As the year comes to a close, I love to take some time to reflect. Usually, I simply review my personal goals, but the last two years have been a little different since I decided to take a little journey from nurse to copywriter and start my very own website copywriting business for nurse entrepreneurs.

An annual end-of-the-year self-assessment to review your small business is an opportunity to reflect on the previous year, evaluate your business’s performance, and identify areas of success and improvement.

Making the time to do this will help you spot what’s working (hello, strengths!), what’s not (ahem, weakness AKA room for growth!), and make data-driven moves to set yourself up for a siiick new year. 😌

Because I was so pumped to dive into my own small business review this year, I pulled together a list of questions you can use to guide your own self-assessment. These cover everything from your personal energy to customer satisfaction, finances, marketing, systems, and management.

Grab a cozy drink, your fave notebook, and let’s get into it!

A nurse entrepreneur's journal for their annual small business review

How to prepare for your annual small business review:

Start by gathering all your essential data:

List of goals for the year
Revenue
Expenses
Profits
Reviews & testimonials
Monthly number of website visitors
Follower count on socials
Leads & conversion rates
Number of customers
Hours worked by you
Hours worked by your employees or freelancers

Next, take a look at the goals you set at the beginning of the year and the data you gathered, and use the following list of questions to guide your annual small business review:

Your Energy

Why did you become a business owner? Did you fulfill that purpose this year?
Did you invest in your own personal and professional development this year?
How well did you adapt to changes in your industry or market this year? How did you handle any unexpected crises or challenges that arose?
What brought you joy? What felt draining?
Did you maintain a healthy balance in all areas of your life?

Your Vision

Did you take any significant risks this year? If so, how did they turn out?
What were your biggest successes this year?
What lessons did you learn this year that you can apply to improve your business in the future?
Do you have a clear idea of what you want to accomplish in your business next year? What does that look like for you?
What steps will you take to improve your business and achieve your goals in the coming year?

Your Customers

Did you maintain good relationships with your customers and clients?
Did you receive any feedback from customers or clients that you can use to improve your business?
Did your visitors or leads adequately convert to customers?

Your Marketing

In what ways did you market your business this year?
Did your marketing efforts effectively reach your target audience?
Did your customers clearly understand the purpose of your product or services?
Do you feel like any one area of your marketing was more or less successful than others?

Your Revenue

Did you achieve the financial goals you set for your business?
Did you explore any new revenue streams or opportunities to grow your business?
How much did your income fluctuate from month to month? Do you know the levers to pull to stabilize your monthly income?

Your Expenses

Did you manage to stay within your budget?
Did you effectively manage cash flow and finances this year?
Did you ever require consulting with your financial advisor before making a business decision?

Your Systems

Did you make any significant changes to your business model or strategy? If so, how did they affect your business?
Did you effectively manage your time and resources?
Map out your current process and systems to create your product or service. Are you satisfied with the process and systems you’ve designed to produce your product or services?
What about your current process and systems feel successful to you? Are there areas you can improve?
How well did you manage your employees and/or team members?

Looking Forward: Why Every Nurse Entrepreneur Needs a Small Business Review

When you’re a nurse entrepreneur trying to make your dreams come true, it’s sooo easy just to put your head down and just continue to grind. When you’re in the thick of things, taking time to assess how things are going can feel like a waste.

But the thing is, if you don’t stop to assess how things are going, you’re basically flying blind. That’s why making time for an annual small business review isn’t just a nice-to-have — it’s a must for scaling your biz and hitting those big, dreamy goals.

A small business review gives you, as a nurse entrepreneur, the chance to compare your current work against your goals, dig into financial performance, assess your marketing strategy, and even evaluate customer feedback and team performance. (Spoiler alert: this is where you uncover those much-needed pivots that lead to next-level growth. 🤑)

By doing your small business review every year, you can:

Boost your productivity
Stay competitive in your industry
Crush customer satisfaction and loyalty
Keep your revenue trending upward
Stay laser-focused on your goals

For nurse entrepreneurs like you, this process isn’t just about surviving — it’s about thriving in a way that feels purposeful and sustainable. And once you’ve taken a hard look at where you’ve been, it’s time to look forward. Think about what you want to accomplish next year and craft actionable strategies to make it happen.

And nowww, it’s time to look forward — consider what you want to accomplish in the next year and create strategies to achieve those goals.

So, don’t overlook the importance of an annual review of your small business. Make it a priority and create a better plan for your business’s future. Your future self — and your business — will thank you.

How To Conduct an Annual Small Business Review as a Nurse Entrepreneur