October isn’t just the start of the fourth quarter of the year, but it’s a time for businesses to start preparing for the new year.

Late last month, I decided to take care of a task that had been hanging over me for years: get a new headshot from a professional photographer.

The last time I had a professional headshot was in 2005. I was in my mid-30s and I just got through my first bout with migraines that required me to learn how to walk again.

Today, I’m in my early 50s. The migraines have never gone away and trying to find medications that will work for a reasonable length of time — if at all — has been a challenge. So far, the one medication that has worked reasonably well for several years is Botox.

My photographer gave me full-size and web versions, so it was easy for me to add my profile photo. But as I looked at my social media profiles, I found that the cover photos were outdated by a couple of years. My old photo had a lot of my books from a couple of years ago, but I’ve added a few more books since then.

So, I took a new photo not only of my books but also of instructional videos I created for Virtual Training Company many moons ago. I was reminded that I could only show so much within the cover photos, so I had to position them so the books I wanted to show weren’t hidden by my profile photo.

With all that said, consider making these changes in the next couple of months so you can be ready for 2023:

Look at offers to get one or more headshots for a discounted rate. Photographers know that companies want to have a fresh start for the new year and there may be offers, though you may have to go out of your immediate area to find options.

Take a new cover photo with something new and interesting. This is a photo you can take yourself.

Tweak your marketing messages online and off. I recently worked with my partner to come up with a new one-liner for marketing events, so I updated the website’s tagline to dovetail with what I say in the one-liner.

I hope this helps. Have a prosperous October and may you and yours have a happy and safe Halloween.