Virtual Business in a Box

Archive for October, 2010

Too busy working IN your business to work ON your business?

Sometimes when you start up a new business you worry about getting products sold, getting new clients on board, and the general day to day running of the business that you forget the vision you had about where the business is meant to be going, what your goals were when you first started out (world domination?) and you can get so bogged down in minutia that you wonder why you ever started out on your own at all. At least when employed you knew when your day began and ended, and generally didn't have to worry about when the accounts were done (midnight on a Saturday?) or who was going to do the rest of the administration (you?). Sounds familiar? 

The last few weeks have been really busy for me, looking after current clients and taking on three new clients within my sister company Your Office Online, trying to prepare documents and books for the launch of Virtual Business in a Box, the date of which seems to be moving every week, preparing for the Remote Worker Award ceremony on 1st September, preparing for a two day exhibition (Business South West 2010) at West Point, Exeter this week, and generally keeping my head above the paperwork. Seems that there has been so little 'me' or 'family' time or even time to write this blog, and I am beginning to feel that I am treading water.

So what do I do in a situation like this? I take a deep breath, step back a little and do some 'navel gazing' about what I want from the business and how I can achieve them in small easy steps.

How do I progress from there?

1. I make a list of things to be done
2. I prioritise the list
3. I delegate the things that I don't personally have to do or want to do (filing!!)
4. I outsource the things I don't have the skills to do or those tasks which are non-fee earning 
5. Look at the bigger picture – what do I need to do to get me to where I want to be in 6 months/1 year etc
6. I then go back to point 1 and start again.

We are all so busy running our businesses and trying to keep the money coming in that we do tend to get bogged down. Take a day every month or so to do the above and keep track of what the decisions made are, the actions to be taken, by whom and when by, and check that they are on track to be done by the due dates. You may even want to share some of these with someone you trust to keep nagging you to get them done – once out in the open and made public (even if only to one person) you will tend to make sure that you get things done so that you are not seen to be failing.

One important thing that needs to be done though is to remember to take time out with family and friends. Otherwise it all becomes too much and bad health/nervous breakdown looms. You will also lose the thrill of being your own boss and you may as well go back to the diry world of being employed.