It's All About Discipline
Having your own internet marketing business means being able to
enforce some self discipline.
While many people think that time management is the only form of
discipline you must enforce on yourself when you have your own
home business, it isn't. There are at least 7 aspects in your
life you must learn to adjust and today we're going to look at
them.
Time Management - Learn to use your time effectively. You must
identify "weak spots" - the things in your business that suck a
lot of your time and energy but produce very small results. For
most, email and the amount of time spent reading and responding
eats up their most valuable time. For others, proof reading
their site and making sure they catch every typo is their
downfall.
If you are spending some of your most creative and productive
time on "weak spots", you need to redo your schedule and give
your most creative and productive time to the areas of your
business that earn you the most.
Eating - Having a healthy diet will give you more energy to
work your business. It's easy to fall victim to caffeine, sugar
and "junk food" while spending hours at your computer but all of
these things are actually draining your energy in addition to
the damage they're doing to your overall health.
To maintain your health and boost your energy level, adopt some
healthy eating habits. Just because the refrigerator is only a
few steps away doesn't mean you should visit it frequently.
Likewise, just because the computer is close to your dinner
table, you shouldn't be eating your meals staring at your
monitor.
Maintaining a proper diet and separating food from work is an
important part of having a successful life and business.
Exercise - A good exercise program can boost your energy and
improve your attitude. It's a well known fact that exercise
improves muscle tone and it also helps reduce stress.
Exercising your mind is a good thing but don't forget about your
body. No matter what your physical limitations, you need to
exercise on a regular basis and typing on your keyboard doesn't
count.
Walk, jog, play tennis or whatever it is you do, do it on a
regular basis to keep your mind and body at their peak
performance level.
Remember Your Family - When working from home it's easy to
devote all your time to your business but this is a big mistake
if you have a family and they're not involved in your business.
Your doing your business to make your family life better, right?
Well don't neglect your family or you might not have one when
your business starts doing well.
Having your family involved in your internet marketing business
is a great benefit that most don't enjoy. And if you happen to
be one of those with a wonderful family who's not involved in
your business, remember to spend quality time with them -
frequently!
Take Time For Yourself - You are not your business. You are a
person who enjoys doing some things that may not relate to your
business and these things are important.
Although you may have built your business around the one thing
you enjoy the most, you have other interests that you need to
spend time on to maintain your mental health. Maybe you enjoy
reading or watching certain TV shows. Maybe you enjoy playing
games or participating in some sports. No matter what your other
interests, you need to devote some of your quality time to them.
Don't put your other interests on hold or in a time slot where
you can't enjoy them. These interests make you who you are and
allow you to relieve tension. Do them when you can enjoy them
and get the full benefit of their usefulness.
Grow Your Business - You should be spending at least 50% of
your time either developing new products or expanding your
business in some way.
Think of your business like a garden. You plant the seeds and
nurture the seedlings until they become grown and produce
results. Then you must maintain your garden by weeding, feeding
and watering it.
But no matter how well you maintain that garden, you will still
lose some plants over time and the results of your labor will
decrease. To keep the results high and to get an increase, you
must keep planting.
This is how your business is. You work hard to get a customer
base and you must maintain it. But if you don't constantly work
to get new products and to grow your customer base, the results
of your labor will go down.
Have Fun - What's the point of anything if you can't enjoy it?
Sure, you want to make money with your business but if you don't
enjoy doing it then it's the same as having a "job" and you
aren't getting one of the biggest advantages of being your own
boss.
Having fun with your own business means different things to
different people. Maybe you want to set up a "fun" site that
doesn't make money but allows you to share your creative side.
Maybe you want to spend some of your earnings on something for
yourself, your family or you business even though you don't
really need it. Maybe you want to take some time off and be with
your family or friends. It's your business, you're in charge and
you can do any of these things when you want.
Don't abuse this wonderful privilege but do take advantage of
it. Allot a set amount of time or money to do those things that
make having your business fun.
To be a healthy, successful internet marketer you must take
control of your life and be able to impose and enforce some
discipline to these 7 areas.