According to Webster’s Dictionary, a workaholic is defined as, "somebody who has a compulsive need to work hard and for very long hours." A recent study conducted by Statistics Canada showed that almost one-third of employed Canadians aged 19 to 64 (31%) identify themselves as workaholics. This statistics only applies to the typical 'employed' individuals -- the numbers for self-employed, home-based business owners are much higher. The main reason for this increase can be summed up in one simple sentence: the majority of self-employed individuals believe that the more hours you work, the more income you earn. In my case, this was true. It wasn't until I found myself working almost 100 hours (or more!) per week when I realized that the income I was earning was coming at a very high price.
When I first started my home-based business, I had all the time in the world to plan, strategize, organize, write, work, meet, talk ... well, you get the idea. As long as my husband was at work, I was free to do all the things that I needed to do to earn income. My typical day would be to wake up at 7:00 am, 'commute' to my basement office, and work through the day, rarely taking a break, except to grab a quick meal to eat at my desk, and close my laptop when my husband returned home from his day at the office, usually around 7:00 pm. We would share a take-out dinner, and after cleaning up the dishes (a quick drop in the waste bin), I would sneak back downstairs and work some more, until bedtime at around 11:00 pm. This usually happened between six and seven days per week.
Fast forward to today, and I am still married, but with three children under the age of six, a four-bedroom, four-bathroom home, and running my own business from my home office. The typical days of yore are long gone, and my daily schedule has shifted dramatically. I now get up in the morning and "work" from home, just not as much in the office as I used to. My 100-hour work week has dropped to less than half that, and I spend time with my family during what I have voluntarily declared "family time." I do not schedule calls, meetings or deadlines during my family time. My responses to emails do not usually come during this allotted time space, nor do I try to accomplish large tasks in this timeframe. I have, what I consider to be, a very healthy work / life balance now, but this did not happen overnight.
When my first son was born, we expanded my office to include a play area for him when he no longer slept 20 hours per day. He had is own space right beside me that was safe and secure, and I was free to work on my computer while keeping constant watch over him. Once he began walking, his area became too confined and he was no longer content to simply play with his toys. His attention span was dwindling, and as all toddlers do, he began to demand more interaction from me.
The day of reckoning, for me, finally came when I was participating in a tele-conference seminar while my son was napping. Halfway through the call, I was distracted by his cries on the baby monitor. Given that he had only been asleep for about 15 minutes, I thought I could "sneak" away from the call for a couple of seconds to quickly go and soothe him back to sleep. The scene that awaited me proved otherwise. He had taken off his diaper, and *ahem* painted not only his crib rails, walls and blankets, but also himself -- from his toes to his hips. I had a choice. I could leave him in his crib for a minute, run back to the office, rejoin the call and graciously excuse myself, allowing me to return to tend to his artwork. However, I decided to take the opposite route. I decided that the call would have to wait, and while all of the participants silently wondered where I had disappeared to, I was bathing my one-year-old (incidentally, if I had had access to a hazmat suit, I would have gladly accepted!)
Needless to say, when I had all the sheets changed, and my son was back to sleep, I returned to the seminar call. It had ended -- without an opportunity for me to explain my absence. It was not a shock to me when I was not asked to return as a guest by the seminar speaker.
From that moment on, I decided that I needed to get a better balance of when and where I could conduct my business. I learned the importance of ensuring that I could work without being distracted. I no longer booked calls or meetings when there was a possibility of being interrupted, even if it was during a time that I could usually expect to work without any disturbance. The incident above taught me to "expect the unexpected."
I also learned that it was much easier to book "family" time than it was to book "work" time. Family tends to be a little more unpredictable, whereas the interruptions from work can be controlled. I choose when to respond to emails, I choose when to answer the phone (or turn it off completely), and I choose when to work on projects. Most days now, this happens when the older kids are at school, and after they have gone to bed at night. Some weekends, when I have an especially large project, I can enlist the help of other family members to spend some time with the kids, but for the most part, my work is performed when family time is finished.
So what about those without kids or other family responsibilities, you ask? The same rules apply. Only, "family time" becomes "me time." As you can see from the beginning of this article, when I did not have little ones to worry about, I fell into the workaholic trap, pushing myself between 16-18 hours per day. Not only did I neglect my relationship with my husband, but I also neglected my relationship with myself. We've all heard of "me time." This is not simply a catch-phrase. It is a REQUIREMENT! ... Many life coaches will tell you that you cannot simply find time for yourself, you need to make time for yourself. I never did that -- my life revolved around my business, and I actually thought that WAS me time! Now, I'm not telling you to neglect your business, but simply realize that it's important to take time out for yourself in the process. It could simply be a 20 minute brisk walk around the block, a coffee break with a friend, a hot bath in the evening with a good book. Take time out of your day to do whatever it takes to allow your mind to think about you, and ONLY you.
I'm sure you've heard the proverb, "All work and no play makes Jack a very dull boy." Some of us may know the second half as, "All play and no work makes Jack a mere toy." The idea behind the proverb is that there needs to be a balance in work and play. Too much of one is going to be detrimental to the other. Or, simply put, find your work / life balance. Amazingly, this sentiment can be found as far back as 2600 B.C., attributed to the very wise Egyptian Sage Ptah-Hotep, in his instructions where he states, "One that reckons accounts all the day passes not a happy moment. One that gladdens his heart all the day provides not for his house. The bowman hits the mark, as the steersman reaches land, by diversity of aim. He that obeys his heart shall command."
It may have taken decades to build the Great Pyramid, but I think it's safe to say that they probably had a great work / life balance.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Home Business Pitfall # 2 - Poor Accounting Practices (Part 2 of 7)
I will begin this post by apologizing for yesterday's article length. I will admit that it was a bit of a long read, however, I eel very strongly about the first pitfall because it seems to be the one that most people fall into without realizing it.
Nevertheless, I will continue on to the next pitfall -- poor accounting practices. The easiest way for me to explain this one is to tell my story, and what it cost me. Up until last year, not including my monthly invoicing to clients, I regularly allowed my accounting to fall behind each and every year. My fiscal year end is December 31, however, I have until June 30 to file my taxes with the federal government. Each year, I took full advantage of that six month window, and usually around April 30, I would begin to compile the previous year's accounting. I managed to file my taxes by August of each year, at which time I was always hit with a penalty and some interest because I always owed money on my taxes (because of my income level, I do not do monthly remissions).
