Two Hour Business Plan has launched!
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Behind the scenes here at SuperWAHM we’ve been working very hard on our latest product. In fact it’s so good that we’ve given it it’s very own website!
Business planning for people who hate planning. An easy step by step guide to writing a business plan that has been designed specifically for the needs of micro and at-home businesses.
If you’ve thought of writing a business plan and not known where to start, thought you didn’t have the time, or were overwhelmed with all those budgets and forecasts, the Two Hour Business Plan is for you.
You’ve got two options, the basic option which is the audio’s, the workbook and the bonuses, or you can purchase the Two Hour Business Plan PLUS two consulting/coaching sessions with me for less than the normal price of the two sessions.
Check it out and see what people are saying: http://twohourbusinessplan.com
Why Info Products cause ‘stuckedness’ and how to get unstucked
Hi, My name is ‘insert your name here’ and I’m an Info product addict
We’ve all done it. Bought great info products – ebooks, audios, pdfs, ecourses etc – that are highly recommended and guaranteed to change our lives and send business through the roof.
We all have our favourite teachers, and if they recommend something as being great then we have to get it, right? Because it will help us grow our business, right? So we buy more products. And more. And we keep on buying. And downloading and saving them to the hard drive.
You know that folder(s) on your hard drive that’s full of ebooks, video’s, downloads, pdf’s etc that you haven’t looked at since the day you bought them? How do you feel when you look at that folder? Guilty? Upset? Overwhelmed? Waste of money?
Yeah, all of those feelings, right? Let me tell you a secret – you’re not alone. Really. Many, many people have a stash of info products and have never looked at them. I’m not going to tell you how much I’ve paid over the years for courses that I’ve never started, let alone finished. And hopefully my hubby won’t ask either…. I used to be as guilty as anyone else on this one.
There ain’t no magic bullet
People buy information products in the hope that ‘this one’ will be the magic bullet that rockets them to instant stardom, money and orders pouring in, clients on waiting lists, kudos on the ‘net. And it doesn’t happen.
No product is going to do this for your business. None. Not any. Because all those info products, they’re just tools. You have to use them, and use them in the right way.
So why buy information products?
Because they’re useful and will really help you grow your business. If you use them properly. The problem is that people often don’t use them properly, if at all. They download them, save them, and plan to get to them soon. Unfortunately ‘soon’ never arrives, the novelty fades and the lonely product sits there unused.
So you get stuck into them and start reading
Learning is good, yes? The more you learn the better you’ll be at running your business, yes? Sorry, but the answer to that is often a no.
Too much information is nearly as bad as no information. When you do decide to get stuck in and work through the courses and ebooks you end up with a head full of ideas and no place to start.
Information overload is very real and paralysing. When you’ve got a head full of ideas all bouncing around, and more information being packed in on top, it’s like being in a room crammed full of people all talking at the top of their voices.
Step outside with me
It’s time to get out of the room.
Turn off the noise.
Focus on just one thing.
Realise there is no magic bullet.
The answer to information overload is…
Taking action.
Give your mind a break – chances are that you’ve already read enough ebooks and know what you need to know. See, we get so caught up in ‘learning’ that we stop ‘doing’. We think we have to do things perfectly, and know everything about it, before we can start.
It’s true that we do need to have a certain level of knowledge in order to run a business. It becomes a problem when we think that we have to know everything in order to run a business.
Focus on one thing and put it into action
So here you are – you’ve got a stack of info products, all useful, all highly recommended, and I’ve just told you to stop reading them. Here’s what you need to do to break out of the information overload and get your head right.
Firstly do a brain dump. Every idea, every thought about your business, get it out of your head. Write down the ideas. Paper or on the computer, doesn’t matter. Mind map if it helps. Just get them out of your head. Then save it somewhere so you can find it later.
Back to the information products.
Pick one. Just one. And work through it – do all the exercises or worksheets as you go. Apply every technique in it to your business. Set aside an hour a day to do this. It’s not a race, take your time.
When you’re finished with the first info product, take a break for a couple of days. Then pick another one and work through it the same way. Every exercise, every technique. Rinse and repeat.
Still don’t know where to start?
If you really can’t pick just one info product or you don’t know what you’re trying to do, I recommend starting with our Quick’n’Dirty Business Plan ebook.
Writing out a business plan will give clarity and direction – and from there you’ll have a better idea of what you need to do for your business.
Leave a comment and tell me what you decide to work on and how you’re going, ok?
