities for
where to improve your current systems so they more strongly impact financial growth.
LEADERSHIP
On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 1 being least positive, 10 being most positive),
how would you rate your current leadership abilities?
Why did you choose this score? What do you think would make it a 10?
Are you in touch with your values and company vision to ensure you create a business that’s
personally satisfying, financially stable and reflective of your needs and aspirations?
Have you communicated your company’s future direction—along with your standards,
expectations and measures for financial performance—to your employees in a way that
challenges and inspires them to perform?
Have you established the systems and structures that allow employees to be the
most effective they can be?
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
If you answered “no” or “unsure” to any of the questions above, what are some specific
examples of what’s missing from your Leadership System? What additional leadership
goals do you have for 2023?
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
MARKETING
On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 1 being least positive, 10 being most positive),
how would you rate the effectiveness of your company’s brand?
Why did you choose this score? What do you think would make it a 10?
Does your company intentionally attract prospects that fit within your finance model?
Does your current target market meet your projected profit goals?
If you answered “no” or “unsure” to any of the questions above, what are some specific
examples of what’s missing from your Marketing System? What additional marketing
goals do you have for 2023?
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
FINANCE
On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 1 being least positive, 10 being most positive),
how would you rate the financial health of your company?
Why did you choose this score? What do you think would make it a 10?
Of your current financial reports, can you understand what the numbers are telling you
about your business?
Do you know what financial roles you need in your organizational structure? (CFO,
Controller, CPA, etc.)
If you answered “no” or “unsure” to any of the questions above, what are some specific
examples of what’s missing from your Financial System? What additional financial goals
do you have for 2023?
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
MANAGEMENT
On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 1 being least positive, 10 being most positive),
how would you rate your management ability and the effectiveness of the
other managers in your company?
Why did you choose this score? What do you think would make it a 10?
Is the size of your organizational structure aligned with your desired revenue and
profit goals?
Do you and your staff have a systematic strategy for producing predictable
financial results?
Does your management approach bring your employees into the financial conversation
in a way that fully engages them in financial performance?
If you answered “no” or “unsure” to any of the questions above, what are some specific
examples of what’s missing from your Management System? What additional manage-
ment goals do you have for 2023?
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
L E A D G E N E R AT I O N
On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 1 being least positive, 10 being most positive),
how would you rate your company’s current lead generation activities and
your ability to generate the right number of quality leads?
Why did you choose this score? What do you think would make it a 10?
Are your return and your profit in alignment with your goals?
If you answered “no” or “unsure” to any of the questions above, what are some specific
examples of what’s missing from your Lead Generation System? What additional lead
generation goals do you have for 2023?
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
LEAD CONVERSION
On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 1 being least positive, 10 being most positive),
how would you rate your company’s ability to generate the desired level of
sales revenue?
Why did you choose this score? What do you think would make it a 10?
Do you have a system for taking advantage of referrals from existing customers?
Are you taking advantage of selling to existing and/or past customers again?
If you answered “no” or “unsure” to any of the questions above, what are some specific
examples of what’s missing from your Lead Conversion System? What additional lead
conversion goals do you have for 2023?
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
CUSTOMER FULFILLMENT
On a scale of 1 to 10 (with 1 being least positive, 10 being most positive),
how would you rate your company’s ability to deliver your products and/or
services to customers in a way that consistently meets and often exceeds
their expectations?
Why did you choose this score? What do you think would make it a 10?
Do you have a strategy in place to reduce the cost of providing your product or service
without sacrificing value?
Are you ensuring that your team is delivering your products and services to customers on
time, all the time, exactly as promised?
Do you have a process for investigating and resolving a high level of returns?
If you answered “no” or “unsure” to any of the questions above, what are some specific
examples of what’s missing from your Customer Fulfillment System? What additional
customer fulfillment goals do you have for 2023?
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
P R I O R I T I Z E YO U R G O A L S : TA K E A F I R S T PA S S
Now that you hopefully have a better sense of where your systems stand in relation to their financial
impact on the business, it’s time to start prioritizing projects that will lead to creating more financial
health in 2023.
Using the business assessment you just completed, rank each of The Seven Essential Systems from
least to most developed. Once you’ve listed each of the systems, determine your top three priorities
within each category. Review the follow-up questions from your assessment to get started.
A note about priorities: Commit to a short, realistic list of projects that reflects the needs you’ve
discovered while assessing your business. Put all other ideas on a “someday/maybe” list.
