Start by taking a moment to reflect on your core values.

What really matters to you? What do you want to achieve in your personal life? Financial independence? The ability to travel? Flexible working hours? Learning new things? Power and status?

Be honest with yourself – there is no right or wrong answer here. You probably know them deep down but may have never said them out loud. Capture your personal vision in words or pictures.

Look ahead three years. What does success look like for your business?

How big do you want the business to be? Which markets will you operate in? Again – be honest with yourself. Success for you will look different than others – compete only with yourself!

For some businesses, success may mean global domination. For others, it might mean happy customers in your local market. The choice is yours!

Now compare your personal vision with your business vision – do they match up?

For example, let’s say that your business vision is to have physical shops in 10 countries around the world. However, your personal ambition is that you’ll be able to be very present with your family. This disconnect may prove challenging. How will you overcome it?

You do not need to sacrifice business success for personal goals (or vice versa) – but you need to acknowledge the disconnects and be ready to plan around them.

Once you understand your personal and professional ambitions, identify things that may need to change. Do you need more help personally? Do you need to delegate more at work? Or do you need to change the timeline and grow a bit more slowly than you originally anticipated, in order to achieve your personal goals? Be specific about the changes needed and make a plan!