I think it can be so interesting and productive to look back and take stock—a little evaluation around the differences between what we THOUGHT would happen when we hung up our home business shingle and what actually DID happen. Surprises can be both pleasant and unpleasant, but chances are, you have definitely experienced a few on your path to become a home business entrepreneur.
I can tell you what surprised me—I’ve been surprised at how much more work I am able to do working from home than I ever did in a well-stocked and supported office environment. There is this belief out there that unless a person is watched and “supervised”—he or she will just slack off and not get any work done. I’ve written before about how it took me a few weeks to get in the swing of things and that I was pretty lax with my time in the very beginning, but once I got into it, I was able to find a natural stride and a natural pace and am far more productive and less stressed on my work-from-home days than I’ve ever been in an office. I can get more done, and more quality work done, in less time and that really surprised me!
Some home business owners discover hidden talents, or find that things they thought were going to be a breeze (like working with children under foot) turns out to be much more complicated and challenging. I would love to hear some of your tales of surprise—what reality of operating a home-based business has really surprised you? Has there been a development or a time management issue or just something unpredictable that has amazed you as you’ve been working to build your business? I’d love to hear some tales and confessions…
See Also: Finding Time for Personal Projects and a Business
If You Could Start All Over in Your Business–What do You Wish You Knew?