Here's where the cost comes into play. If I were to go back and tally up all of the interest and penalties I have paid on my income tax, I could have hired a professional bookkeeper, if not accountant, to do all of the work for me. And, I would have saved myself tens of hours of work each year, during which I could have been doing billable work, and subsequently earning more income.
The first thing to do is get yourself electronic accounting software. I personally prefer QuickBooks because of its user-friendliness. If you are more advanced in your accounting knowledge, Simply Accountingis another great choice. And, if you do not wish to spend the capital on the software, you can always use Microsoft Excel (or another spreadsheet solution.) Alternatively, there are online accounting solutions available, such as QuickBooks Online Edition, where you can store your data offsite, and update it on the fly. And finally, if you have the available funds, hiring a bookkeeper to manage your day-to-day expense receipts is always beneficial. The important thing to remember, however, is to keep an electronic record of all of your income and expenses. The benefit to you is that you can always run reports to provide you with specific data, especially when it comes to tax time.
Nobody enjoys accounting and nobody enjoys paperwork. Okay, maybe there are a choice few who do, but for the most part, people dread keeping accounting records. But, if you enter in your receipts, expenses, bills, etc., AS THEY ARRIVE, trust me -- it no longer feels like accounting. It takes a couple of seconds to record your gas expense and quickly jot down your mileage (if this is a requirement in your home based business). The trick is to make sure you are only recording the necessary data! Don't try to include your kids’ toys that you bought for Christmas -- they don't count. If you really think about the trade off of what constitutes a legitimate expense and the time to enter it into your accounting system, it only makes sense to worry about the major ones.
Last year, I made a promise to myself to keep on top of my bills, and at tax time this year I was able to submit my return early -- yes, early! -- and saved myself from the pain of penalties and interest. My reward? This year, I get to hire someone else to do my tax return!
Nevertheless, I will continue on to the next pitfall -- poor accounting practices. The easiest way for me to explain this one is to tell my story, and what it cost me. Up until last year, not including my monthly invoicing to clients, I regularly allowed my accounting to fall behind each and every year. My fiscal year end is December 31, however, I have until June 30 to file my taxes with the federal government. Each year, I took full advantage of that six month window, and usually around April 30, I would begin to compile the previous year's accounting. I managed to file my taxes by August of each year, at which time I was always hit with a penalty and some interest because I always owed money on my taxes (because of my income level, I do not do monthly remissions).
Here's where the cost comes into play. If I were to go back and tally up all of the interest and penalties I have paid on my income tax, I could have hired a professional bookkeeper, if not accountant, to do all of the work for me. And, I would have saved myself tens of hours of work each year, during which I could have been doing billable work, and subsequently earning more income.
The first thing to do is get yourself electronic accounting software. I personally prefer QuickBooks because of its user-friendliness. If you are more advanced in your accounting knowledge, Simply Accountingis another great choice. And, if you do not wish to spend the capital on the software, you can always use Microsoft Excel (or another spreadsheet solution.) Alternatively, there are online accounting solutions available, such as QuickBooks Online Edition, where you can store your data offsite, and update it on the fly. And finally, if you have the available funds, hiring a bookkeeper to manage your day-to-day expense receipts is always beneficial. The important thing to remember, however, is to keep an electronic record of all of your income and expenses. The benefit to you is that you can always run reports to provide you with specific data, especially when it comes to tax time.
Nobody enjoys accounting and nobody enjoys paperwork. Okay, maybe there are a choice few who do, but for the most part, people dread keeping accounting records. But, if you enter in your receipts, expenses, bills, etc., AS THEY ARRIVE, trust me -- it no longer feels like accounting. It takes a couple of seconds to record your gas expense and quickly jot down your mileage (if this is a requirement in your home based business). The trick is to make sure you are only recording the necessary data! Don't try to include your kids’ toys that you bought for Christmas -- they don't count. If you really think about the trade off of what constitutes a legitimate expense and the time to enter it into your accounting system, it only makes sense to worry about the major ones.
Last year, I made a promise to myself to keep on top of my bills, and at tax time this year I was able to submit my return early -- yes, early! -- and saved myself from the pain of penalties and interest. My reward? This year, I get to hire someone else to do my tax return!
Home Business Pitfall # 3 - Lack of Professionalism (Part 3 of 7)
Professionalism. What exactly is that? It is such an all-encompassing word, and describes things such as your wardrobe, your correspondence, your office space, your language. There are so many areas that can be covered in this article, but I am only going to discuss one particular topic -- you and your home office. By this, I mean how you present yourself and your business to potential and existing clients.
When I am working, I am hidden in a virtual world where I communicate via email, phone and fax. I very, very rarely meet with clients face-to-face, and when I have done so in the past, I chose to meet them at a mutually agreed upon location (ie: coffee shop, library, etc.) This offers me many liberties as far as my personal appearance goes. I don't exactly 'work naked' but if I feel like wearing my pyjamas to the office, I do so. If my hair is running in ten different directions, that's okay too. If the shirt I am wearing is still sporting the coffee stain from the unfortunate spill that morning, no one is the wiser.
However, if you are running a business where customers or clients are visiting you at your home, you need to pay attention to these details. Not only do you need to ensure that your personal appearance reflects the type of business you are running, it is crucial that you have a designated business area that is kept neat and orderly, and one that you have confidence that you can meet with your client without interruptions. And you also need to ensure that these details are taken care of, even when you are not expecting a client to show up.
I'd like to share a story about how I learned (the hard way) that meeting with your clients at your home office can be a tricky, tricky business. A number of years back, I used to provide desktop publishing services to my clients. Most of them were either in far off cities or other provinces, except for one client whom I will call Jenny. She was a very important client, and most of my time was spent working with her on a number of projects. Usually, when I had completed a project, I would courier the finished product to her office location, but on one particular occasion, she asked if she could pick it up due to time constraints. Even though this was the first time I would meet Jenny face-to-face, I trusted her implicitly, so naturally I agreed. We arranged a time later that afternoon where she would come by my office (also my home, remember) to pick up the paperwork. I made sure I gave myself enough time to change my clothes, tidy my office and send my family out for a walk to avoid interruptions.
