Archive for Small Office/Home Office
Hard Work and Determination = 18 Hour Days = Success
Posted by: | CommentsIt occurred to me that July 1st has come and gone and July 2nd is just about here. (I am writing this at 9pm) In general, this is great because I love a new month as a new start of things to come. Only problem is that I seemed to blink and June 2010 was gone. Poof. Disappeared. No longer here. And I am not sure exactly where it went. I think I missed it!
Actually, I take that back. I know where it went. The month of June was filled with 18 hour days from start to finish. Lots of ideas, lots of work and little sleep – mainly because of the work but also because of excitement and adrenaline that kept me working. As we head into this holiday weekend here in the United States to celebrate our Independence Day, I am looking forward to some rest and sleep. A much needed reward and calm before the next round.
You see, aside from my current business endeavor TheBDevent which took me out of town for a week in the middle of the month, I started a new company, Genius Netpreneurs, with a new partner and an incredibly accelerated deliverable list at the beginning of the month. Among other operational items we completed our first Ebook, got our website up, and held our first live seminar (which included promotion, content writing and delivery) all within the first 3 weeks of opening our doors.
Both TheBDevent and Genius Netpreneurs are a testament to what happens when there’s hard work, determination, some ingenuity and a lot of faith. (And great people to work with!)
One company is a year old and the other a month old – and both are well on their way to success. In coming posts I will talk about the processes involved in forming the companies, operational struggles and other items that may be of interest to aspiring or current entrepreneurs. While I’ve been through the formation process many times over the years, no two creations have ever been the same. From raising working capital, to technology challenges, to finding the appropriate vendor for a particular item no two days ever seem the same in business. I’ll share some real world examples and solutions to help you see that the old adage, “where there is a will, there is a way” comes so readily into play.
One last thought as I think back on the last month. In these tough economic times, it is up to the individual to step off the main road if there is a roadblock and head onto the beaten path. Passion, a good idea, and some hard work and determination open up possibilities. The problem is that many people either give up or don’t do what it takes to follow through because it gets hard. I understand how that happens. I cannot even tell you how many times over the last 30 days I wanted to “go to sleep” or hit the “snooze” button in the morning. I really really wanted to! Instead I’d drag myself out of bed. I didn’t give in. I didn’t because I knew what the end goal was and I was accountable to others. If you’re on your own – find someone to be accountable to – it will help your drive and motivation.
On that note, I think it is time for me to go to sleep. I’m tired.
Good Night.
How to Create Your Weekly Map
Posted by: | CommentsMy life gets very busy A LOT. This leads me to have a very scheduled weekly schedule most of the time. And while I may have a full schedule I still have the freedom and flexibility to create that schedule, which is my favorite part of being my own boss.
I am busy moving & shaking most hours of the day, 7 days a week.
It may be a work day, a child’s field trip, a volunteer meeting, a day full of coffee appointments or a weekend full of chores and hanging with the family, I am moving and making things happen. Some of my friends wonder how I do it all and how I continue to be like the Energizer Bunny and I often wonder myself.
Yes, I do get overwhelmed. Yes, I do get tired. Yes, I sometimes wonder why I do this to myself. And when I analyze why, then I remember MY WHY and my motivation for being a multi-tasking entrepreneur.
I was talking with my Coach Kevin a while ago and we were talking about how to “get it all done” when the days seem short and the hours pass quickly.
He gave me a tip that was “worth the price of admission” that day.
(And the price of admission is not cheap!)
He told me about how he plans his weekly schedule and then keeps it as consistent as possible from week to week so that he and his team know what to expect. I loved his concept and am going to share it all with you here today.
He creates a Weekly Map
I want you to think about creating your own Weekly Map that you stick to as much as possible. This may look familiar as some of this is Sales and Marketing 101 and has cause to be remembered.
Here’s what a sample Weekly Map looks like:
Monday – Marketing Day
Tuesday – Training Day
Wednesday – Meeting Day
Thursday – Meeting Day
Friday – Marketing Day
Saturday – Training Day
Sunday – Miscellaneous Day/Family Day/ Whatever Day
Now, you can set this up to fit your business structure allows. For example if the weekly networking meeting you attend is on Monday – you can fit that in as Part of your marketing day or you can make Monday – meeting day if that is better for you.
The goal is to be consistent especially when it comes to marketing. If you are not marketing and working on connecting with prospects the funnel will dry up. And while it would be great to do marketing everyday, as an entrepreneur other work needs to be done too – like meeting with folks in the sales process.
