Sewing Business Blog

How To Stay Motivated While Working Your Home Business

by Leave a Comment

Family and friends can be the biggest motivation robber to those starting or trying to maintain a home business.  They probably don’t even realize what they are doing to your motivation and business momentum.

Because you are at home and not at an office downtown, people have the idea that you are not really working, and therefore are available for neighborhood coffee get togethers, available to babysit the sick grandchildren so their mother can “go to work”, as well as chit chat on the phone half the morning.

I learned many years ago that the only way to let people know that I was at home because I was WORKING, was to learn the word NO!  I’d explain that I wouldn’t be available to go shopping because I was over my head with a project and was on a time table to get it done, or that I was behind on getting craft items ready for the next craft show, therefore had to buckle down and keep with my schedule of WORK that I’d set up for the day.

You will find that those people who have the opinion that just because you’re at home, you’re not really working will make comments like “what do you mean, working? You’re at HOME, aren’t you?”  That’s the time to inform them that you are indeed working at home; that you run a business from your home and that your working hours are such and such.  If you make yourself a regular work schedule and insist that people, including family members, respect your work schedule, they will realize that you do mean business with your home business!

You can also cause your own lack of motivation by picking up small, but deadly, non-work habits.  That second cup of coffee and reading the paper for 30 minutes can be a great time waster. Running back and forth to the kitchen to refill your tea glass or realize you hadn’t cleaned off the breakfast table so rush out to take care of that will waste more time than you think.

Take care of the kitchen table and prepare a large drinking cup of tea or water BEFORE going into the office area to work, then stay in the workshop/office once you’re there and WORK.

There’s a simple strategy you can use to keep most of this from happening. It’s to make the important project you’ve been procrastinating on a priority and working on it first thing every morning. The whole process starts the night before. Before you call it a day, sit down and make a simple plan for what you want to get done the next day. Identify the three most important tasks. These will be things that start to move the needle. Maybe they are all focused on one main project, maybe it’s several things you know you should be getting done.

The greatest statement about working at home is that you can “work in your jammies all day”.  Some people can indeed work in their pajamas, while for other people the idea of being in pajamas doesn’t give the feeling of work, but of relaxation.  In that case get the jammies off, take a shower and put on REAL clothes so you can get the feeling of WORK, not rest and relaxation.  By creating a feeling of work you will find yourself getting into the schedule you have set up and sticking with the program until you get finished what you’d set out to do that particular day.

A jet leaves a vapor trail in the sky as it completes its work – what kind of mark are you leaving so others can readily see that your home business is working?  To tell others you are working at home means there must be visable signs of accomplishment that others can see.

Motivation Equals Momentum

by Leave a Comment

A few posts ago we talked about how to stay motivated, and how easy it is for others, including family members and friends to rob us of our motivation.  Today we want to talk about how staying motivated can be the deciding factor in the momentum of your business.

For starters, make a little sign “Motivation Equals Momentum” and put it in your sewing room, on your refrigerator, on your computer or wherever else you can see it several times a day.

The momentum of your business (how your business is growing) is determined upon your motivation and your “stick to it” attitude.

Over the past years we’ve seen many home businesses fail and fold because the owners liked the “free time” better than working their business, and of course the business failed to grow — it simply withered and died.

On the other hand, we’ve also seen home business entrepreneurs that have had nothing but a string of bad luck and misfortune come upon them – financial difficulties, family issues, health issues – that would have closed most people down, but somehow they gritted their teeth, dug in and worked around the adversities, and have very successful businesses that are still around.

The amount of motivation and determination YOU have will set the stage for the success of your home business. There is another quotation that I have on my wall that you might want to consider putting on your wall as well —- “Faith, Focus and Follow-through = Success!”

Now is the PERFECT time to put that “Motivation Equals Momentum” thought in gear as you get ready to start up for the Holiday Season!!  Do you have some new ideas for patterns or projects or items to sell?  Go to work NOW to get those things going!  Let us all work hard to make this the best Holiday Season ever!