Jenny showed up at my door 45 minutes after hanging up the phone. You see, she was unexpectedly "in the area" and decided to stop in a little earlier than planned, and she hoped this was okay.
My hair was carelessly tossed into a lopsided ponytail, my clothes were mismatched and wrinkled, and I'm not even sure I had had an opportunity to brush my teeth. The office was a disaster -- paperwork strewn about, toys all over the floor, breakfast dishes still on my desk. I had just put my son down for his mid-day nap, which he was convinced he did not need, and his wails of protest permeated the house. The dog was barking to be let outside. The TV still blared an episode of "Barney" ... have I painted the picture for you?
Although I told Jenny that it was not a problem, in my head, I screamed, "NO -- it is definitely NOT okay!" But the damage had already been done. After excusing my appearance, the mess and the noise, I invited Jenny into my office for a moment while I grabbed the envelope. I handed it over to her, with further apology for the situation, to which she replied, "Don't give it a second thought! It's nice to know that you're actually a regular human being!" After she left, I thought about this comment quite a bit, and while it was comforting to know that she understood the situation, it was also depressing for me that she had once viewed me as a professional, and in one fleeting moment, that perception was destroyed.
Jenny remained a client of mine for a number of years following that experience, but I think something in our business relationship changed. Her email requests became less formal and my project quotes were no longer professionally prepared documents but simple emails. Nothing in the work performance lacked professionalism, mind you, but because I had lost that perceived level of professionalism, the relationship no longer demanded the same level of respect.
So you see, in the world of a home-based business, perception can be everything. You can be a highly-paid, highly-respected business owner to your clients, but make no mistake, that can be erased in the blink of an eye.
From that day forward, I always kept the thought in the back of my mind that someone could show up at the door at any minute. Whether it is from an existing client, or a potential client, we are all susceptible to the "pop in." I did everything in my power to keep the mess to a minimum, my appearance became more of a focal point, and I never, ever leave my dishes on my desk.
When I am working, I am hidden in a virtual world where I communicate via email, phone and fax. I very, very rarely meet with clients face-to-face, and when I have done so in the past, I chose to meet them at a mutually agreed upon location (ie: coffee shop, library, etc.) This offers me many liberties as far as my personal appearance goes. I don't exactly 'work naked' but if I feel like wearing my pyjamas to the office, I do so. If my hair is running in ten different directions, that's okay too. If the shirt I am wearing is still sporting the coffee stain from the unfortunate spill that morning, no one is the wiser.
However, if you are running a business where customers or clients are visiting you at your home, you need to pay attention to these details. Not only do you need to ensure that your personal appearance reflects the type of business you are running, it is crucial that you have a designated business area that is kept neat and orderly, and one that you have confidence that you can meet with your client without interruptions. And you also need to ensure that these details are taken care of, even when you are not expecting a client to show up.
I'd like to share a story about how I learned (the hard way) that meeting with your clients at your home office can be a tricky, tricky business. A number of years back, I used to provide desktop publishing services to my clients. Most of them were either in far off cities or other provinces, except for one client whom I will call Jenny. She was a very important client, and most of my time was spent working with her on a number of projects. Usually, when I had completed a project, I would courier the finished product to her office location, but on one particular occasion, she asked if she could pick it up due to time constraints. Even though this was the first time I would meet Jenny face-to-face, I trusted her implicitly, so naturally I agreed. We arranged a time later that afternoon where she would come by my office (also my home, remember) to pick up the paperwork. I made sure I gave myself enough time to change my clothes, tidy my office and send my family out for a walk to avoid interruptions.
Jenny showed up at my door 45 minutes after hanging up the phone. You see, she was unexpectedly "in the area" and decided to stop in a little earlier than planned, and she hoped this was okay.
My hair was carelessly tossed into a lopsided ponytail, my clothes were mismatched and wrinkled, and I'm not even sure I had had an opportunity to brush my teeth. The office was a disaster -- paperwork strewn about, toys all over the floor, breakfast dishes still on my desk. I had just put my son down for his mid-day nap, which he was convinced he did not need, and his wails of protest permeated the house. The dog was barking to be let outside. The TV still blared an episode of "Barney" ... have I painted the picture for you?
Although I told Jenny that it was not a problem, in my head, I screamed, "NO -- it is definitely NOT okay!" But the damage had already been done. After excusing my appearance, the mess and the noise, I invited Jenny into my office for a moment while I grabbed the envelope. I handed it over to her, with further apology for the situation, to which she replied, "Don't give it a second thought! It's nice to know that you're actually a regular human being!" After she left, I thought about this comment quite a bit, and while it was comforting to know that she understood the situation, it was also depressing for me that she had once viewed me as a professional, and in one fleeting moment, that perception was destroyed.
Jenny remained a client of mine for a number of years following that experience, but I think something in our business relationship changed. Her email requests became less formal and my project quotes were no longer professionally prepared documents but simple emails. Nothing in the work performance lacked professionalism, mind you, but because I had lost that perceived level of professionalism, the relationship no longer demanded the same level of respect.
So you see, in the world of a home-based business, perception can be everything. You can be a highly-paid, highly-respected business owner to your clients, but make no mistake, that can be erased in the blink of an eye.
From that day forward, I always kept the thought in the back of my mind that someone could show up at the door at any minute. Whether it is from an existing client, or a potential client, we are all susceptible to the "pop in." I did everything in my power to keep the mess to a minimum, my appearance became more of a focal point, and I never, ever leave my dishes on my desk.
Home Business Pitfall # 4 - Commitment Deficiency (Part 4 of 7)
When you decide to start a home-based business, there is one key ingredient that you must make absolutely sure you add to the mix. Commitment. Without it, the recipe for success is incomplete, and you will leave yourself exposed to the risk of failure.
A business is essentially a relationship, and as with all relationships, it requires dedication. The difference is that 99% of the commitment must come from you. It is not reciprocal because your business cannot be committed to you. Whether this is achieved through relationships with your clients, your partners or your suppliers, you must put forth your efforts fully, or things start to fall apart. This is not to say that you have to work 20 hours per day, 7 days per week (see Pitfall #1). I’m simply saying that when you contribute to the business, make sure that you give 110%.