1.
1.1
1.2
1.3
2.
2.1
2.2
2.3
3.
3.1
3.2
3.3
4.
4.1
4.2
4.3
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
5.
5.1
5.2
5.3
6.
6.1
6.2
6.3
7.
7.1
7.2
7.3
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
P R I O R I T I Z E YO U R G O A L S : TA K E A S E C O N D PA S S
Pause. Step away from this process for a few hours, or even days. You’ve put a lot of work in
already. Now it’s time to clarify your priorities even further. You don’t want to go into 2023 with
a nebulous pile of undefined goals. Come back to your priorities list with a fresh mind, and pick
the top 10 things you need to do next year to get closer to achieving your vision.
Priority goal #1
Priority goal #2
Priority goal #3
Priority goal #4
Priority goal #5
Priority goal #6
Priority goal #7
Priority goal #8
Priority goal #9
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
C R E A T E Q U A R T E R LY M I L E S T O N E S A N D M O N T H LY
ACTIONS TO LEAD YOU TOWARD YOUR ANNUAL GOALS
Now it’s time to translate your priority goals into actions. Use the guide below to map out your
year with quarterly goals and monthly actions. If your first quarter doesn’t align with the
fiscal calendar, change the months in the chart below to match your quarterly cycle.
JAN
FEB
MAR
APR
M AY
JUN
JUL
AUG
SEP
OCT
NOV
DEC
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
EXAMPLE
Finance: JAN 15 Analyze our financial statements and find areas that
Create a financial plan for growing the business, need improvement.
and develop and implement systems needed to Revise our key financial indicators.
support this.
FEB 15 Create a budget and forecast to support attaining
financial targets.
And so on.
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
E M P O W E R Y O U R T E A M T O T R A C K A N D O W N R E S U LT S
Use your organization chart alongside your position agreements to map out actions,
accountabilities and due dates.
ITEM A C C O U N T A B I L I T Y/ P O S I T I O N D U E DAT E
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
D O C U M E N T YO U R P R O C E S S A N D B E P R E PA R E D
TO ADAPT TO THE UNEXPECTED
One of the most effective (yet often neglected) ways to make sure your annual plan allows
you to adapt to unexpected change is to look at the assumptions involved in creating it and
consider any contingencies you may need to put in place. This worksheet will help you do that.
It may also be useful to make copies of this document before you begin.
In the columns below, list the assumptions you’ve used in this planning process. In other
words, what have you taken for granted? That your team will stay the same? That your
business will continue to grow at its current pace organically? Once you’ve identified those
assumptions, list the parts of your business plan that are affected by each assumption and
the indicators to watch over time—these will tell you if your assumptions are correct. Then,
select the date when you’ll review those indicators to see if your assumptions are on track.
At the time of your review, determine whether or not you need to reassess those portions of
your business plan. If you do want to change your plan at that time, use the worksheet in the
previous step to identify each item that needs to be adjusted, who will be accountable for
revising it and when it’s due.
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .
Your Annual Plan 2023: Financial Resilience Edition
What’s next?
It feels good to start taking control of your business, doesn’t it? Don’t lose your momentum!
Here are next steps to help you stay on track next year.
2. Bring in your team. Share your annual plan and empower your people to take responsibility for it.
3. Schedule time each month to revisit your plan. Be sure to document your process and make
adjustments as needed. Not only will this help you keep on track with your goals, it’ll also be a source of
learning and inspiration for next year’s plan. Make an appointment with yourself on your calendar for a
specific day and time to do this.
This process is meant to give you clarity about the organization of your business—both what’s missing
and what you should be proud of.
We know it can feel daunting to go through this process on your own. But you don’t have to. If you want
help assessing your business and planning to achieve your 2023 goals, schedule a free session with an
EMyth Coach and start making real change in your business.
C O P Y R I G H T © 2 0 2 0 , 2 0 2 2 E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . A L L R I G H T S R E S E R V E D . E M Y T H , T H E E M Y T H L O G O , E - M Y T H , “ L I F T Y O U R B U S I N E S S . L O V E Y O U R L I F E .”, A N D T H E
S E V E N E S S E N T I A L S Y S T E M S L O G O A R E T R A D E M A R K S O F E - M Y T H W O R L D W I D E , I N C . E M Y T H I S R E G I S T E R E D W I T H T H E U. S . PAT E N T A N D T R A D E M A R K O F F I C E .