Shakadoo

Everything to do with your shak.

You are here: Home / Archives for Home Life

I Live in One of the Best Places to Start a Business

by Leave a Comment

Photo of Romney Stadium in Logan, Utah. Septem...
Image via Wikipedia

CNN Money offers a look at the best places to start a business (hat tip for bringing this article to my attention: My Two Dollars), and my current place of residence, Logan, UT, made the cut. Pretty cool, eh? Logan is not a large city, so it ranks #14 amongst small cities to start a business. This really floored me. I began my freelancing career, in earnest, when my husband and I moved to Logan just after I completed my M.A. at Syracuse University. We’re here while he gets his Ph.D., but we like it well enough that we might stay. And, even though I don’t interact much with the surrounding community in a business sense, I can see where Logan might be an attractive place to start a business.

It is worth noting that you shouldn’t believe everything you read, though. We have Utah State University here, which puts more experiments in space than any other school, and is a first-rate engineering school. Sadly, the writer thought it was the University of Utah. An understandable mistake, I suppose, but perhaps some fact checking is in order?

At any rate, it was exciting to see Logan on the list. If you are looking for a place to start a business, you might want to view the full list and get an idea of good places to go.

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
+1
Share
Share
Pin
Shares 0

Freelancing as a Lifestyle

by 2 Comments

Coffee shops 200...
Image by Earl – What I Saw 2.0 via Flickr

I was reading over at the Freelance Folder this morning, and saw a great post from Laura Spencer about freelancing as a career choice vs. freelancing as a lifestyle. When I first started freelancing, it was definitely a career choice. We needed me to make money while staying at home with my son, and while my husband started school. My home business was just a way to pay the bills.

Now, though, since I don’t have to do a lot of the crap work I did originally, and now that I am more experienced, it’s more of a lifestyle. I can set my own rates, and I can choose the freelance projects I take on, not to mention figure out a time frame for them. And this means that I can work it around my lifestyle. It also means that I am not tethered to one location. No matter where my husband gets a job when he finishes school, I will be able to continue freelance.

Here are some of the things that Laura says about freelancing as a lifestyle:

1. You save money.

2. You can be there for friends and family as needed.

3. You can run errands during off-hours, providing a more relaxing experience.

4. You have a mobile lifestyle. You can work from anywhere — even the local park or coffeeshop.

5. You have creative control over your work and your life.

These are all things that make freelancing particularly appealing. And, after living this lifestyle, I could never go back to one that involves a traditional job.

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
+1
Share
Share
Pin
Shares 0

Effective Communication for Your Home Business

by 3 Comments

When you are starting a home business, it is important that you understand the keys to effective communication. Whether you plan to blog, advertise in the newspaper or use some other type of marketing medium, you need to understand how to communicate effectively.

To this end, Problogger offers the three principles of effective communication. These are:

1. Provide a message.

2. Make your audience care about the message.

3. Provide a way for the audience to remember the message.

No matter what setting you are in, these three principles apply. Your personal life can even benefit from the application of these communication principles. And, of course, your home business will benefit immensely if you can get people to hear, care about and remember your message.

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
+1
Share
Share
Pin
Shares 0

Working from Home Tip: Don’t Go Back To Work When You’re Done

by 1 Comment

One of the things I realized last week, when I was sick, was that once I was done with everything that had to be done, I didn’t need to go back to work. And it got me to thinking about the way I act when I’m not sick. Sometimes, even when I decide I’m done working for the day, I’m really not. I’ll get an idea, or I’ll decide that I can use just 10 more minutes to do something “real quick.”

This, mind-set, however, doesn’t do much for my peace of mind, or for my overall productivity. When working from home, the hardest part can be actually being done for the day. But it is essential for your sanity — in most cases — to be done when you are finished for the day.

Knowing when to quit

Make a list of priorities, and tasks that have to be done today. Then get to work on them. Either choose a quitting time that makes sense with regard to your home business workload, or be done when you have completed the items on your to-do list. Either way, make it a point to be finished when you reach your prescribed ending point. If something occurs to you later, briefly write it down, and take care of it first thing in the morning. The only exceptions are true emergencies.

For most people, working from home is about flexibility and having more time to enjoy your family. In order to realize this dream, though, you have to stop working sometime.

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
+1
Share
Share
Pin
Shares 0

Working from Home: Sick Days

by 1 Comment

Insurance Ad, Boy in Bed
Image by George Eastman House via Flickr

Every so often I get sick. And, as a blogger, I write about it. When you are working from home — especially if you have a home business — you don’t really get sick days. There is always something to do. So here I am, getting stuff done.

Prioritizing your home business workload

The good news, though, is that you can have an abbreviated day if you have workload priorities. When you aren’t feeling well, do an inventory of what you need to get done. Then prioritize it. Are there some things that can be put off until tomorrow? If so, shift those items around. Do only what is necessary. After all, if you don’t have your health, you will be in bigger trouble later. Do what you need to, take care of yourself, and get everything else done later.

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
+1
Share
Share
Pin
Shares 0

Do You Use Your Hobbies to Inspire Your Home Business?

by 2 Comments

Hemingway posing for a dust jacket photo by Ll...
Image via Wikipedia

Unfortunately, one of the grim realities of working from home is that burnout can become a problem. One way to combat burnout is to look at your home business and find a way to tie in a hobby or something that you enjoy. I enjoy writing, so it’s lucky that I work from home as a freelance writer. Mary Emma Allen at Home Biz Notes recently wrote a great article on what she has done to tie in her interest in heritage one-room schoolhouses to what she does to earn a living working from home.

This started me thinking. Starting a home business based on something you enjoy is a good way to go. You can be an expert, since presumably you know about what you are selling. Additionally, it helps to keep you motivated when you have a passion. This can ensure that your home business thrives and survives, rather than dying a quick death as you lose interest.

Of course, even if you are doing something you enjoy, it is still necessary to work hard and to stay motivated. No matter how much you love what you do, there are days where motivation is hard. But doing something you love can help you through those days.

Reblog this post [with Zemanta]
+1
Share
Share
Pin
Shares 0