Why a Business Plan Will Save Your A$$
Let’s go on a holiday
Picture this:
It’s a Saturday and you’re enjoying a peaceful sleep in (you know, those things you had before you had kids). And your darling hubby bursts into the room and says “Honey, get dressed! We’re going on a holiday!”
“When?” you ask, as you crack open one sleepy eye and try to process the sentence through a haze of sleep-induced blurriness.
“Right now” he says “Cmon, the kids are in the car waiting”
So you get up and get dressed, he assures you that you don’t need to pack “It’s all taken care of”, hop in the car and off you go.
“So where are we going?” you ask nervously, thinking of all the appointments and plans in your calendar for the next week.
“On holidays” he replies cheerfully. And HE sure seems to know where you’re going, even if you don’t.
“But where on holidays? For how long?” this really isn’t feeling right to you.
“Wherever we end up. And I don’t know, how long are holidays normally?” Hubby is starting to seem not quite so darling and a bit more annoying every minute now.
“So what are we going to do there? What kind of clothes did you pack?” Maybe that will give a clue to where he’s taking you and for how long.
“We’ll do whatever is happening when we get to a holiday somewhere. And I didn’t pack anything, we’ll sort that out as we go” is the cheerful reply.
Ok, that scenario is nuts
Really, nobody sensible would do that, would they? Then why do so many businesses get treated that way, with a happy-go-lucky “I’ll sort it out when and if it happens” attitude. Why not plan for as much as possible – both good and bad – and prevent as many problems as you can?
Approximately 98% of WAHMs don’t have a business plan. So the chances are pretty good that if you’re reading this and you’re a WAHM then you don’t have a business plan, or at least not a current one. Am I right so far?
And by business plan I mean one written down on paper, not just in your head. Having a plan in your head is pretty much worthless. It has to get out of your head, onto paper, and have foundations and strategies put in place to execute it.
If you’re one of the rare few who DO have an up to date business plan then well done. Pat yourself on the back and take a bow. You’re a rarity and well above average. It’s also likely that you’ve been around for a few years and experienced first hand the advantages of a business plan.
Why WAHMs don’t write business plans
Here’s a list of the most common reasons that I hear around not writing a business plan:
- It’s too hard
- I don’t know what to put down
- I don’t need one for a home business
- It’s in my head
- I don’t have time
- I had one but it didn’t work
- I tried and it was too complicated
- I know what I’m doing
- It started as a hobby and I never got around to it
- What’s a business plan?
Planning your business is like planning your family
Think about this – there’s a lot of similarities between planning your business and planning your family (although I won’t insist on you writing down your family planning).
- Some people plan their families years in advance and the timing works out perfectly for the families and they grow precisely in line with their plans
- Some people get a family when they least expect it – what started as a bit of playing around suddenly takes on a life it of it’s own and you’re responsible for it
- Sometimes people will have a great family, and suddenly something outside their control happens and the unit is damaged, separated and destroyed.
- Some people plan for a steady increase in their family, but nature ‘happens’ and they get double or triple what they were expecting
- Or you hook up with someone, and suddenly it’s a package deal and you get fully-developed stepkids, full or part time, thrown into the bargain
- Some people plan to have a family, but no matter what they try and no matter how much money they put into trying – nothing happens, their family never grows and they eventually give up trying and go on with other life.
‘Business plan’ is not a four letter word
All those reasons we saw above are just excuses. None of them are valid, legitimate reasons when you really get down to it. If you’re going to have a business then treat it as a real business, plan for growth and development and make it happen.
Want to get off to a quick start?
If you’re in the 98% of WAHMs who don’t have a current, written down business plan then check out our No-Plan-Preneur Quick’n’Dirty Business Plan guide. Priced at only $6.95 and designed to be both fast and easy, this ebook will give you a quick shot of motivation and get you and your business headed in the right direction.
Imagine Slowing Down and Getting More Done
This is something I’ve struggled with for a long time; obviously I’m a slow learner because the benefits of slowing down have been pointed out to me time and time again. I even wrote a post that touched on this earlier this year. So what is it that I’m struggling with? It’s the fact that when I slow down I get more done yet so often I fail to remember this and keep pushing to work longer and harder.
How does slowing down help you work better?
Not only am I more productive when I slow down – I finish my work faster – I’m also a lot more creative. You see, creativity doesn’t happen in a vacuum. There needs to be life and activity to spark inspiration and creativity. However at the other end of the scale creativity doesn’t happen when your head is full of ideas, thoughts, things to do and remember, all bouncing around together and crammed in, overloaded.
