Building an Online Business Goes Beyond Being “In The Mood”
Recently I read a quote by author Pearl Buck: “I don't wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work.”
Building a successful business online brings a lot of satisfaction, but it also brings its own challenges so I really appreciate the above quote. Because we are our own boss we can make excuses for ourselves why we cannot work in our business at any given time.
“It's too cold and gloomy today.” Well, you're working from home! Turn on or up the heater, turn on more lights and get to work. I found that while they cost more the “Daylight” or “Natural Light” compact fluorescent lightbulbs make a huge difference, whether I'm working at nights or on a cloudy day.
Compare that to trudging through snow or cold winds to get to a job and you'll feel better. Building an online business from home is a much better proposition.
“I'm feeling down today.” Depression likes inactivity as it allows you to focus on yourself and any negative situations in your life. Could you call your boss and tell him or her that you're not coming in because you feel depressed today? You'd probably become more depressed as you might be told not to return.
Instead, call a friend who always has positive, upbeat comments. Call a business partner, or if your have a mentor you communicate with regularly, call your mentor. Just avoid calling someone who's usually negative or depressed themselves. You don't need reinforcement; you need encouragement.
“The holidays are around the corner and I have family coming.” How long does it take to prepare for visitors and how much time do you need to prepare for your holiday celebrations? Applying time management strategies will allow you to plan your tasks so that you do not neglect your business.
Building a successful online business takes work. If you were to do a poll of successful business people, including internet marketers, they would tell you that a huge part of their success comes from their willingness to work even when they did not feel like it. Are you willing to train your mind to ‘know it has got to get down to work' and not just when you're in the mood. I know I'm willing to do so. How about you?
Nice post.. I enjoyed it.
You are right. Just because we don’t feel like doing something is no reason to not do it. Part of building a business online is making sure that you have enough of a self-starter attitude to get it up and going. No one is forcing you to work online, however if you do not make the effort, you will not get the rewards.
1Oh to I know what you are saying…. especially during this holiday season. So many things can pull you away from your work.
In the old days… the cow still had to be milked and the chickens feed. I try and keep that in mind when I want to neglect my daily business duties. (Have to admit… the chickens have gone hungry many times.)
But…I get back on track and do things that sometimes I’m not in the mood to do.
Thanks for the reminder, Yvonne
2Yvonne,
I have to laugh at Kathy’s comment. I actually live on a farm. My husband usually does the chores. He has a regular routine he follows every day. I make fun of him when I have to pick up the slack and do all the farm chores. I do them when I get around to them, or need a break.
I have been working at the example my sweety pie has set. A good routine works better for all those concerned. It gets the job done.
3You are so right! It is easy to get distracted if you don’t have a plan in place for the routine of your day. Working at home has its own set of problems but it’s so rewarding IF you keep to a routine. Otherwise, you are just someone who is at home thinking about working at home! LOL
4The first person I knew who had his own business helping people learn HTML to get on the Internet (first I had ever heard of it!) was a very disciplined person. I asked him how he managed to work from home with all the possible distractions. He said that he got dressed for business every morning, walked down the hall at the appointed hour to his office, and got to it. He didn’t mention anything about “being in the mood!”
Great post. And something I need to work on myself! Maybe a 30 day challenge for showing up to work on time is in order!
5Angela, Kathryn and Sheila, I thoroughly enjoyed reading your comments as I’m sure other readers do as well.
Angela: Good point “if you do not make the effort, you will not get the rewards.” And the reward are there, some achieve it sooner than others but we all have the potential if we stay focused and keep ourselves motivated.
Kathy and Sheila: You’re both so much fun and you always add another dimension to the posts when you leave your comments. Having a good routine allows for the tasks to become second nature. It can be challenging as on the farm, but we’ve just got to keep doing them. The date may change but the goal never changes.
Warmly,
6Yvonne
Interestingly years before I started an online business I attended a workshop for an offline business one of the things the presenter talked about was the time some people spent thinking about their business compared to actually doing something in their business and the principle remains true for everything we do. I agree, Martha, without a set routine there’s no structure and we waste a lot of time. As a recovering “online shiny objects” addict, I know this to be true. 🙂 Yvonne
7Hi Janet, Doesn’t it amaze you that some people are just so disciplined! And everyone of us can be too if we work at it. For some of us it’s not ‘natural’ but with effort it can be done. I’ve always felt that we produce better work when we get dressed to go to our home office, even if for some their office is a corner of their living room or bedroom. That’s not a bad challenge you mentioned, and couple that with having a post done or article submitted within the first hour of arriving in your office. We could see a huge difference in our business in the nest 30 days.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts 🙂
8Yvonne
Hello Yvonne,
This is a really good post!
You know, I often say to myself “What’s going to be more painful: getting the work done or having to suffer because of the consequences of not working?”
Anything worthwhile needs effort and it’s really a waste of time trying to find excuses.
Life can’t hear you excuses no matter how clever they are.
9Hi Jean Paul,
I like that question for self-examination and agree that finding excuses is a waste of time. There is such a feel of achievement that a completed task can bring whereas every moment we procrastinate it only wears us down more emotionally and physically as well.
Thanks for sharing your insightful comments.
Yvonne
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