No means No
After being a work-at-home entrepreneur for over 7 years, I can attest that the toughest item on this list for me, personally, is learning to say no to potential clients or customers. When you work for yourself – especially in the early days – you’re not always sure where that next paycheck is coming from. And even when the customer roster is full this month, you can’t be positive the same will be true next month or the month after, so you tend to take on more work than you can comfortably perform. After all, isn’t a few nights of burning the midnight oil well worth the benefit of having a little more padding in the bank account?
The problem is, working too much to stay ahead causes us stress and job burnout – and it also makes spouses and families a tad angry! So we just exchange one stress point (finances) for another (overwork and family pressure). There is a solution, although you’re not going to like it. Set a limit and stick to it.
I know, I know, this is easier said than done. But I can honestly say that I’ve never had a customer or client disappear into thin air when I told him or her they had to wait a few weeks or months to work with me. In fact, it often shows that you’re in demand and that you can pick and choose who you work with, and when. And that’s a valuable trait, particularly when you want to command top rates for your expertise.
Think about the busiest restaurant you know of: the Hard Rock Cafe, the Cheesecake Factory, etc. The advance reservations notice these establishments require actually increases their mystique and reputation. Making your customers and clients wait can do the same for you!
Decide how many products you’re going to release, how many interviews you’re going to do, how many coaching clients you’re going to work with, how many articles you’ll write, or how many hours you’re going to work per week, and then stop. That’s it – no more.
One of the best ways to keep your work commitments at a tolerable level is to make a commitment to your family. You can start with committing to attending every softball game, every Scout meeting, and every recital. You can promise dinner each evening, or read out of a chapter book every night to your children. This will make you accountable to your own scheduled work day. You may feel a momentary pang of regret or anxiety when you tell a potential client “no” or “wait.” I’m willing to bet it will soon fade when you realize how much less stressed you are on a day-to-day basis, and how much happier your home life is!
You’ve set boundaries for your commitment to your clients. You’ll say the words “no” or “wait” to a client when the time constraints of a new assignment don’t fit within your agenda. You have now become the boss of your time. Does your family know that?
There you are sitting at your desk in your home office, available to everyone – kids, spouse, neighbors, friends – at a moments notice. You wanted to work at home so you COULD be available to your family, but what are the limits? We’ll explore the dichotomy of working at home in order to enjoy the flexibility and availability to the ones you love, and working at home in order to create a successful business which requires focused time away from distractions.
I love to hear your comments and join the newsletter while you are here.
Featured Article by Janice Clark of BizMSolutions.com
One of the first things I do when I speak with a client about their social media strategy is to ask what their goal is. I try to determine early on what they are hoping to accomplish by using social media so I can ensure their activities are in line with their goals.
The first thing people always say is, “I want to get clients”. That’s certainly an excellent goal to have and, in all honesty, everyone needs more clients. No one ever says, “I’d like to make some friends” or “I’d like to donate my time to others”. Most of us aren’t using these networking sites strictly for personal reasons. We mean business! Before you jump into social media and begin looking for clients, consider this. Getting new clients isn’t the only way to get results! You must take consistent action that is designed to produce ongoing and long term results for your business!
All of our professional activities get results. Those activities may include developing mutually beneficial relationships with others or submitting content on a regular basis in order to gain visibility and/or recognition from target market influencers. The results those activities achieve come in the form of web/blog traffic, press, comments, emails, friends, etc. These activities don’t always have a direct financial impact but if we plan those activities correctly then the non-financial impact they do have should result in a positive financial impact.
Participating in groups, having conversations online and answering questions for others all make an impact. Creating strategic partnerships and gaining visibility among your target market definitely makes an impact. If your actions are meaningful and positive then the impact comes in the form of more visits to your website, more members on your Facebook page and more subscribers to your mailing list. All of that translates into more opportunities for you to promote your products and services and it should translate into sales at some point.
