Secrets of Self-Employment

 

Secrets of Self-Employment

 

 

As you may already have discovered, working successfully on your own requires a new mental outlook. You need to think about yourself, your work and your life in a new way as you leave behind the traditional world of the paycheck and enter a world in which you must rely upon yourself to produce the income you need to live well.

 

We all dreams of how we will like to spend our lives. We know how we would like things to be. But to make it on your own, you have to take next step. You have to know where you are going and set your life up so you will get there.

 

When you are literally self employed you have got to manage yourself to make sure that you do what you need to do and get where you want to go. You have got literally be your own boss, motivating, inspiring, and preparing yourself to function at your peak as you ride the emotional roller coaster of being on your own.

 

Secrets of self employment

 

1.Make a decision 

 The first thing you have to do is make a decision on you own. It may feel strange at first, especially if you are used to getting direction from your current bosses, colleagues, or teachers. All that goes away when you are self employed, and you suddenly realize that you are the person who has the final say on just about everything.

 

2.Define specific goals 

Goals are a target for you to shoot at. They enable you to know where you are going, how you will get there, and when you will arrive. The more specific you can be and the more urgency you give them, the better.

 Set goals in terms of measurable results you are committed to achieving. Setting goals will enable you to know what you have to accomplish by what date. If you miss the target, however, don’t despair. You haven’t failed; you just haven’t succeeded yet. Simply aim again until you hit the bull’s eye.

 

3. Choose your niche 

It is very important to choose a specific niche. Consider these questions: what will your area of focus be? What will your product or service solve? What kind of knowledge and experience do you already have that you could parlay into a business? All these question is very important when choosing your niche.

 

Once you have all the answer to your question you can start making a move. And the more specific you can get about your niche, the better off you will be as you identify your target market and build out your advertising and marketing.

 

4. Write your goals down 

Create a specific file on your computer or electronic organizer for listing your goals. Or list them on a separate page in your personal organizer. Or write them on three by five index cards you can carry in your calendar or wallet. Under each goal, list all the tasks you will need to perform to reach that goal and cross these off as you finish them.

 

5. Keep your goals in your line of sight. 

Remember, the mind goes toward what is in front of it. So don’t bury your goals somewhere and look at them once a year. Carry them with you. Post them above your computer. Hang them on the wall behind your desk. Have them printed on your calendar.

 

6. Never stop learning, and never stop failing 

Failure is not the end of your business. It is just the beginning. You have to take the attitude that failure won’t stop you from making it on your own. If your business doesn’t get of the ground, learn from that. And try again, but do it better this time.

Failure isn’t a reason to get depressed, to quit. It’s a learning opportunity. Failure is a stepping stone to your success. And if you make it, don’t take that as a reason to get complacent. You should always be learning, always improving not because you are not satisfied with what you have done, but because if you stop learning, you will stop having fun.

 

7. Review your goals daily 

Refer to your goals when planning your schedule and constructing your daily to do list. Don’t let a day go by without taking some step toward your goals. In fact, make sure you take several steps toward your goals every day by putting key tasks on the calendar. I, Fatima, like to see my goals at the top of my daily ‘to do’. I find that even though I am usually looking at the same goals each week, having them in front of me keeps them on the top of my mind.

 

Advantages of being self-employed 

·       You make your own work schedule. Being self employed allows you to create your own schedule and decide when and how much you work.

·       You are in charge. Owning your own business provides you with full control over every aspect of your company and allows you to structure your work environment the way you want it.

·       You decide your work place. You might choose to work from your home, or you could find a  commercial office space. You could also structure your business in a way that allows you to work on the go.

 

 

Five Ways to Get Business Fast

The lead time for getting business in the door can be considerable from as short as several weeks up to several years, depending on the type of business you do.

 

1.    Get on the phone. The quickest, surest way to drum up business is to get on the phone and call prospective customers or client.

2.    Make a special offer prospective clients can’t refuse.virtually anything can serve as an opportunity to offer a special promotion. You can have a spring special, a New Year’s discount, a free initial consultation, and so on.

3.    Offer a pricing incentive. Some money beats no money. So after a special price that is so tempting prospective customers simply can’t say no.

4.    Subcontract or do overload work. You competitors can be a good source of quick business. Some professionals get 2.5 percent or more of their new business from competitors.

5.    Volunteer. There is nothing worse for morale than having no work at all to do. Therefore, doing some work beats doing nothing.