Working at Home?

My local paper did an article on working from home, and as a subset of that main topic, the journalist talked about those of us who work from home while home educating our children. Here's the link: http://ydr.inyork.com/ci_11674263

I am so glad this hit the news again, as one of my biggest career goals is to promote the powerful lifestyle of operating a home based business. I also happen to believe that more folks need to home educate their children, but that's a topic for another blog....

Having a home based business comes with many challenges. But in an unstable economic environment, taking on that challenge can be one of the best moves a person can make.

The tax benefits are an obvious perk. But beyond that, "owning" your ability to create money and build something that reflects YOU as an individual, while also preserving your desire to be present in the lives of your family members, is a priceless combination.

Home based businesses run the gamut from folks who just want to dabble a bit by making a few bucks indulging a passion or hobby, to those who really "work" the business aspect and establish a mini-empire for themselves.

Regardless of which end of the spectrum in which you fall, embracing the entrepreneurial spirit helps your grow personally as well. Learning how to promote and market yourself and your business often requires skills that you might not ordinarily use associate with business building.

For example, building relationships is the key to building business. Most women are great at relationship building, yet shy away from this when it comes to product/service promotion. Overcoming that mental block allows you to see ways in which you can enhance the lives of those around you, while also making some money in the process.

People are still spending money out there. They might not be purchasing big ticket items like houses and cars. But they are still buying makeup, small home decor items, jewelry, home-related services, and personal coaching services. They are still wanting to create healthy lives for themselves and their families, and are hungry for that information and support to make changes in that direction.

You CAN provide that! And do it from home....

To Your Continuing Prosperity,
Anita

Weekend Warrior...or doggie guilt?

Well, no, I'm not a weekend warrior. I don't like to do too much work on the weekends (I do answer client emails and inquiries from prospective clients). But the past several weeks have been so jam packed, a Saturday with little on the agenda almost screams out, "HEY! Catch up on some work!"

So here I sit, chugging through my to-do list, making some headway. Of course it feels great, and the reality is that, as a business owner, my hours are flexible and fluid. The trick is to make sure that balance is maintained most of the time.

I suppose if I cared less about spending time with the family during the week, I could have accomplished a bit more and had the "whole" weekend for family time. Or I could have worked a lot and then spent the weekend catching up on school work with the boys.

But neither of those options feels good for me. I prefer that most of my days reflect the things that are most important to me. I tell my clients that a stranger should be able to look at your weekly schedule and determine exactly what are your most important priorities and values.

I like to take that one step farther and make each DAY reflect the things I value the most. Homeschooling is always my first priority, but occassionally that takes a back seat to my speeches, meetings, or trainings. Not often, but sometimes.

With the remaining time I work my career. And for the last 15 or so minutes of the day I MIGHT clean my house....but that is a big "MIGHT!" Wish I could keep a neater house, but it is NOT going to happen!

Lately, I've been very busy - I have new clients, I am fielding quite a few requests for speaking engagements, and I'm writing an e-book....oh, and another print book.

So a Saturday spent catching up makes sense for me. And because I consciously design my schedule, I have no guilt.

OK, not entirely true - my dogs are sitting here staring at me, trying to will me to take them for a walk. Hey, what's wrong with me that I don't feel any guilt from my kids, but my DOGS pull on my guilt strings???

Does that mean my carefully crafted balance is actually not sufficient? And since when are dogs allowed to provoke guilt in humans?

Sigh....I'm bagging the rest of my to-do list this morning....now, where are their leashes....?

To Your Continuing Prosperity,
Anita

Joys of Business Ownership

I never thought I'd ever own a business. Growing up, I kind of always knew I wanted to be a psychologist and help people change their behaviors so they can be healthier and happier. But run a business? Never even on my radar screen.

So when I decided to quit my job as a psychologist at a hospital and start a coaching practice on my own, I faced a steep learning curve. I was attracted by the flexibility of coaching from my home (it's all by telephone), but I never learned how to run the BUSINESS of coaching.

For that matter, I never learned the BUSINESS of running a therapy practice. I had a sucessful one because I was affliated with a busy hospital-based medical practice.

In graduate school, there were no classes on business building, marketing, accounting/money management, and building a web presense. I always thought I'd hang out my shingle as a coach with a Ph.D. and clients would magically flock to pay for my services.

It probably won't shock you when you hear that, in fact, it did not happen that way. I had to do what all of YOU do: learn the basics of internet marketing, learn how invaluable networking is, and learn the importance of "getting yourself out there."

At first, these tasks felt overwhelming. Why couldn't I just concentrate on doing what I do best - partnering with people towards optimal performance??? I even resented having to do all of that other stuff.

Eventually I got over it. And you know what? I've even come to ENJOY much of it. One of the reasons I enjoy it so much is because I get to know so many fascinating people along the way.

Through my various marketing efforts, I've had the enormous pleasure of encountering some of the most talented and interesting folks I have ever met. And in all likelihood, I would not have had that pleasure if I didn't "have" to market myself.

It's funny where I find gifts in life....often times as a direct result of something I'd been resisting.

Here's to the hidden joys!

To Your Continuing Prosperity,
Anita