Let me give you an example of what I have experienced when my dedication to the business faltered. A few years back, my husband was diagnosed with cancer. We were both self-employed at the time, and because of his surgery and subsequent treatments, he was unable to work to earn income. I was forced to pick up the slack and perform the work of two people to ensure the income level did not drop. During this time, I was also enrolled in training courses which I had to continue to participate in. In addition to taking care of my husband during his illness, I was also responsible for caring for our two young children and running the household. To put the icing on the cake, I became pregnant with our third child.
Given the situation, it is easy to see that my time and energy were stretched very thin, and there were many days where I just wanted to curl up in bed, close the blinds and sleep for a very, very long time. Unfortunately, I was not able to do this because I was needed by someone, every minute of every day. I became sleep deprived, my weight dropped to the lowest it had been since my early twenties, and ultimately, I began to neglect my responsibilities when it came to our business.
Thankfully, *most* of our clients understood what we were going through, and provided us with enough slack to focus on our health and our family. However, this was not the case with one client. Now, I have to be honest and in his defence, he was not fully aware of what we were going through. I was doing everything in my power to leave my personal life out of the business, and carry on as if everything was fine. I was trying to maintain a level of professionalism with this particular client for two reasons: he was a relatively new client and because of this fact, I honestly did not feel he would be as understanding as the others. The second reason was that it was a very large contract for us and I did not want to run the risk of losing it because, now more than ever, we needed the income.
Looking back, I probably should have explained the situation to the client, as I’m sure he would have understood why my commitment to him was not 110%. I did not return his phone calls right away, I missed deadlines with projects, and I basically dropped the ball. However, when he was no longer receiving the attention he warranted, he simply severed our relationship. My first instinct was to explain what had been going on in our lives and beg for a second chance, but I ultimately decided that it was best to let him go. I did not wish to play the “poor me” card, and agreed to terminate our contract. It was a tough pill for me to swallow, as it was a revenue loss in excess $16,000, however, it taught me a very valuable lesson.
Regardless of how much effort you put into the business, make sure that your efforts are the best they can be. If you are going to commit to something, commit to it fully and never over-commit to anything that might jeopardize your business practice.
A business is essentially a relationship, and as with all relationships, it requires dedication. The difference is that 99% of the commitment must come from you. It is not reciprocal because your business cannot be committed to you. Whether this is achieved through relationships with your clients, your partners or your suppliers, you must put forth your efforts fully, or things start to fall apart. This is not to say that you have to work 20 hours per day, 7 days per week (see Pitfall #1). I’m simply saying that when you contribute to the business, make sure that you give 110%.
Let me give you an example of what I have experienced when my dedication to the business faltered. A few years back, my husband was diagnosed with cancer. We were both self-employed at the time, and because of his surgery and subsequent treatments, he was unable to work to earn income. I was forced to pick up the slack and perform the work of two people to ensure the income level did not drop. During this time, I was also enrolled in training courses which I had to continue to participate in. In addition to taking care of my husband during his illness, I was also responsible for caring for our two young children and running the household. To put the icing on the cake, I became pregnant with our third child.
Given the situation, it is easy to see that my time and energy were stretched very thin, and there were many days where I just wanted to curl up in bed, close the blinds and sleep for a very, very long time. Unfortunately, I was not able to do this because I was needed by someone, every minute of every day. I became sleep deprived, my weight dropped to the lowest it had been since my early twenties, and ultimately, I began to neglect my responsibilities when it came to our business.
Thankfully, *most* of our clients understood what we were going through, and provided us with enough slack to focus on our health and our family. However, this was not the case with one client. Now, I have to be honest and in his defence, he was not fully aware of what we were going through. I was doing everything in my power to leave my personal life out of the business, and carry on as if everything was fine. I was trying to maintain a level of professionalism with this particular client for two reasons: he was a relatively new client and because of this fact, I honestly did not feel he would be as understanding as the others. The second reason was that it was a very large contract for us and I did not want to run the risk of losing it because, now more than ever, we needed the income.
Looking back, I probably should have explained the situation to the client, as I’m sure he would have understood why my commitment to him was not 110%. I did not return his phone calls right away, I missed deadlines with projects, and I basically dropped the ball. However, when he was no longer receiving the attention he warranted, he simply severed our relationship. My first instinct was to explain what had been going on in our lives and beg for a second chance, but I ultimately decided that it was best to let him go. I did not wish to play the “poor me” card, and agreed to terminate our contract. It was a tough pill for me to swallow, as it was a revenue loss in excess $16,000, however, it taught me a very valuable lesson.
Regardless of how much effort you put into the business, make sure that your efforts are the best they can be. If you are going to commit to something, commit to it fully and never over-commit to anything that might jeopardize your business practice.
Home Business Pitfall # 5 - Misplaced Trust (Part 5 of 7)
"Trusting too much to others' care is the ruin of many." I must admit, this is a very powerful quote by Benjamin Franklin. Fundamentally speaking, trust is one of the most important building blocks of any business relationship. But, place your trust with the wrong individual, and it can spell disaster.
All too often I hear stories from people who have had friendships, marriages, and even family relationships destroyed by a breach of trust. This is also true for business
relationships. You trust someone to pay you on time (or even at all!), you trust another to keep your confidential information safe. We even sign contracts between individuals and corporations to ensure that these things happen. Unfortunately, this is not always the case.
Admittedly, in most situations, individuals, and the companies that they might represent, are honest and trustworthy. There are, however, a few people out there who, whether it is willingly or unintentional, have a propensity for dishonesty. They may have good intentions, and circumstances out of their control may cause them to break the trust bond, however, on the other hand, they may intentionally misrepresent themselves with designs to cheat you from the beginning of your relationship. Your job, as a home-based business owner, is to identify and avoid these individuals. So how do you go about do that?
Although it is almost impossible to pick out a bad apple from the bushel without actually taking a bite of one, you do have one very effective built-in defence system -- good old fashioned gut instinct. Before you agree to begin any type of business relationship with someone, ask yourself, do you feel unsure about dealing with this person? Do they make you feel uncomfortable? Is there something nagging you in the back of your mind, sending warning signals that something might be wrong? If you answered yes to any of these questions, my advice is to tread carefully.
