Six Sigma Blogs

Tired of waking up at the crack of dawn, running around trying to get ready and then sitting in traffic jams everyday no matter what time you leave? So was I until I found the awesome world of owning a home business. Now I make that long trek to my comfy desk chair about 8:00, in my sweats and not having a care in the world about making it to work on time. These are just some of the perks of owning your own home business.

Ok enough of the pleasantries, because as wonderful as working at home is, you must possess some great skills to find success at it. I am talking about time management and organization. If you are not careful, the comfort and distractions of having a home business can also be the doom of the very same thing. You have to find ways to ignore the laundry, cleaning and cooking that seems to be calling you throughout the day and make sure you stay on the task at hand. To help you accomplish just that, I have come up with a few tips that might make your life easier.

1: Be honest with yourself. The first thing I had to do was ask myself a group of questions. Can I do this? Do I have what it takes to stay focused amid daily routine household distractions? Can I work to meet the deadlines while still retaining my freedom that I worked so hard to achieve? Freedom is great but it doesn’t pay the bills and if you don’t have the focus you need, this could be a disaster waiting to happen. Before you give a home based business a go, ask yourself the tough questions and try your best to answer them honestly.

2: This is a real job. - At times, working from home may seem like a fairytale - but it is indeed a fulltime real job. Even though you have the luxury of avoiding all the traditional workplace drama, you still need to get a full days work in. Lounging around the house does not pay the bills all by itself. You need to set a schedule and follow it everyday to make sure you are working to the fullest extent. You might want to set times for breaks and lunch just like you would in a traditional job.

3: Is accountability your strong suit? - If it is not and you do get distracted easily, you may want to appoint an accountability partner. A spouse fits that description well because they are looking out for what is best for you and the family as a whole. Check in with each other a couple of times a day to get a status report and use it as a way to gauge your activity.

4: Separate church and state. To manage your time working at home efficiently, you have to decide what you spend your hours on. Sometimes it is hard to explain to your family the difference between work time and family time. Once the workday is over, focus entirely on your family, and don’t let business intrude on your time with them.

5: Get organized. - Do you have everything in its designated place or are you constantly searching through stacks of paper to locate your projects? In order to find real success, you need to incorporate organization in your business life. So much time can be wasted if your office environment is nothing but chaos.

I hope these tips will help you with managing your time when it comes to your home based business. Having the right frame of mind and organization can be the real difference in your success.

Glyna Humm assists home business entrepreneurs obtain success through step-by-step mentoring, marketing tips and strategies. To learn more about one of her unique, proven opportunities visit Let Me Help You During These Tough Economic Times

There’s a saying, “Selling is a numbers game” so the M.U.D. marketing method might be familiar to you…

This marketing strategy is based on the idea, “If you throw enough ‘mud’ on the wall, some of it will stick and you’ll make money.”

Disguised as a quick and easy method, M.U.D. Marketing finds people who are eager for your product or service. Among new business owners, this tops the list of favorite marketing strategies.

On the very surface, the M.U.D. methods appears to have an approach where business owners don’t have to waste resources research target markets and just sell to everyone while awaiting profits.

M.U.D. marketing makes you “look” busy but not productive. You produce very little results for your time, effort and money.

Think about it. You have a pile of mud right next to you. Let’s make it a big pile. You grab a handful and start throwing it at the wall.

Looking at the wall, what did you hit? Without knowing your target you continue to sling even more mud.

With so much mud, you could spend quite a bit of time before you use all the mud. Then you learn that the target was the plaque over the coffee center. You only hit that a few times.

The true meaning of M.U.D is Market Un-Determined or Marketing Un-Defined.

Both words spell out disaster for your business.

What if you took the time to find the target on that wall? Your results would be much different wouldn’t they?

Taking the time to research and identify your target market may seem like it’s going to take longer before you see results. In reality, it speeds up the process of achieving your goal…profitable business. You’ll see those results with reduce effort and time.

To identify your Target Market, ask yourself these questions:

1. What is the problem your product or service solves?

2. What benefit will the client enjoy?

3. Who is the person with this problem?

4. What does that person look like? Male or Female or Both Stay at home mom or power executives. Are they baby boomers or students? Where do they hang out? What hobbies do they enjoy doing? etc.

Create a picture of your ideal consumer in great description.

M.U.D. marketing keeps you knocking your brains out trying to sell to a gazillion people when only a limited number really want what you offer. Is it any wonder you feel frustrated with your efforts.

If you feel stuck, stop practicing M.U.D. marketing and wasting valuable resources such as time.

If you continue trying to sell to everyone, you will end up selling to no one. And think of the cleaning bills to get that mess out of the carpet and off the wallpaper.

Time management really is a problem for a lot of entrepreneurs. They have so much they do themselves ” everything from the mundane to the important and it can simply overwhelm you.

Make the most of your business hours, using these 7 fast time management tips to help you manage your business day:

1. Create an action list that goes one step further.

Make a task list for that day. You can do this the night before or first thing in the morning. Prioritize the tasks by categorizing things that are essential and things that can wait. Then, rank those actions by numbering them in order of importance.

2. Bundle your tasks.

You can bundle certain chores together. For example, set aside a time block to return and make all your calls will help you avoid task jumping

3. Bundle your tasks.

Do like activities at the same time: answer all your calls, return all emails, do all your web work. Avoid task jumping that eats up time you could use for more productive efforts.

