Today's post is brought to you by Eve Richter. Eve Richter is the Emerging Technologies Coordinator in the Economic Development Division at the City of Austin. In that capacity she helps businesses, startups, entrepreneurs and individuals in the tech (and other) sectors to grow and be successful in the Austin community. She also works to attract businesses in targeted industries to Austin.

The Dog Days of Summer. A time when a young entrepreneur’s fancy turns lightly to thoughts of Barton Springs. Yes, go to Barton Springs! Go to barbecues, outdoor concerts, and work on your tan (safely, of course). But don’t neglect your business during this typically slow time for many of us. Even if everyone you know is off on vacation and it may seem hard to get anything done, here are a few tips to help keep your business moving along, so you’ll be ready to jump in the fall when everything gets back to normal. Hopefully, you’ll have a jump on your competitors who were too busy drinking mojitos to keep their focus on business.

1) Make time for strategy sessions. If your business gets slower during the summer it may be a good time to recap the previous year and plan ahead. Have a company meeting, do a work planning retreat, or possibly make regular meetings a little longer to look at ways to improve and plan for the following year.

2) Attend more networking events. During the other months, there may barely enough time to eat, let alone go to networking events. This summer might be a great time to do more networking and business building for the following year.

3) Create your own networking events. Are all your favorite happy hours taking a summer hiatus? Now is a good time to have an open house, invite some key business partners for a lunch or happy hour, or go through your rolodex and set up some lunches. Networking isn’t just about meeting new people, but about deepening your relationships. Use the vacuum of available time to connect, reconnect, and more firmly establish relationships with the contacts you’ve made in the past. And networking doesn’t stop with official happy hours – going to a pool party? Don’t forget the business cards! You never know when you’ll meet a prospective customer or business contact. Don’t be obnoxious about it, but genuine connections can be made anywhere. For those of you who’ve met me at pool parties or the grocery store, you know what I’m talking about.

4) Take a vacation. Studies have shown that taking a vacation and resting can have significant positive impact on productivity upon return to work. If you exercise intensely, you know the importance of having rest days built into training to recoup and re-energize. If you can’t take a whole week, take a few long weekends – even a few days off can make a real difference. And if you have a startup and can’t afford to go anywhere, make it a “staycation.” Drink boat drinks in the backyard and put your feet up. Aaaah, doesn’t that sound relaxing?

5) Catch up on your emails. We all do it – let those emails and follow-ups pile up. Now is a good chance to clear out your mailbox and be sure you’re not missing vital business communications or information that could help your business. Make sure you’ve answered everything, and file away what you need to. Get that mailbox skinny for summer, ready for bikini weather!

6) Catch up on your reading. We all have shelves of business books and filed away newsletters (online or otherwise) that we would love to read, but just never have time. By not keeping up with the industry news, and keeping our education alive by reading, we are falling behind. While we advocate taking some time for reading every day, now is a great time to read more than just the newest Steven King thriller – find some recommended reading lists (I can send you one if you don’t have one), and do some learning by the poolside. You’ll feel like you’ve accomplished more than the perfect tan.

7) Take Advantage of Slow News Cycles. If not much is going on, now could be a good time when your business can make some news and earn a little media time. Write guest blogs or articles, submit newsworthy press releases (try to time them appropriately with the news cycles), and find ways to connect your business with what’s going on around town. If you need some ideas on promoting your business in this way, feel free to reach out to us or one of the many excellent resources in town for some help. If all you’ve read about for 4 days is the drought and how hot it’s going to be for the next week, it might be a good time for a special interest story about a small business doing something great. Let that story be about you!