Archives for May 2017

Well, we’re almost to the half-way mark of the year.  Has your business done what you expected it to do so far this year?  Have you been keeping an eye on your first of the year goals and projections for the business?  Have you had issues and challenges within your family / home office that have put you on edge?  What about kids that are very soon to be out of school for the summer – are you prepared for this?

We are all aware of the fact that life is not “a bowl of cherries” or a “bed of roses”, but when it gets down to the nitty gritty of exactly HOW MUCH STRESS can we take and still run a business, it’s time to take a step back and try to look at the whole picture.  With everything whirling around in your mind – family issues, business struggling and perhaps your own self esteem suffering, you’re probably thinking that it is next to impossible to “work your way out of the hole”.

Let’s look at the family issues — is it something that your partner or a friend or relative could help you sort out and work through?  Just talking to a mentor about a certain situation could lead to some answers that you might not be able to figure out while you’re barely able to cope with day to day pressures.

Next, let’s take a look at the business issues.  Sit down for a moment and try to determine what is the source of the problem.  Why has the business taken a turn for the worse?  Have you taken too many days off since the kids aren’t around during the day?  Have you not taken the time to promptly return phone calls that came in while you were out?  Have you let the stress build up so that it is almost impossible to think about those alterations that were due out last week, or the dress somebody needed by tomorrow and you haven’t started it yet?

If the problem is fixable, which is usually the case, you need to figure out some kind of strategy to fix the problem.  How about getting hubby to watch the kids a couple of hours tonight so you can get those alterations done, or get started on that dress.  Once you figure out how you can get the problem resolved, it is amazing how much better you will feel, and can actually get back to work.

If the problem is not immediately fixable, such as business slow down because of the economy, it might be time to work on some additional marketing ideas for the business.  Develop more contacts through your child’s school, local community events, etc and begin doing a little networking and, as always, have plenty of business cards ready to hand out.

Remember to always take one day at a time.  We always try to “plan and make projections” for the year; however you can’t look at the end of the year, look at today and tomorrow and the next day.  Do one thing at a time, keep busy and always try to improve on what you’re doing.  When you begin to feel the stress building – stop and take a deep breath, and tell yourself “I am ONE person – I’m doing all I can do, and I’m doing my very best – things WILL work out”.

For additional help, we have several business books that you can check out.  We believe these business books might be just the thing to jumpstart your business, and even give you some additional ideas to get more money into your business.