The new year isn’t just a date on the calendar, it’s a fresh canvas waiting for bold strokes! It’s the perfect time to spark new habits, new routines, new ideas. It is a wonderful excuse to motivate ourselves and shake things up as needed. There should be no difference for a business owner. Whether this is something you do or not, here are some simple ideas for reorganizing your child care business in the new year.
- An upgraded storage system
Organizing your space might feel like a big job, but trust me, the payoff is worth every minute! A well-thought-out storage system doesn’t just make your life easier; it helps kids thrive too.
Reorganize where students keep their daily items. Do they keep all belongings together? If so, how about a separate space only for shoes? Consider a corner near the door where you can repurpose an old shelf for students to place only their shoes. This way, getting ready to play outside will be a smoother process.
Regroup art materials by color. Do you keep all the crayons in one box, and the washable markers in a different container? How about mixing different materials together, but organizing them by color, instead? This is a neat idea that not only works as a learning method for students to recognize similar colors, but also for making your space look like a beautiful and organized rainbow.
- A new digital folder for receipts and invoices
Where do you keep receipts and invoices for the money spent in your business? Consider taking pictures of all your receipts and saving them online. Free services such as Google Drive offer you the possibility of creating and organizing digital folders and documents where you can save scans or pictures of your paper receipts, as well as digital files for receipts from your online shopping.
You can create a folder for each year, and a sub-folder for each month. One of the benefits of this idea is that the digital files will not become less legible with time. Often, paper receipts become dull and difficult to read. Making a habit out of digitalizing your receipts will come handy when it is time to file your taxes.
- An upgraded check-in system
A Childcare Management System is the best way to keep track of your student’s attendance. However, for those who prefer paper, there are many templates you can print out in order to create or upgrade your check-in and out systems.
In order to upgrade your check-in and out system, it is important to understand your business’s specific rules. For example, if you work with a late-pickup fee system, it is imperative to track specific times for when students are dropped off and picked up everyday. A digital management system is the most accurate way to keep track of time.
- A new digital storage system for student work
It is no news that most parents love their children’s work. It is also true that some parents are not as thorough when needing to pick up their kid’s creations to bring home. A different idea for this new year is to start taking pictures of student’s work and saving them in a digital folder with the student’s name. At the end of the month, you can send the parent access to their child’s folder so they can see all the beautiful work. You may advise parents that digital copies of student’s work will be deleted after 3 months. That way you can keep your digital library organized and ready for more pictures.
This idea can be done through several paid or unpaid platforms. A few of them are: Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive, etc. These services allow you to share each folder with specific email addresses. This option allows for student confidentiality.
- A new schedule for self-care!
Last, and definitely not least, self-care, my friends! Easy to say, not as easy to follow through. In recent times, self-care has taken different shapes. Some view exercise as caring for oneself, while others prefer naps and massages. Whatever your needs are, it is absolutely important to take care of them.
Even if you prioritize other items in your schedule, adding 30 minutes of self-care everyday will remind you that it matters. So, my advice is, write it down! Add it to your day as a task if needed. Make a habit of following through with your own care at least 3 times per week.
Some easy self-care items to add in your calendar may be:
- Taking 15 minutes to moisturize your skin
- A 20-minute walk around your neighborhood
- Listening to your 3 favorite songs while having a warm drink
- Reading a chapter or a couple of magazine articles
- Listening to a podcast
- Practicing 5 minutes of box breathing.
The new year is the perfect excuse to hit refresh and make meaningful changes! A few smart tweaks to your business systems can do wonder, not just for your mental well-being, but for the growth and success of your child care business. So here’s to embracing new ideas, staying organized, and making this year your best one yet. Cheers to a bright and thriving new year!