Not to be ignored, gut reaction is "an immediate and instinctive reaction, rather than a well-thought-out response," (source: Webster's Dictionary). While it is oftentimes argued that gut feelings do not bear any real truth, in very simplistic form, it has been scientifically proven that if your unconscious brain perceives any real danger, it will send warning signals to the digestive tract. This can be characterized as "butterflies in your stomach" or a general upset feeling in the abdomen, and although usually thought to be brought on when stress is induced, it can also be felt during situations which involve impending danger.
This is not to say that everyone you feel might be deceitful is, in fact, dishonest – it is more of a caveat. If you have a 'gut feeling' that someone might not be as honourable as they purport to be, choose your actions carefully. I have fallen victim to this on a couple of separate occasions, and I would like to share one of the more devastating situations. The story is a lengthy one, stretching over nearly two years, and still elicits feelings of embarrassment and regret, but I will try to impart the wisdom of the error of my ways in as brief and unemotional manner as possible.
One of my VIP clients had just expanded his empire by hiring a marketing consulting company, whom at first glance, seemed absolutely brilliant, professional and completely trustworthy. They came with glowing reviews and outstanding testimonials and references from previous clients -- you know the type. It was my job to work with the marketing team on a very up-close and personal basis, and in doing so, we formed a very cozy business relationship, which bordered on friendship.
I began to feel as though I could trust these people implicitly and even began working with them for their other clients. This continued for about a year, and during that time, their projects became so time consuming that I actually had to turn down outside work requests. Keep in mind that all throughout this time, my relationship was strictly with the marketing company, as we had a verbal agreement that I was not to contact any of their other clients directly. I fully respected that agreement.
It was when they began to hold back payment on invoices until projects were fully completed that the warning bells began to sound, and yet, I ignored my gut feelings, and my trust in their promises remained steadfast.
Over the course of the next year, the business relationship between the marketing company and my VIP client who originally introduced us began to crumble. In amongst all the dust and debris, the marketing team was very successful in convincing me that it was 'not their fault'and that I should continue to do business with them. Given that the disagreement between the two parties had zero involvement on my part, I continued to work with both companies in the same capacity as I had been doing in the past.
What I was not aware of, however, was that the marketing company was surreptitiously disparaging my reputation with my VIP client, laying blame for all of their misdeeds and mistakes on me, and effectively causing a rift between me and my VIP client. It was not until the damage had already been done that I was made privy to the false accusations.
Furthermore, and without warning, the marketing company decided that they were no longer responsible for paying me, and that I was supposed to have been invoicing their clients directly for work performed. (Huh? How on earth would I be able to do that if I was strictly forbidden from contacting them directly?) But I digress.
I'm sure you can probably piece together the remainder of the puzzle. Almost overnight, I found myself the victim of a first-class, very slick hustler, resulting in the loss of not only payment for invoices amounting to thousands of dollars, but the steady income of my VIP client. All because I placed too much trust in the care of one individual. It wasn't until months later that I discovered I was not the only one duped by this company. After doing some investigation, I uncovered many, many others that had been betrayed in much the same capacity.
The bottom line is this: if you are going to operate a home-based business, chances are you will be faced with similar situations where you will find yourself at a fork in the road. You will need to decide whether to go left or right, and in doing so, you may also be making the decision to trust one person over another. Follow your gut feeling. Trust your instinct. And for heaven sake, do not allow yourself to fall into pit of snakes that I did.
All too often I hear stories from people who have had friendships, marriages, and even family relationships destroyed by a breach of trust. This is also true for business
relationships. You trust someone to pay you on time (or even at all!), you trust another to keep your confidential information safe. We even sign contracts between individuals and corporations to ensure that these things happen. Unfortunately, this is not always the case.Admittedly, in most situations, individuals, and the companies that they might represent, are honest and trustworthy. There are, however, a few people out there who, whether it is willingly or unintentional, have a propensity for dishonesty. They may have good intentions, and circumstances out of their control may cause them to break the trust bond, however, on the other hand, they may intentionally misrepresent themselves with designs to cheat you from the beginning of your relationship. Your job, as a home-based business owner, is to identify and avoid these individuals. So how do you go about do that?
Although it is almost impossible to pick out a bad apple from the bushel without actually taking a bite of one, you do have one very effective built-in defence system -- good old fashioned gut instinct. Before you agree to begin any type of business relationship with someone, ask yourself, do you feel unsure about dealing with this person? Do they make you feel uncomfortable? Is there something nagging you in the back of your mind, sending warning signals that something might be wrong? If you answered yes to any of these questions, my advice is to tread carefully.
Not to be ignored, gut reaction is "an immediate and instinctive reaction, rather than a well-thought-out response," (source: Webster's Dictionary). While it is oftentimes argued that gut feelings do not bear any real truth, in very simplistic form, it has been scientifically proven that if your unconscious brain perceives any real danger, it will send warning signals to the digestive tract. This can be characterized as "butterflies in your stomach" or a general upset feeling in the abdomen, and although usually thought to be brought on when stress is induced, it can also be felt during situations which involve impending danger.
This is not to say that everyone you feel might be deceitful is, in fact, dishonest – it is more of a caveat. If you have a 'gut feeling' that someone might not be as honourable as they purport to be, choose your actions carefully. I have fallen victim to this on a couple of separate occasions, and I would like to share one of the more devastating situations. The story is a lengthy one, stretching over nearly two years, and still elicits feelings of embarrassment and regret, but I will try to impart the wisdom of the error of my ways in as brief and unemotional manner as possible.
One of my VIP clients had just expanded his empire by hiring a marketing consulting company, whom at first glance, seemed absolutely brilliant, professional and completely trustworthy. They came with glowing reviews and outstanding testimonials and references from previous clients -- you know the type. It was my job to work with the marketing team on a very up-close and personal basis, and in doing so, we formed a very cozy business relationship, which bordered on friendship.
I began to feel as though I could trust these people implicitly and even began working with them for their other clients. This continued for about a year, and during that time, their projects became so time consuming that I actually had to turn down outside work requests. Keep in mind that all throughout this time, my relationship was strictly with the marketing company, as we had a verbal agreement that I was not to contact any of their other clients directly. I fully respected that agreement.
It was when they began to hold back payment on invoices until projects were fully completed that the warning bells began to sound, and yet, I ignored my gut feelings, and my trust in their promises remained steadfast.
