I know what you’re thinking, “Not another New Year resolutions post!” You’re right, they’re everywhere at the moment. We’re three weeks into 2018 and we’re being hit left, right and centre with New Year resolution suggestions for our personal life, work life, family life etc. It’s a little overwhelming.
The thing is - these articles all have a point. The New Year is the perfect time to reassess your business goals and strategies, to reflect on what you learned over the previous year and to implement new ideas that can take your business forward. Late last week, I came across a post on LinkedIn from a gentleman explaining that whilst attending an event, he was nervous about being asked, “So, where are you based?” because he was unsure of the potential stigma upon announcing that he worked from home, not in an office.
With Work from Home week coming up from the 15th – 21st January, I decided to explore this a little further to identify the benefits of working from home. We’ve all been there - that long, seemingly impenetrable to-do list that just won’t reduce, no matter what you do.
You’ve spent days trying to tackle it, but rather than see the number of items diminish, you seem to simply be adding yet more jobs to an already unmanageable list. What gives? Actually - technology! If you’re battling like this every day at work, there’s a strong chance you’ve developed an unhealthy reliance on tech to get stuff done (and let’s be honest, it isn’t working, is it?). Here’s what you need to do: Confession time: I live by my to-do list.
Without it, I’d have to sack myself, because I’d get absolutely nothing done. I’d miss deadlines, prioritise the wrong stuff and never make headway on the biggest tasks. However, just like anyone who relies on a to-do list to get through the day, I know the perils of falling behind. Unfortunately, it’s not always that obvious when you’re losing ground on your tasks. Often, the degree to which you’re becoming overwhelmed with work creeps up on you unawares. Today, you can learn from my mistakes, with these five killer signs that you’re over-stretching that to-do list: For the last few years, my home has been my office.
This followed years of working in a traditional office environment where I was surrounded by colleagues who put water cooler discussions before getting stuff done and phones which never seemed to cease ringing. The switch has transformed both my life and the amount of satisfaction I derive from work. Alas, this wouldn’t be possible without the following six productivity mantras: Any great employer will understand that their employees make for the success of the company.
Productivity is often an indicator of morale within a working environment. If employees are unhappy, then productivity will be low, and if productivity is low, then the success of the company will plummet. Here are some simple steps to follow to ensure the happiness of your employees and the success of your business: The emergence of the gigging economy has given rise to the virtual assistant, resulting in quite possibly the most convenient marriage of work-life balance and productivity imaginable.
Freelancing is a popular career stepping stone for many, yet with this form of work comes a raft of responsibilities that such people are unlikely to have contended with before. Invoicing, call handling and basic office administrative duties are essential when you work for yourself, but can be nothing more than a distraction when just starting out Working from home can be the life saver that your small business needs. You can cut overheads, claim back a percentage of your household running expenses and, if you outsource, you can cut staffing costs too.
However, working from home isn't without it's challenges but with these four tips you can stay productive and make the most out of running your small business from home. Is time slipping away?
Do you find that at the end of each day you have more to do than when you started? Time is precious and a great many small business owners could do with more of it. It's easy to feel overwhelmed and overworked when faced with the challenges of running a small business, but my top 5 time management tools are easy to use, quick to learn and will save you heaps of time. All of these tools offer free plans which provide a great range of features including all of those mentioned below: How much time each day do you spend actually making money? Now how much time do you spend answering emails, posting to social media, writing this weeks' blog post or doing other unpaid admin tasks?
You can save yourself money today by outsourcing one or more of these tasks that take up more time than you think: |
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