To excel in this game, you need to have short term and long term goals, and then the focus to attain them.  Maybe it is a goal to expand.  That means you have to wait on some upgrades to save cash, and maybe you need to dump contracts (unless you have plenty of supplies) for materials that are not nails, boards, or saws.  Maybe you want to be the King of Eggs in your co-op.  That means you need to expand, build chicken coops, upgrade them and upgrade your egg book in the library.  Also consider larger mills to build up chicken feed and fields to support them.