From
Full-Time to Own Time -
4 Tips to Start Your Virtual Assistant Business Whilst Working
Full-Time
by Lisa Taliga
Are you
working full-time, want to start your Virtual Assistant business
but just don't seem to find enough hours in the day to focus on
it? This may also apply to you if you are working part-time or
have a growing family. A good chunk of your day may be swallowed
up by the daily commute, the demands of your boss, cooking dinner,
looking after the kids, keeping the house clean. by the time you've
finished all that, how are you going to get focused? How are you
going to find the time to start or build your business?
If you don't have a solid strategy or plan to get to where you
want to be, then somehow your days will drag into weeks, then
months and you'll still be no nearer your goal of working from
home.
It's so easy to let the daily 'noise' of life distract us from
our ultimate goals. Nodding your head vigorously? Then read on
for the following four tips to cut through the jungle and realize
your dream:
1. Be disciplined
Discipline is not just about doing things to start your business.
It's also about ensuring your day isn't spent doing everything
else! It means saying 'no' every once in a while to those tasks
that are not going to bring you closer to your goal. Just think,
if you spent two hours less a week on housework or got home one
hour earlier a couple of days a week - that's an extra eight hours
a month you'd have to work on your project.
2. Be realistic
If you're still working your day job, schedule that from the
time you get up in the morning until you get home from work. Don't
forget to include time for commuting. Then, plan out your evening
accordingly. Don't schedule a four hour task to be completed in
one hour. It won't happen. Break tasks up as much as possible
into small steps and schedule them into your time. This will give
you a feeling of accomplishment and you'll get a lot more done
in the long run.
3. Be specific
Your daily plans and goals need to be very specific. I really
want to emphasise again how important it is to break everything
down into steps. It won't do you any good to write something like,
'work on marketing'. What does that mean? How exactly do you 'work
on marketing?' Your plan needs to include a definite task and
finishing point, such as 'write an ad for the local newspaper'.
Do you see the difference? You can 'work on' a project for weeks
and never reach a point where you feel you've achieved something.
By contrast, when you 'write an ad' you know you're finished as
soon as you've typed the final word.
4. Be flexible
You should also be a little flexible in your scheduling. You're
going to have interruptions that you couldn't possibly have planned
for. When working from home, the chance of distraction goes up
exponentially. You'll be working on your project, only to have
the toilet overflow or the kids play up. There will be things
that happen that you can't plan for. That's why your schedule
needs to include a little cushion.
Sometimes, no matter how well you plan, you just won't finish
what you schedule. It happens to everyone. That's when you simply
revise your schedule for the next day to include the tasks you
didn't get done. Don't stress about an item or two not getting
done as planned. Just take it in stride and keep on moving forward.
If you find yourself routinely missing your deadlines, you'll
need to reevaluate your scheduling. Are you being realistic in
your planning? Probably not. Adjust accordingly.
If you keep these four tips in mind when tackling your Virtual
Assistant business projects you'll stay sane and get much more
done. With a little discipline, planning and effort, you can schedule
your dreams into your 'full-time life' much more effectively and
ultimately earn a full-time income from home
Lisa Taliga is a Virtual Assistant and author
of 'Freelance from Home! The 5 Key Steps to Your Successful
Virtual Assistant Business' and 'The 7 Things You Must Know
Before Starting Your Successful Virtual Assistant Business'.
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