When someone’s only goal is to get more clients, they very often get disappointed early on. Clients don’t just appear when you set up a profile. It takes time to find your audience, determine what they are looking for, build relationships, gain trust and provide them with the solution that will help make a financial impact on their business. It takes time to gain visibility among your target market, build relationships with reputable influencers in the industry and reap the benefits of regular referral business.
Are you so focused on your main goal of getting clients that you forget to get out there and participate in other strategic activities? Are you creating relationships and taking action that will impact your business financially in the long term?
As a business owner I’m always looking for conversations and strategic relationships. In addition, I love helping other business owners find the same! What actions do you need to take in order to make an impact on your business? What types of relationships are you looking for? I invite you to post your Facebook page link here (LinkedIn and Twitter as well if you’d like), introduce yourself and share your business with us. Take the first step towards creating relationships and taking action that produces results!
More information on Janice Clark, President of BizMSolutions.
At BizMSolutions we cater to the small business owner. In fact the majority of our clients are mompreneurs who own their own business and are facing challenges with juggling a business, home and family. It’s that type of schedule that BizMSolutions can help with!
We assess your needs, create an action plan designed just for you and show you how to leverage tools such as Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn in order to build more profitable relationships around your brand.
To market and brand your business, a home-based business mom needs more than just a Facebook page, you need a fan page also. Everyone who clicks on as a fan can see whatever you include on the page. this is the beginning or a continuation of building your own tribe.
Your tribe will consist of like minded individuals and you will have the chance to flush out information, latest trends as well as have your updated blog post show up every time you add a new post. Keeping the fan page informative and entertaining will take some effort, but it’s worth it when you get queries through this page. It’s fairly easy to start a fan page.
First, it’s a click on “Advertising,” then “Pages,” and finally “Create a Page.” From there the only thing stopping the stay-at-home working mom is your imagination. There are a number of tabs already included such as “Discussion” and “Video” that can draw readers in. The wall is also customizable and can include pictures, video and blog. Include a daily or weekly update and people can leave comments just as they do on an individual’s page. You can connect your blog post your fanpage so it goes on all your fans’ news feeds. There are many applications that can enhance the page, make sure you check under the applications tab to take advantage of all the treats facebook fan page has in store.
When the page is complete, you can e-mail blast your family, friends and clients to let them know the page exists. I highly recommend you also announce the new page on your regular Facebook page. It’s a good idea to add a link on her Web site to the Facebook fan page and a link on your page to your Web site. Also, Google is very quick to put Facebook pages at the top of the list. The job is to get the page to go viral.
Even in a working mom’s busy day, it’s important to take the time to build (or have your Web designer, if your lucky enough to have one) a fan page. A fan page is the another avenue in the social media world and people are strolling along every day.
Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter. The Internet is full of social options to reach out and promote your business in addition to your Web page and your blog. But you have to use them wisely and carefully. Facebook is a good place to have not only a page, but also a site to collect fans. When you post info, all your fans get the post. LinkedIn is a site for business people to contact each other for business opportunities. Twitter can get a quick (remember, only 140 characters) message out to your database.
One important thing to keep in mind is that your personal accounts and your business accounts are not the same account. So, if you want to say you love going to Starbucks, do it on your personal account. Your business contacts don’t care.
Here are three guidelines for your business account:
1. Make sure what you post relates to your brand image. A lot of people post nonsense like the Starbucks comment and then expect to get a prospect. This won’t work. Stick to business. Tell the site what’s new with the business or if you have a public image, where you’ll be for a meet and greet.
2. Is your post inspiring or tiring? Sometimes if you run across something that gives you a lift, you can share it with your media friends as long as it pertains to business. It’s not about a new way to fold towels unless it gives you more time for your business. Of course, if you really do find a better way to do something, by all means, shout it out.
3. Are you taking your conversations offline to get to really know, like and trust your social media friends? Make sure your Internet contacts truly do have common interests as you. The Internet, even the social media pages, is anarchy, and you have to be on the lookout so that your business isn’t dragged down by someone who does not wish you well.
Used properly, social media can be used to as a tool to really reaching out and touching someone.