Over the course of the next year, the business relationship between the marketing company and my VIP client who originally introduced us began to crumble. In amongst all the dust and debris, the marketing team was very successful in convincing me that it was 'not their fault'and that I should continue to do business with them. Given that the disagreement between the two parties had zero involvement on my part, I continued to work with both companies in the same capacity as I had been doing in the past.
What I was not aware of, however, was that the marketing company was surreptitiously disparaging my reputation with my VIP client, laying blame for all of their misdeeds and mistakes on me, and effectively causing a rift between me and my VIP client. It was not until the damage had already been done that I was made privy to the false accusations.
Furthermore, and without warning, the marketing company decided that they were no longer responsible for paying me, and that I was supposed to have been invoicing their clients directly for work performed. (Huh? How on earth would I be able to do that if I was strictly forbidden from contacting them directly?) But I digress.
I'm sure you can probably piece together the remainder of the puzzle. Almost overnight, I found myself the victim of a first-class, very slick hustler, resulting in the loss of not only payment for invoices amounting to thousands of dollars, but the steady income of my VIP client. All because I placed too much trust in the care of one individual. It wasn't until months later that I discovered I was not the only one duped by this company. After doing some investigation, I uncovered many, many others that had been betrayed in much the same capacity.
The bottom line is this: if you are going to operate a home-based business, chances are you will be faced with similar situations where you will find yourself at a fork in the road. You will need to decide whether to go left or right, and in doing so, you may also be making the decision to trust one person over another. Follow your gut feeling. Trust your instinct. And for heaven sake, do not allow yourself to fall into pit of snakes that I did.
Home Business Pitfall # 6 – Failure To Communicate (Part 6 of 7)
The phrase, "What we’ve got here … is failure to communicate," is arguably one of the most memorable lines from the movie, Cool Hand Luke. This famous quote has been used time and time again in newspaper articles, books, blogs, legal cases, and the list goes on. The reason it has been used so often is that it accurately describes one of the most quintessential reasons for relationship breakdown, be it personal or business. Without effective communication between two parties, the relationship is destined for failure.
Contrary to what the image above may depict, I’m not talking about the breakdown in communication between men and women—that is an entirely different animal—I’m talking about the core communication between you and your customers, clients, partners, suppliers, and even employees.
Many, if not all, home-based business owners use email as their major method of communication, and although email is a very effective tool, if used improperly, it can be damaging for business. And, yes, I will concede that all of the other typical forms of communication are also used on a regular basis (ie: phone, mail, text, etc.) But the point that I am hoping to make is, what is missing from all of these tools? The answer is simple--interpersonal, physical contact.
In today’s technological and e-commerce world, you will most likely operate your home-based business within some form of a virtual environment. You are also likely to use tools such email, web conference and phone as your main methods of *meeting* with people. Again, although they are highly effective methods, the nature of these types of communication puts you at a disadvantage. You are essentially missing out on a crucial component of effective communication – non-verbal communication.
Charles Darwin is known for many things, one of which is the first scientific study of non-verbal communication in his book, The Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals (1872). In his book, Darwin discusses the impact of non-verbal communication and how it can be interpreted when dealing with individuals face-to-face. Non-verbal communication might include hand gestures, body movements, posture, physical contact, eye contact, and facial expressions. Other facets of non-verbal communication include emotion, mood, attitude, rhythm and intonation.
When using the telephone or other forms of ‘verbal’ communicators, conveying your emotions may be somewhat easier, but how do you accomplish this with text messaging or email? Some primitive methods have been developed for trying to convey our body language in print, for example, ‘emoticons’ (smiles, winks or frowns), or through capitalization of words (denotes yelling), but unless these tools are used correctly, the message may be poorly received.
Let’s take a look at an example. The following sentence could be a typical response to an email request, however, when I use the exact same words, each with different formatting, the sentence takes on two very different connotations (because this is not a grammar lesson, I will leave punctuation, sentence structure and word choice out of this.)
“Well that’s just great! :-) I understand what it is you are asking for, and I will definitely get back to you as soon as I have a free moment. Thanks a lot! :-)”
“Well that’s just great. I understand what it is you are asking for, and I will definitely get back to you as soon as I HAVE A FREE MOMENT. Thanks a LOT.”
In the first example, the tone of the response is upbeat and positive demonstrated by the use of emoticons. It lightens the mood, and gives the impression that the responder is pleased with the situation, and more than happy to oblige.
In the second example, the lack of emoticons erases the implied positive mood of the responder, and the addition of the capitalization of words that, in the first example, are received as positive, make them seem almost negative in that they are emphasized with a louder voice. The response now gives the impression that the responder is not exactly pleased with the customer asking for special attention, and is somewhat bothered by the intrusive request.
Let’s put this response into context. Imagine for a moment the request had come from a customer who, in his email, wrote, “Hi there, I have a $10,000 order to place, but I need it filled asap. I hate to be a bother, but would it possible to have the product delivered sooner than the 4-5 days? As soon as I hear back from you, I will give you the order.” Which response do you think your customer is going to want to receive? Most likely, the first example—I know I would. In fact, given the implied tone of the second reply, I would probably view is as a ‘bother’ to the recipient and take my business elsewhere.
If the customer had been on the phone with his request, he probably would have heard happiness (emotion) in the verbal response, in addition to ‘hearing’ a smile over the telephone (mood). Moreover, if the customer’s request had been in person, he would have seen delight (facial expression), might have witnessed a jump for joy(body language), and even may have received a hand-shake or a pat on the back (physical touch). You can begin to see the advantage that a face-to-face meeting would have over a potentially misunderstood email message.
Now, I know that I promised real-life examples of how I learned (the hard way) to avoid these pitfalls, but in the interest of keeping this post short(er), I think I will graciously opt out of this one. But I will say that I have not fallen victim to this particular blunder all too often. In fact, I have been referred to as an “emoticon addict” on many occasions, and I use them at every possible opportunity :-) I did have an example in mind, so maybe one day I’ll write a book,“Confessions Of A Home-Based Business Owner,” and go into detail then. But for now, I think the example above basically gets my point across.
The example given is just a very rudimental view of what can happen when a message in an email is misconstrued. What I’m hoping you will take away from all of this is, even though the message is intended to say one thing, it is actually how the reader receives the message that is important. I’ll say it another way. You may bethinking one thing in your mind as you compose an email, but it ishow the reader perceives the message on the other end that ultimately decides what the message is saying.