4. Just do it.

If you work at home with small children, include them in your plan. You can care for your children and operate your business if write the kids into your task list.

5. Bring a file or notebook along to take advantage of time gaps.

If you have your file with you, you can make notes or plan while you wait for an appointment. You can punch out a quick thank-you note to a customer on your laptop or blackberry, or even update the status of all your current projects.

6. Carry work with you to take advantage of time gaps.

Bring materials with you. If you need to wait 10 minutes before an appointment, you can punch out a quick thank-you note to a customer on your laptop, or even just update the status of all your current projects.

7. Give yourself a break.

Superman is just a comic book figure. Hes not real. And hes not you. No one can run wide open from daybreak to dusk. Breaks are critical to your success. Include down time in your time management strategy. Lean back in your chair and close your eyes. Prop your feet up for 5 minutes. Recharge your batteries, and you’ll be amazed at how much more you’ll get done.

Time management in reality is activity management. How you manage your activities makes all the difference.

The 80-20 Rule of Pareto states that 20% of what you do will make 80% of your results. This goes against traditional time management layouts.

The 80-20 Rule or Pareto’s Principle was discovered by Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto. He noticed a natural imbalance that greatly affects everything in this world… your life… your business… everyday.

He noted that 20% of the world’s population enjoyed 80% of the wealth but soon discovered this law of nature appears everywhere.

Just think…. only 20% of what you do produces your desired results… the other 80%… may not count for much… waste of your time and efforts.

A Simple Time Management Strategy

Identifying and focusing on activities that are important to you and identifying and removing unnecessary activities - this is the definition of time management.

Traditional Time Management focuses on cramming and adding stuff into your day. It feeds the employee mentality need to always appear busy working hard at one’s ‘real’ job. Not a good idea for the solopreneur.

When a business experiences success, the owner starts drowning in the Multiplicity of Stuff Syndrome. The solopreneur really feels the effects of this syndrome. Not only are they the CEO (chief executive officer) of their business… they are also Chief Everything Officer.

They end up spending the bulk of their day on the 80% that does not produce results or profits.

Divide All Your Activities Into Four Activity Zones

- high-profit activities - high-reward activities - low/no profit activities - low/no reward activities

With high-profit/high-reward activities, devote 20% of your time- Work ON your business.

Devote 80% of your time to the low-no profit/low-no reward activities - Working IN your business

Following this strategy enables you to continue growing your business profits while dealing with day to day stuff of running your business.

How can 20% add to increased productivity and less work hours for your business? 20% can make momentous impact towards the success you want to achieve.

Try These Five Strategies to Help You Increase Your Productivity

1. Attain Organization

People loose about 7 hours each week due to disorganization. Organize your office into productive environment. As a business owner, you can create your work environment. It’s critical toward your long term success to work in an environment which supports you.

2. Create time synergy

Some people are night owls other are early bird. When you know which type you are, you can schedule your task and projects more effectively around your energy cycle.

3. Go Into Super Focus Mode

Limit access to yourself… turn off the phone, email and twitter. No interruptions. Set a timer and stay 100% focused on the task at hand. Group your tasks in bunches. Return emails and phone calls at the same time. Do all your writing in chunks, dedicate certain days for project, etc.

4. Take Care of Yourself

Self neglect can cause tension on any business through increased stress and strain. Keep personal health a priority as it is effective in good business management.

5. Relax and refresh

Sometimes when you feel overwhelm and pressure, take a brain break. Let your mind wander for a few minutes. Taking a quick break almost always leads to a boost in productivity.

Choose one strategy at a time to complete, take time, assess, and have flexibility and realism to projected goals.

These 10 time management tips will put more time in your day.

1. Take Time to Plan

Just 15 minutes of daily planning can dramatically improve your productivity. The next time you’re tempted to rush right into doing something, pause to plan. You’ll also reduce stress and avoid crisis management.

2. What Do You Want?

Before you can get anything done, you need to know what you want to accomplish. Goals will provide a direction on where to spend your time.

3. Flexibility Rules

Allow time for interruptions, distractions and opportunities. Life happens.

4. Five-Minute Power Breaks for Energy

Five minute power breaks can invigorate and boost energy levels. Take plenty of during day. You can stretch, daydream, get out of the office, motivate yourself by reading quotes or browse through a catalog. The important thing is to disconnect and unplug for what you where doing.

5. Join Perfectionist Anonymous

Hey, I like my ducks in a row, too, but I finally realized that the row doesn’t need to be perfectly straight.

6. Learn to Say NO

When you plan your day and focus on your goals, you’ll have a realistic look at your available time. This makes it easier for you to say NO when an unimportant task comes up.

7. Know Your Biological Prime Time

Do you know the time of day where you perform at your best? Perhaps it’s the morning. Maybe you like the nights better. Do your higher priority task during your peak

8. Your Top Tasks

Put the 80/20 rule into effect. Identify that valuable 20 percent that will bring you the highest reward. Prioritize your time to work on those items.

9. Join Procrastination Anonymous

Often procrastination occurs because of overwhelm from not knowing where to start. Take your larger project and break it down into smaller 15 minute tasks. (this takes planning) Keep doing those 15 minute tasks and eventually you’ll make a big dent in that larger project.

10. Give Yourself a High Five

Even the smallest wins deserve a celebration. Before you begin a task, promise yourself a reward when you finish. Then keep that promise. You earned it.