I’m sure many of you have stories about adversity, and how you’ve worked your way through it.  Let us know how you’ve managed to keep the momentum going in your business, in spite of difficulties — we’d love to hear from you.

How To Stay Motivated

by Leave a Comment

Staying motivated when working out of your house can be a real test for all of us.  Sometimes friends and family members can be the major robber of our business motivation and momentum – the problem is that they probably don’t even realize it.

When I first quit my day job and started writing books and doing sewing / craft items, it seemed like everyone thought I was on a permanent vacation!  It was nothing for friends or neighbors to simply stop by to visit or ask about going shopping, etc.  Or I’d get calls from one of the kids wanting me to babysit their sick child since the child was too sick to go to school but the mother needed to go to work.

It didn’t take long for me to learn the word NO!  Unless friends AND family realize that you are SERIOUS about working from your home, you will continually get comments like “you’re not WORKING – you’re at HOME”.  You have to put your foot down and insist that those well-meaning friends and family understand that the REASON you’re at home is because you have WORK TO DO!

It takes a great deal of motivation and “I WILL do this” attitude to get any home business off the ground and keep it going; therefore you must get the respect you need and deserve for making that happen.

Set a work schedule  – four days a week from this time to this time; school days while the kids are in school; 2 hours per night after the kids go to bed — whatever works for you is what it will take.  However, whatever schedule you set up – STICK TO IT!  Let those friends and family know what your work schedule is, so they won’t be just dropping by, etc.

You, individually, can also be a cause of lack of motivation by letting little non-work habits creep into your schedule.  Don’t read the paper during your scheduled WORK time; don’t decide to do a manicure while you’re “thinking” about the next step in the project you’re working on.

By keeping your mind on your goals (have you set some business goals?) you will be able to see that you are actually moving forward in your business, which will help keep the motivation and momentum going.  What are you working toward?  Extra money for a vacation?  Money for the kids’ education?  Money to help with the bills and keep food on the table?  Make a little list of what the extra dollars are for and keep that list by your sewing machine, near your computer or taped to your work table.  Every time you look at the list of reasons that you’re doing what you’re doing, you will put forth a little more effort, which will cause the momentum to grow and keep your business headed in the right direction.

We have a couple of books that could help you stay focused on your home business – “501 Tips & Strategies For Home Business Entrepreneurs” and  “Jumpstart Your Business With Proven Techniques”.   Check them out today.

Is Motivation REALLY Necessary?

by Leave a Comment

We hear and read a lot about motivation is the key to success, or that only you can motivate yourself, nobody else can motivate you.  Is all that really necessary or just a bunch of hype?

For those who still have their 9-5 jobs, I’d assume that it takes a bit of motivation to get out of bed each day and get to the workplace on time.  What’s the real motivation?  The paycheck?  Do you have a job that you love so much you just can’t wait to get there?  Anyway you look at it, the workplace would go on even if you were the next one laid off, or if you simply went on a vacation – unless you’re the owner there isn’t the motivation for YOU to keep the business running smoothly.

Now let’s change gears and talk about a home business.  You ARE the business, and it’s up to YOU to keep it running, get the work done, pay the bills, order supplies, talk to customers, take orders and somehow manage to stay sane at the same time.

Here is where “motivation” really comes into play.  It takes a great deal of self motivation to stick with the home business – setting up schedules to get the customers’ work done and out to them.  Motivation to keep working when you’d really like to sit and watch a few soap operas during the day (one day or an hour or two of soaps might not kill a home business, but those things get addictive and as days and weeks of watching them instead of working at your business is a surefire way to end the home business).

When you own your own business, especially a home business, nobody else can motivate you until you motivate yourself.

Entrepreneurs have certain characteristics that separate them from people who remain 9-5 employees.  Among the attributes of entrepreneurs are the willingness to take risks, ability to identify good business ideas, determination and confidence, ability to use “blinders” when necessary to focus on a particular goal and exclude everything else, and a willingness to work the hours needed to succeed — self motivation!  Ask yourself if you have the attributes of a successful entrepreneur.