I would like to be clear on one thing, I’m not here to discuss the dangers of using email as a form of communication—again, that’s an entirely separate topic. What I do want to stress is that understanding how you communicate your message, whether it is on the phone or by email, is just as important, if not more important, than the message itself.
Home Business Pitfall # 7 – Falling Through On Promises (Part 7 of 7)
I left this topic for last because it is the most important point I wanted to make, the most difficult pitfall to avoid and, without question, the one that I have tumbled into the most often. Falling through on promises.
There are a number of clichés that can be used in this situation, such as, “don’t make promises you can’t keep,” or “your mouth is writing cheques your body can’t cash.” Ironically, and contrary to one of the most popular quotes about promises, they are not meant to be broken. This is true for all aspects of life, including your home-based business.
Right now, you are probably thinking that I am going to extol the virtues of the ever-popluar phrase, “under-promise and over-deliver, ” and while I am going to discuss the concept, it is not in the manner in which most people would suspect. You see, the idea of under-promising and over-delivering is not exactly a new theory—there are tons of executives and CEO’s of large corporations who abide by that rule. One in particular is Howard Shultz, CEO of Starbucks. In his book, "Pour Your Heart Into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time"
, Harold takes you through the process of following his dream and he admits that every step of the way, he made a point to under promise and over deliver. So,if it worked for the CEO of Starbucks, it must be good for you too, right? Not necessarily so. Let me explain a little further.
There are a number of clichés that can be used in this situation, such as, “don’t make promises you can’t keep,” or “your mouth is writing cheques your body can’t cash.” Ironically, and contrary to one of the most popular quotes about promises, they are not meant to be broken. This is true for all aspects of life, including your home-based business.
Right now, you are probably thinking that I am going to extol the virtues of the ever-popluar phrase, “under-promise and over-deliver, ” and while I am going to discuss the concept, it is not in the manner in which most people would suspect. You see, the idea of under-promising and over-delivering is not exactly a new theory—there are tons of executives and CEO’s of large corporations who abide by that rule. One in particular is Howard Shultz, CEO of Starbucks. In his book, "Pour Your Heart Into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time"
, Harold takes you through the process of following his dream and he admits that every step of the way, he made a point to under promise and over deliver. So,if it worked for the CEO of Starbucks, it must be good for you too, right? Not necessarily so. Let me explain a little further.The first time I ever failed to meet a deadline with one of my clients, I was subjected to the phrase, “under-promise and over-deliver.” Cringing with guilt, I made a solemn promise to myself that I would follow this to a tee. When I promised a client I would have a project completed by, say Tuesday, I tried to deliver it the Friday beforehand. When I quoted a client a particular price on a project, I tried to ensure that the costs came in lower than expected. Initially, I only did this to give myself a bit of a ‘cushion’ so that if it happened to take an extra day or two to complete a job, no one was the wiser. And, if expenses came in a little higher than anticipated, I did not have to pay for them out of my own pocket. Conversely, if I was able to deliver earlier, at a lower cost, the client was genuinely pleased.
As I became more adept at estimating time and costs, it was easier for me to judge the time and money needed to complete a project. More often than not, my estimates often included a day or two more, a dollar or two more, simply to allow me to under-promise and over-deliver on just about every occasion. But then a strange phenomenon began to occur. My clients gradually expected me to over-deliver on my promises!
Suppose I had indicated a Tuesday delivery for a project. My client would expect to have the project in hand on the preceding Friday. If the project cost did not come in lower than originally quoted, the client would suspect they were being overcharged. I had essentially created a self-conflicting dilemma – the dreaded “Catch-22.” It seemed that if I promised a particular date, I was now expected to exceed the promised deadline. And, if I failed to do so, somehow I was falling through on my promise.
Granted, if I committed to meet a certain deadline, and I did meet that deadline, technically speaking, I was not letting the client down, but merely keeping my word. However, the ultimate goal of the concept of under-promise and over-deliver is to set expectations and then exceed them in the eyes of whomever it is you are making the promise to. The problem I was faced with was that I had over-delivered on so many occasions, the client’s expectations were already set in their mind, and for me to over-deliver, in the truest sense, I now had to begin producing deliverables a day or two earlier than the original over-deliver date. Dizzying, isn’t it?
So, now that I found myself swimming in a vortex of illogical conflict, it raised the question, “how does one avoid falling through on promises?” The answer is simple. When you make a promise, choose your words carefully, and follow through on your word exactly as you gave it. If you promise someone you will call them at a specific time, call them at that time. If you promise your customer that the order will be delivered the next day, make sure it is delivered the next day. No more and no less.
Now, please do not misunderstand me -- I am not saying you should aim to underachieve in your goals. If you promised your client a return on investment of $100,000 and you are able to over-deliver an ROI of $200,000, that is certainly cause for celebration. Just be careful the next time you promise a ROI of $100,000 and you are only able to produce $50,000. Because you over-delivered the last time, theexpectation is already there on the part of your client, and he or she will likely be twice as disheartened by your failure to live up to your promise the second time around.
Having said all this, it is imperative that you do not to fall into thesub-pitfall of falling through on your promises. Making promises you simply cannot keep. By this, I mean, if you have zero control over a third-party’s involvement in a transaction, for example, a courier’s delivery time, do not make any promises on their behalf. Only commit to aspects in which you have complete control over. For instance, when a project requires that I publish to the Internet, my words are chosen carefully, and I will always promise to have the material ready to publish at a certain time. But when it comes to when it will be published, I make no such promises. I know that I have zero control over the status of servers and Internet connections, and if my ISP is experiencing delays or outages, of if the server is down for maintenance, I have set myself up for a potential broken promise.
I would like to share a personal example of a time that I actually did fall through on a promise, one which I thought I was secure in making, but as it turned out, it was one I could not possibly keep. A client of mine wanted to deliver a time sensitive email to his entire customer list. He provided the email content; all I had to do was send it to everyone on the list. This was not a spam-based project – I do not deal in spam – it was a legitimate list of his customer base. I promised I would send the email on the specific date, even if it meant working into the late evening hours.
