The choice to run your business full or part-time can depend on several factors. As a home business owner you'll need to look at your time available outside of family, your skill set, and weigh cost vs. income factors. Understanding what is best to do yourself and what your limits are is crucial to managing your time effectively and building your business over time. The first thing to understand is that your time is the most important.
Whether you are working full or part-time at least 80% of your time should be focused on activities that add value to your business. This is simply because the purpose of any business is to make money. If your work is not focused on adding value, which are the tasks that generate and sustain income for your business then you are likely to slow the growth of your business and never realize the true earning potential of your endeavor. To maximize your outcomes you'll first want to identify which activities add value to your business and produce revenue.
One exercise is to simply write down everything you do in your business. You can do this by making a few columns in a simple spreadsheet. Next, identify which things generate the sales or leads that sustain and grow your business. Next identify approximately how much time is need to do each task or function. Then record how often each task needs to be performed. Finally identify the skill(s) needed to perform the task. At this point you'll begin to get the picture and be able to answer questions that determine if you should be finding others to perform these tasks. Plus you'll understand the amount of time you need to invest in the business to perform your functions and manage any help that you are using. This will be a big part of your decision to work full or part-time.
As you begin to understand the amount of time needed to fun your business. You'll want to look at the financials. Again on a simple spreadsheet, you'll need to make a pessimistic, realistic and optimistic view of what type of income you expect to generate. After thoroughly researching your business and your competitors, you should be able to get a realistic view of your costs. Now if you are focusing on value added tasks only, you can estimate the value of your time. (Example: For every hour I spend on a consulting call I make $60 or $60/hr.) And you can also estimate your costs. (Example: It cost me $40 to find a new customer a get a consulting appointment) In this example your profit is only $20 an hour. How much would need to work to be able to pay your expenses and make a living?
You should understand by now that the decision to work full or part-time is primarily based on two factors. The value of your time and the costs associated with running your business. The final outcome should be to make enough money to reach your financial goals.
Whether you are working full or part-time at least 80% of your time should be focused on activities that add value to your business. This is simply because the purpose of any business is to make money. If your work is not focused on adding value, which are the tasks that generate and sustain income for your business then you are likely to slow the growth of your business and never realize the true earning potential of your endeavor. To maximize your outcomes you'll first want to identify which activities add value to your business and produce revenue.
One exercise is to simply write down everything you do in your business. You can do this by making a few columns in a simple spreadsheet. Next, identify which things generate the sales or leads that sustain and grow your business. Next identify approximately how much time is need to do each task or function. Then record how often each task needs to be performed. Finally identify the skill(s) needed to perform the task. At this point you'll begin to get the picture and be able to answer questions that determine if you should be finding others to perform these tasks. Plus you'll understand the amount of time you need to invest in the business to perform your functions and manage any help that you are using. This will be a big part of your decision to work full or part-time.
As you begin to understand the amount of time needed to fun your business. You'll want to look at the financials. Again on a simple spreadsheet, you'll need to make a pessimistic, realistic and optimistic view of what type of income you expect to generate. After thoroughly researching your business and your competitors, you should be able to get a realistic view of your costs. Now if you are focusing on value added tasks only, you can estimate the value of your time. (Example: For every hour I spend on a consulting call I make $60 or $60/hr.) And you can also estimate your costs. (Example: It cost me $40 to find a new customer a get a consulting appointment) In this example your profit is only $20 an hour. How much would need to work to be able to pay your expenses and make a living?
You should understand by now that the decision to work full or part-time is primarily based on two factors. The value of your time and the costs associated with running your business. The final outcome should be to make enough money to reach your financial goals.
Fredb was an offline retailer for over 30 years and during that time developed his online business to make a significant income.
Written by Fred B.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/6528529
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