The goal is to structure your time into focused chunks which helps reduce chaos and overwhelm. It is challenging to work on operations issues, then run to a meeting, then come back to the office to do some marketing or prospect calling all in the same day or within a few hours.
Creating a daily focus with goals to accomplish can help reduce your stress level. Now, I am not saying spend the full 8 hours on Monday only doing marketing – that is unrealistic. What I am saying is that you know you’re setting aside X number of hours on Monday and Friday to do marketing before you move to something else. Or you know your best meeting days are Wednesday and Thursday between 9-12 so you block that on your calendar.
That said, if a prospect wants to meet you on Tuesday and you have the time – of course you go. Or if on Tuesday you have this great idea for a newspaper ad, then write the newspaper ad.
The whole idea of a weekly map is to help reduce a little stress whenever possible in a way that fits your life/business and is consistent. This helps when that To-Do list gets way to long and rears its ugly head. (I’ll save the to-do list for another post!)
Now – go spend 5-10 minutes thinking about your week and come up with your weekly map. IF YOU DO THIS and stick to it week after week, you’ll help yourself and your business.
P.S. I appreciate your feedback and look forward to your comments. For more information about my services or to find out how we can partner together call me at 503-780-3203 or email me at vanessa@vanessaduplessie.com.
Motherhood & Entrepreneurship – 9 Reasons Kids are Similar to Business
Posted by: | CommentsHey everyone,
I hope you are enjoying yourselves today. It is early here is my part of the USA as I write this post. And today is my son’s 6th birthday. My firstborn baby is growing up and maturing right before my eyes. I cannot believe 6 years of my life have passed in the blink of an eye. My precious one is learning how to be a man. As I reflected on how far I’ve come as a parent and he as a child my thoughts turned to business. I wouldn’t be me if they didn’t.
From the thought of conceiving a child through birth and then the nurturing of the last 6 years my son has grown into a fine young man. While he’s not always on his best behavior with mommy, when he is with others he behaves well, uses his manners and is a joy to be around. I know this because other parents tell me this is the case and they wouldn’t invite him back if he wasn’t! Therefore, we must be doing something right as parents.
This led me to think about what my husband and I have done to bring us to this point. Well, what came to mind were things that transferred over to how we run our businesses, which are our other children.
So many of us treat our businesses like babies and if we’re not maybe we should start. Here’s my thoughts on how they relate.
1. You get this brilliant idea that it’s time to have a child and then you start your planning. (Hmmm, sounds businesslike to me.)
2. Once pregnant and having committed to this child more planning goes into effect – setting up the nursery, making sure to take care of yourself so you can keep your energy up while you continue your planning and preparation for launching your baby to the world in 9 months. (I’ve never worked crazy hours in business or needed extra energy during my planning phases )
3. Once baby is launched those first few months are shocking. You don’t sleep much and you’re all consumed by this new, sometimes overwhelming situation in your life. (Never happened to me, you?)
4. You don’t always know what to do next and you seek the advice of other more seasoned people. People who have done this before, and while they may not have always done it right, they’ve made it through. (This is why I have my own coach)
5. By the time year 1 hits – you’re proud of yourself that you didn’t give up and now things seem to be easier and you have a flow. You take the ups and downs and the good and the bad in stride.
6. You spend your time nurturing and tending to your precious child, working with the child every day to help him or her grow.
7. About year 3 you think you’ve got everything under control. But in reality, the child has you wrapped around your finger and there isn’t much you wouldn’t do for him/her because you see so much of yourself in him/her. Your blood sweat and tears are thankful you’ve made it this far.
8. You continue to persevere, you know giving up is not an option. This child needs you and you will succeed. You don’t know what everyday will bring but you are committed to yourself and to the child to never give up.
9. More years pass and you realize that the decision and making a choice to have a child was the best thing you could have ever done and you wouldn’t trade parenthood for anything in the world.
See any signs or traits of business in there? My businesses are like my babies from idea through implementation.
While this was fun and lighthearted in honor of my son, I want you to think about how you are treating your business.
Is it just another J-O-B to you or are you passionate about your role as an entrepreneur?
Think about it.
Have a great weekend and Happy Birthday to my baby boy!
P.S. For more information or to find out how we can work together call me at 503-780-3203 or email me at vanessa@vanessaduplessie.com. View the video www.15toprofit.com/vanessa to learn more about creating freedom and flexibility in your life.
