When you work from home, it can be easy to get caught up in the ‘liberty’ of it all – setting your own work hours, not having to commute, and working when you want to work. To build a successful and sustainable business that will help you live the lifestyle you want to live, you need to take care of your most important asset – YOU.
How? Focus on a few simple things:
Value yourself
As a service professional, your business is YOU, so be sure to be aware of how important you are to your business. When you are putting together your marketing materials, do not undervalue yourself or your service offerings. People will work with you because you are the best at what you do. Be sure you believe that too! On the practical side – this should also help you realise what insurance covers you need.
Value your clients
You also need to value your clients (and potential clients), since working with them is what will allow you to live the lifestyle you want. By knowing what they need, and providing that to them in a really solid way, you will be honouring them (and we all know that means referrals to more great clients, which will build your business!). Open and honest communication with your clients is important too. If you don’t tell them what’s going on – they’ll fill in the gaps themselves.
Outsource
This is such an important thing that people often hesitate to do until it’s almost too late. What specific tasks do you do each day? Which of those items generate revenue for you? Unless you are a bookkeeper, have your books done. Instead of doing every bit of your marketing, have someone help you with newsletters or social media. You should only be doing two things in your business – working with clients and strategic marketing like planning and networking.
Set a schedule
Remember that you not only need office hours for your clients, but for yourself. Schedule everything you can (including potential client follow up!) and hold yourself to your schedule. You will be so much more productive if you are well organized, even if you only work part time.
Work with a coach or mentor
By working with someone who has been where you are, and is far ahead of you, you will get to where you want to be much faster. This also goes right back to valuing yourself.
By making these few simple shifts in your mind, you will naturally focus more on what is important, you will be more productive, and you will realise more success. More importantly you’ll not be isolated and you will have built an invisible thread of connections that you will never know about unless the worst happens.
Building a successful business requires great productivity and that starts with nurturing your most important asset – YOU. Focus on the things that are most important and get support where you need it.