February 7, 2012

Scheduled Downtime

Sleeping at computer

Internet Marketers as a group tend to be hard working individuals, and while the general public still attributes much of the online success factor to a secret recipe, or magic button that these people push whenever they need to make a sale, nothing could be farther from the truth.

Establishing yourself as an expert in a world full of talented marketers can lend itself to some long hours, that can at times turn into days. I know I’ve personally worked more than one 36 hour stretch when inspiration took hold, and I was in “the zone”.

A large part of the tendency of small business owners, and internet marketers alike to overwork themselves, is due to the fact that they have by necessity either become, or are in the process of becoming experts, or at the very least knowledgeable in so many areas of their businesses. It is not uncommon for a small business owner to have skills that range across the board from advertising and marketing, all the way up to Search Engine Optimization, and Web Design.

It’s important to schedule regular downtime in order to not burn out before you get to the finish line or you might not be as excited about things when you finally arrive at your goal. Taking time once in a while to celebrate the successes you have already made, and to give yourself time to regroup, and assess the progress and “track” that your business has taken on is crucial to your ongoing successes.

One of the biggest factors in a business’s success is the consistent application of the strategies that you’ve implemented to get you from point a, to point b while ensuring that you are hitting all your targets and goals. It is no harder to schedule breaks, days off, and even holidays into that same mix.

I often will pre-write my blog posts if I’m going to be away for a day or two and have them scheduled to publish at a set time each day, you could even do this for a week or two if you were so inclined. Another option is to have a blog backup buddy. Someone who watches over your blog responding to comments left, and keeping things running smoothly, and in exchange you do the same for him or her when they are going to be away. It’s almost like two neighbours looking after each other’s houses, plants, and animals while they are away!

When I first left the corporate world in order to work from home I knew that things could go either way. I’d either have so many distractions around me that were much more interesting than work and I’d end up being so unproductive as to kill my business from within. The second (and the one that turned out to be more accurate) was that I’d blur the line between work and home life resulting in not knowing when to quit and go see a movie, or simply to spend time with family and friends.

Life is all about balance, and it’s important to find yours if you’re going to be happy, and successful at the same time.

Here’s to our success!

 

Incoming search terms for the article:

  • internet marketing for small business plr (2)
  • SLEEPING AT COMPUTER IMAGE (2)
  • sleeping at computer (1)
  • sleeping at work (1)
  • sleeping by computer (1)
  • sleeping on computer (1)

Work/Life Balance when Working from Home

Work Life Balance

When you work from home, either blogging, freelance writing, or doing SEO (search engine optimization), it can be easy to either fall too deeply into the work or be tempted to take too much time off. In order to properly balance the amount of work you do with your personal time by limiting the amount of your life you’re willing to devote to working. There are a few easy things you can do in order to get enough work done without letting it take over your life, and here we’ll go over a few of these simple tricks so you can keep your life in balance.

The first rule of working from home, whether you do light blogging or more intensive internet marketing and SEO, is to stay organized. Even though you can probably make your own hours and work as much as you want, it’s probably a good idea to have a set time every day that you put aside for work. By having this pre-determined time each day, you can have a few hours where you can sit at the computer without feeling rushed, and get your work done in a comfortable environment. It might help to make that time part of the day where you have nothing else to do, in order to decrease the number of distractions.

In contrast, working for a set period each day can also start to feel like being stuck in a rut, so it sometimes helps to change up your schedule. The great thing about working from home is that you have control over the amount of time you spend working, as well as when you choose to work. If you feel like you need a change of pace, then trying a different time for work or even splitting up your workday into two or more segments can help.

Balancing your free time and personal life with your work day can be tricky when you work from a home computer, especially if many of the ways you relax or take time to yourself involve a computer or other screen (blogging, movies, games, etc.). In fact, often times going from working on a computer to relaxing on a computer can feel like you’re still working, so it’s important to take breaks from the screen and find other ways to take time off from work. Making sure you get out of the house after working is a good way to take the stress off.

Incoming search terms for the article:

  • work life balance (108)
  • worklife balance (39)
  • work-life balance (15)
  • balance life (13)
  • too much work (4)
  • working life (3)
  • life balance (3)
  • work-life-balance (2)
  • Work-Life (2)
  • you work too much (2)
  • life (2)
  • PERSONAL TIME OFF (1)
  • how to balance your life internet marketing (1)
  • how to achieve work life balance when working from home working from home (1)
  • Balancing Work and Personal Life (1)
  • balance work and personal life (1)
  • working too much (1)
  • balance work and life (1)
  • Work–life balance (1)
  • work too much (1)
  • work life balance plr (1)
  • work life balance image (1)
  • videos of work life balance (1)
  • too much working (1)
  • life or work (1)
  • too much of work (1)
  • PLR Work-Life Balance (1)
  • pictures of work life balancing (1)
  • balance (1)