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Write From Home
Kim Wilson
P.O. Box 4145
Hamilton, NJ 08610
Tel: (609) 888-1683
Fax: (609) 888-1672
E-mail:
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Not Enough Time to Run Your
Business? Tips For Creating Time!
by Betty Ann Wilkins
Time is a valuable commodity in
today's fast paced world.
There just isn't enough of it and all of us seem to need
more of it. If someone could find a way of giving us all
the time we need in our busy lives, that person would surely
become the richest person in the world.
There are many ways to maximize the use of your time which
will optimize the way you use the limited time you have each
and every day.
Running a business can be very overwhelming at times,
especially if you are running your business via the Internet.
Each & every time you turn on your computer you are bombarded
with new ideas, untapped markets, new information to keep you
up-to-date on advertising and promotion, not to mention tons of
e-mail to either answer or trash. How do you focus with all of
the distractions?
Here you will find a few tried, tested and proven ways to help
you optimize your time and remain focused:
Prioritize
Make a list of Long term and Short term Goals (keep it within
easy reach at all times). Keep a list of all the tasks you
need to accomplish and number them by importance of what needs
to be done first. You will want to classify your tasks as
either long term or short term -- this will help you to keep in
perspective what must be done now and what can wait.
Keep it Simple
Break all big tasks down into a series of smaller tasks that
when combined will complete the big task. Smaller tasks are
much easier to accomplish and you are less likely to put it off
because of the length of time it will take you.
Have a list of tasks by your side. Tackle one task at a time.
Each time you complete a task cross it off of your list.
Always complete one task at a time. Do not jump around doing
just a small amount of each task. Being able to cross a
completed task off of your list will give you a great sense of
accomplishment as well as reinforce your motivation to do more.
Set Deadlines
Without setting deadlines to each of your tasks you can easily
put it off until tomorrow --- in my experience tomorrow never
seems to come because too many other tasks get in the way.
Be realistic when setting your deadlines for each task or
project you have. Keep in mind that things never get done as
quickly as we imagine and that anything that can go wrong
probably will --- so always add a little extra time into each
of your deadlines to allow you the extra time you may need. This strategy helps you to make sure that you get everything
done on time and can also be a great way to reinforce your
motivation and sense of accomplishment since you will complete
many tasks before the deadline you set.
Keep Perspective
Most marketers work a full time job, have a family, and social
commitments along with their own online business. You play a
different role in each one of these activities. Do not
sacrifice one area of your life for another. You need to
balance all the things that you do. Keep each area of your
life separate to prevent neglecting one area for another.
What I am trying to say is that you Do Not want to become a
workaholic. It just doesn't work well --- there will be no
balance to your life. The old adage, "All work and no play
makes Jack a dull boy" is very true. You will be much more
creative and productive if you create a balance between your
family life, job and online business.
Organize
Use a calendar to list all your commitments. When you can see
all of your tasks listed in a chronological order with a
starting point and ending point it can help you to remain
focused and motivated so that you will actually complete the
task and feel accomplishment.
Stay Focused
Keep your attention on the one task or project you are working
on right now. Do not get sidetracked by other tasks you need
to do or by things that you find along the way.
Pay close attention to the things that seem to cause you to
stray away from the task you are working on --- are you tempted
to check your e-mail? Or maybe the site you had to visit has
some interesting links you would like to check out? --- Do NOT
do it now.
Close your e-mail program so you are not tempted to check the
mail, bookmark this site, send yourself an e-mail about the
site, open notepad and create a text file of interesting sites
you want to visit again at a later time.
Don't try to do two things at once. You cannot watch TV and
complete a presentation for your new prospects, write a sales
letter, answer e-mail or write an article at the same time.
Do one thing or the other. Trying to do both will waste time
and most likely cause you to not do the best you could have.
You will stay more focused if you limit distractions and
temptations by taking them out of your way and view.
Learn to say, "No"
Yes, the most difficult word in the world for many of us. You
need to be able to say it because there will be times when
others will want some of your time when you need to be working
at your business.
Saying No should not make you feel guilty or bad. If it does
then you need to take a long hard look at your priorities. If
your business is your priority then make it a fact in your
heart and mind --- then you should not be plagued by the
guilties when you must say no.
Create and USE lists for all of your goals and tasks and you
will find that you are not lacking as much time as you had
originally thought. Leave nothing to chance by thinking that
you will remember to do it. I know from first hand experience
that with all the distractions of e-mail and the Internet You
Will Forget. Please do not allow yourself to fall into that
trap.
Betty Ann Wilkins,
Publisher/Webmaster
"At Home Working News" - Your Doorway to Joining the
Work-at-Home Revolution. Fresh, Up-to-date, original
content to help you prosper in the home-based workplace.
To subscribe:
join-AHWNews@relay.netatlantic.com
Sample issue:
mailto:sample-issue@the-work-at-home.com
Archives at http://www.the-work-at-home.com/archives
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Have You Read...
I Wanna
Win
by Cheryl Wright
If you want to win writing contests and earn that elusive tag of
'award-winning writer' or if you just want to hone your skills, this book will
point you in the right direction.
New to freelance writing?
Read
this informative article.
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