Why the rhythm section of your business should come first

(This post started life as an episode of my podcast, Unfrazzle. If you prefer, you can listen here.)

A few times a year I run a 12-month planning workshop where I guide people to decide what they want to make happen, and map out their year so they can see which projects they’ll be working on when.

An important part of that process is to figure out what needs to go in the rhythm section.

As we plan, there’s space to map out what’s happening each month, but there’s also a big space for the rhythm section, which are the things that need to happen all year round to keep your business moving forward.

Your rhythm sections drives you on. Yes, it can speed up or slow down (that’s the beauty of rhythm), but it needs to keep going if you want to avoid getting stuck.

Why your business needs a rhythm section

Imagine a great song like Seven Nation Army by the White Stripes or We Will Rock You by Queen. What would happen if you got part way through the song and the drums and bass suddenly stopped? The whole thing would lose its impact.

And whilst those examples involve talented musicians who might still be able to hold it together, a lesser band doing a cover version might slowly descend into chaos without the rhythm section holding everyone together.

It’s the same with your business. There’s a rhythm section of activities that need to happen consistently if you want to keep making progress.

For most of us, that’s our sales and marketing.

If we stopped doing those activities, eventually everything would fall down around our ears.

For me, my rhythm section involves sending a weekly email to my community, a weekly podcast, 2-3 LinkedIn posts a week, and outreach that might put me in front of other people’s audiences.

Making your rhythm section a priority

Unfortunately many people see those things as an afterthought. And that’s understandable – you didn’t start your business because you were excited about the prospect of doing sales and marketing, did you? You want to be spending your time doing the thing you love and are brilliant at.

But if that’s all you focus on, to the detriment of your rhythm, your business will grind to a halt.

So what if, instead of trying to do the tasks that make up your rhythm section in a stolen few minutes here and there, between meetings, or whenever you can find a spare half an hour… you put those activities at the centre, and let everything else fit in around them?

Once you have that rhythm section established, the rest of your business band gets to go crazy with guitar solos, sing-along moments and as many dance breaks as you like, just as long as you have that steady beat of your rhythm section driving you forward.

What constitutes the rhythm section of YOUR business?

Are you putting those things at the centre?

If you see your rhythm section as an afterthought and don’t factor it into your planning, you’ll take on too much because you’re forgetting about those key activities which also require your time and attention,  which means you’re setting yourself up to fail.

During our planning workshops I encourage people to keep an eye on the things in their rhythm section as they map out their months.

Can you do the same?

What are the regular activities that need to happen in your business to keep it moving forward (they won’t be the same as mine – networking could be a key part of your strategy, or writing blogs, doing stories on Instagram… whatever it is for you)?

Are you giving them the space they need, and if not what can you do differently moving forward?