For this particular project, I decided to use my own mail server, and because of the large quantity of emails that I had anticipated being sent, I contacted my ISP beforehand to ensure that the email would not be stopped at the server level due to the unusually high volume. The technical support rep that I spoke with assured me that the emails would not be flagged, and that I would not experience any difficulty sending them out.
That evening, I spent approximately five hours “monitoring” the progress of the email delivery. I was watching for errors, undeliverable emails, and any other glitch that might have happened. The status report that I received indicated that there were approximately 25 emails that did not get sent due to incorrect email formatting, missing information, or other expected reasons. The report also indicated that approximately 1,600 emails were delivered to the intended recipients.
You can imagine the sick feeling in my stomach when the client called me the next day asking when the email was going to be delivered.What? I was dumbfounded. I had already sent the email – to 1,600 people! But for some reason, they were never received.
Upon further investigation, I discovered that, yes, the emails were sent from my end, hence, the successful send report. However, my ISP’s server stopped delivering them after the first 250 emails. Why?Because it was flagged as spam due to the high volume. The technical support rep that I had originally spoken to was grossly misinformed, and there was simply nothing I could do about it except to put my tail between my legs and beg my client’s forgiveness. Surely my ISP was not going to call my client and apologize on my behalf. No, the onus was on me. I made the promise and I failed to deliver. What is even worse is that my client had promised HIS customers that they would receive the information at a specific time, which obviously did not happen. So, by my failure to follow through with my promise, I essentially caused another to fall through on his promise.
It took only three days before my client phoned me to let me know he had, understandably, contracted the services of an online contact management company, and that I was no longer needed to deliver email messages to his customers. It was an expensive lesson to learn given the amount of business it caused me to lose, but let me assure you, even if I receive written guarantees from a third-party, I no longer make promises on their behalf.
Now, I know I have used the word ‘promise’ a lot in this article, but only because it is such an important word. But it is not just a word. According to Webster’s Dictionary, a promise is “to assure somebody that something will certainly happen or be done.” Those are some pretty powerful words – assure, will and certainly. They leave no room for ambiguity, no allowance for maybe, and there is no tolerance for failure. A promise, is a promise, is a promise. And falling through on one can potentially be one of the most costly mistakes you can make.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Home Based Business Ideas
Over the next few weeks, I am going to discuss a number of home based business ideas and what it takes to get them started (and keep them running!) Among these ideas, I will be providing information on the following businesses you can operate from your home (or at least near your home).
Affiliate Programs Online
Bookkeeping/Accounting Service
Business Consultant
Candy Wrapping Company
Cloth Diaper Service
Concierge Service
Court Recorder
Data Entry Services
Daycare / Child Care
Dog Treat Bakery
Dog Walking
Doggie Daycare
Ebay Entrepreneur
Editorial Services
Forum Moderation Services
Ghost Writing
Gift Basket Making
Graphic Design
Internet Marketing Guru
Kid’s Cake Baking and Decorating
Kid’s Hair Cutting Service
Medical Transcription
Midwifery / Doula Services
Music Instruction
Mystery Shopping
Personal Chef
Personal Cooking Instructor
Personal Fitness Trainer
Pet Sitting
Professional Organization Service
Santa Claus Letter Writing
Scrapbooking Business
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Company
Telemarketing Services
Telephone (and Email!) Answering Service
Transcription / Dictation Service
Tutoring Service
Virtual Assistant
Voiceover Recording
Website Content Developer
Website Design
Affiliate Programs Online
Bookkeeping/Accounting Service
Business Consultant
Candy Wrapping Company
Cloth Diaper Service
Concierge Service
Court Recorder
Data Entry Services
Daycare / Child Care
Dog Treat Bakery
Dog Walking
Doggie Daycare
Ebay Entrepreneur
Editorial Services
Forum Moderation Services
Ghost Writing
Gift Basket Making
Graphic Design
Internet Marketing Guru
Kid’s Cake Baking and Decorating
Kid’s Hair Cutting Service
Medical Transcription
Midwifery / Doula Services
Music Instruction
Mystery Shopping
Personal Chef
Personal Cooking Instructor
Personal Fitness Trainer
Pet Sitting
Professional Organization Service
Santa Claus Letter Writing
Scrapbooking Business
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) Company
Telemarketing Services
Telephone (and Email!) Answering Service
Transcription / Dictation Service
Tutoring Service
Virtual Assistant
Voiceover Recording
Website Content Developer
Website Design
The 7 Pitfalls To Avoid In Your Home Based Business
After running my own business for the past decade or so, I have learned a few things about what might work, what does work, and what absolutely does not work no matter what. In that jumble of knowledge, I have also learned a thing or two along the way that are what I call The 7 Pitfalls To Avoid In Your Home Based Business. These are not the typical pitfalls that you may read about, for example, stay away from 'get-rich-quick' schemes, avoid envelope stuffing scams, etc. These are real life, been-there-done-that examples of situations where I had egg on my face.
The benefit to you is that I have already learned from these mistakes, did my best to avoid repeating them, and now I would like to impart some of this wisdom. These pitfalls are not to be taken lightly, and as such, I have decided to break it out into a series. I will be expanding on each point over the next 7 posts to ensure that each one is explained properly and extensively.
1. Work / Life Balance
2. Poor Accounting Practices
3. Lack Of Professionalism
4. Committment Deficiency
5. Misplaced Trust
6. Failure To Communicate
7. Falling Through On Promises
Remember, I have fallen victim to each and every one of these pitfalls and I hope to help you avoid them. In the next post, I will cover the first point, Work / Life Balance. I will show you how I cured myself of the workaholic syndrome, as well as the “I-don’t-feel-like-working-today” blues.
The benefit to you is that I have already learned from these mistakes, did my best to avoid repeating them, and now I would like to impart some of this wisdom. These pitfalls are not to be taken lightly, and as such, I have decided to break it out into a series. I will be expanding on each point over the next 7 posts to ensure that each one is explained properly and extensively.
1. Work / Life Balance
2. Poor Accounting Practices
3. Lack Of Professionalism
4. Committment Deficiency
5. Misplaced Trust
6. Failure To Communicate
7. Falling Through On Promises
Remember, I have fallen victim to each and every one of these pitfalls and I hope to help you avoid them. In the next post, I will cover the first point, Work / Life Balance. I will show you how I cured myself of the workaholic syndrome, as well as the “I-don’t-feel-like-working-today” blues.
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