You need to take time out for thinking, allow time for your thoughts to marinate, develop and mature. Your subconscious mind works in the background, constantly. However when you try and cram too many ideas in then it has to keep working on new ideas before the previous ideas are fully explored.
Allowing your subconscious to work effectively
British psychologist and author Guy Claxton wrote in his book “Hare Brain, Tortoise Mind. Why Intelligence Increases When You Think Less” that most of our everyday intelligence “belongs not to the screen of consciousness but to the invisible ‘motherboard’ behind it”. He talks about giving our brains time to pause, for our subconscious to ‘connect the dots’ and bring good, workable ideas to wholeness and fruition.
How often have you been doing something such as walking, housework, listening to music and you’ve suddenly had a brilliant ‘Aha!’ moment? An idea that bursts full-bodied into your mind? Inspiration that initiates an outpouring of a full-grown plan for growth, or the answer to a troubling problem?
That’s your subconscious at work, doing what it does best. Your subconscious loves structure and a dependable routing. It’s at it’s most creative when it knows when to work and on what.
Scheduling inspiration
The famous playwright and novelist Somerset Maughan said “I write only when inspiration strikes. Fortunately it strikes every morning at nine o’clock sharp”. His habit of sitting down to write at 9.00am every morning allowed his subconscious to prepare and be ready to produce ideas as soon as he sat. Do you do the same?
How many of us scorn routine as being a straitjacket that reduces creativity? How often do you brush off suggestions of writing out plans and ideas because it will take away the ‘inspiration’? What if these things actually enabled you to get more done and come up with better ideas? What then?
Take the Challenge… I dare you!
Here’s a challenge for you, should you choose to accept it (and I hope you will). Pick something you’ve been thinking about doing or developing lately but have felt stuck on. Write it down, and then write down any suggestions, comments or anything relevant to it that you may have thought of. Then leave it. Give it a few hours and go for a walk. Take some time over the next day or two to slow down, smell the roses, walk in the rain (if you’re lucky enough to have some) and just take time to allow your brain to slow down.
Keep jotting down any ideas that come to you. Schedule a time to come back to your idea and work on it. When that time comes, take out your paper or computer doc and see what comes out for that idea that you wrote down.
And let me know how you go with it. 
Systemising Your Emails
We’ve recently looked at Why we systemise our business, and How to write systems. Today we’re going to look at systemising your emails.
Firstly lets be clear on one point. You’ll never be able to pass off all emails to your VA and never deal with emails yourself again. No matter how much of a Tim Ferriss fan you are, it’s just not going to happen. Think about it, if you email me with a question about your business and Coaching, do you want it answered by a VA or would you like a personal answer?
What you can do is systemise and create templates for the most common questions that you’re emailed about, and delegate those. A PA/VA can be a great help in sorting emails, dealing with the run of the mill one’s, and freeing you up to deal with only those that require your personal attention.
What can you delegate? Questions that get asked regularly, invoices, payments and other accounting emails, quotes for work if you have ‘package’ options, stock ordering and supply, appointments, requests for non-personal information, the list goes on.
What should you deal with? Anything that is a one-off email, any complaints, requests for interviews, anything that requires a personal touch.
Why create templates for email? How often do you have to answer questions via email? If you’re having to rewrite the same answer to the same question each time then you need templates. Think about the questions that you’re asked. How many of them are similar enough that you can use a template or script to answer them? How much time will you save when you don’t have to reinvent the wheel and rewrite the emails every time?
So, the How. Where do you start? If you’re like 99.9% of Business Owners you already have the makings of email templates and scripts in your email client. Look through you sent emails, emails to clients, suppliers, contacts from your website etc.
Group all the questions you’ve been asked into like topics and use the emails you’ve written previously to create a standard template answer. Write the templates in word docs, and save them using the question as the file name.
Group the docs into folders based on what they refer to, such as ‘Quotes’, ‘Ordering’, Wholesalers’, etc. This makes it easy to find the doc again when you need.
Next time you receive an email asking for information, you simply go to the appropriate folder, copy and paste the template into an email. Check that it answers the question properly and send it off.
If you have a PA, VA or Admin Asst, they can more than pay for themselves by filtering your business email. They can deal with the standard emails that the templates work with, and anything that doesn’t have a template is sent off to you for answering.
What do you think? How could this work in your business? What questions are asked repeatedly?
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Meet Mel:
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The web's business planning expert - just for work at home mums. Together we'll find the time for you to make money.