Tag Archives: planning

Are You Putting Your Life on Hold?

Are you waiting for something to happen? Are you waiting for another person to do something for you or to arrive in your life or waiting until you lose weight, get that promotion, or are able to afford the right house or car? After a person has been through a tough, traumatic event or suffered a loss it can feel absolutely natural to put everything on hold and wait for a better day. Somehow, however, we have to find a way to move on with our lives and NOT put everything on hold in hopes that “something” will change or … Continue reading →

It can be Hard Not Knowing

Uncertainty can be one of the most stressful realities in so many aspects of life–whether it is a health issue, finances, or our home businesses–not knowing what the future holds can be unbearable for some of us and just plain scary for others. What can we do to settle ourselves and cope with the fact that no matter how much planning we do, there are going to be those times when we just don’t know what is coming around the corner? Think of it this way–is there any possible way that you can get to a place where you are … Continue reading →

Coming Back to Financial Goals for a Home Business

We talk about so many aspects of choosing, starting and operating a home business here in the Home Business Blog, that sometimes we get away from some of the core basics. Periodically, I like to come back to those subjects which can actually be at the forefront of many of our minds on a regular basis. While there are many different reasons for starting a home business, chances are financial goals have a role in just about every entrepreneur’s home business plan. Setting financial goals is one way of having a definite plan to guide your business, but it is … Continue reading →

Holding Down the Fort When You’re Not There

I wrote yesterday about the various ways I try to get geared up for a business trip and organize my home business, family and life BEFORE I leave. Since I am a single parent, as well as a home business owner, I still need to run my business and take care of things from afar no matter where I might be or how far away from home. It is one thing to make sure that the cats are getting fed and the mail is collected, it is quite another thing to keep a business afloat from thousands of miles away… … Continue reading →

Gearing Up for a Business Trip

I go into serious organizational mode in the final week and days before a business trip. While the weeks leading up to the trip are likely spent on work-related details and putting together a conference or project—those final days and hours are spent on all sorts of details like stocking and organizing the cupboards, cleaning out my e-mail in and out boxes, and making sure all the laundry is done. There is just something about the pending trip that pushes me to try to get everything in the best possible order I can muster. I have a couple theories as … Continue reading →

Time to Plan for Next Year’s Homeschool Program

Most Homeschoolers I speak to are quickly nearing the time when they take a break for the summer, or at least call the academic year complete. For some that might mean meeting all of the requirements of their online or virtual school for the year and receiving their final grades. For others it may mean finishing a set of books or curriculum. For others (I included) local homeschool classes are nearing an end. I realized our year was almost over when my kids’ math teacher gave me their 3rd semester grades. It is time to plan for next year’s homeschool … Continue reading →

Synchronize Calendars

Even if you have only one child, if you are sharing custody or trying to coordinate visits with a non-custodial parent, scheduling and communication take center stage. The best way that I have found to make sure everybody on both sides of the family know what is going on is to make sure that we periodically compare notes and synchronize our calendars. I do not want to give the impression that I am perfect or that things do not fall through the cracks. With three kids and two households, it is fairly tough to keep everyone on the same page, … Continue reading →

There is a Great Deal of Choice in Home Business Operations

It is easy to fall into the trap of feeling like things are happening TO you or that you are just reacting to the external forces. Feeling strong, capable, and productive in your home business, however, requires that you acknowledge and take advantage of all of the opportunities for decision-making and that you realize how much choice you really do have in your business operations. Instead of feeling like a rowboat battered by the storms, you probably have a strong motor that you do not even know about… Many of us know that choice is one of the key elements … Continue reading →

Breaking it Down by the Hour

I am constantly on the look-out for ways to stay motivated and measure my productivity. I do not want to be uptight about it, but it is easy for me to get distracted sometimes and at other times, I am not entirely confident that I am make efficient and productive use of my time. Recently, a colleague shared with me that he keeps track of his tasks and efforts by the hour–in order to make sure that he is getting stuff done throughout the day. His approach is to start with a master “to do” list and then break things … Continue reading →

Can You See Through to a Logical Outcome?

How often have you been so caught up in the minutia of your daily grind that you just could not see the forest for the trees? As a home business owner, it can be downright tough to see how what we do today (or what we did yesterday) will result in what we want down the road. It can be important, therefore, to learn how to train ourselves to see things long term; to learn how to think things through and see the logical and inevitable outcome in the distance. Plotting things out, or thinking it through to the logical … Continue reading →