Wouldn’t it be nice if we could just wave a little wand and “walah”, we have a successful online marketing business up and running, creating thousands of dollars for us every month, and giving us all the free time in the world to do other things we love. Mmm, the dream is nice, but then reality must kick in. When it comes to success, we all know there is no easy way out. If there was, everybody would be successful. It takes time, effort, persistence, patience, and correct consistent action.
I’m not going to lie and tell you that becoming an online marketer is all roses.
There is work to be done if we want to build a successful online marketing business, and that work takes time.
“But how much time?” I hear you ask.
Well, here comes the good news:
So long as you can spare 15 to 20 hours a week working on your online business, with some cash to invest in paid advertising, then you are good to go.
Ok, perhaps that does not sound like good news for some of you. Freeing up time can seem like mission impossible, especially in this day and age. So here are some tips on creating the time you need to work on your online business.
First, Let’s Look At Our Top Time Wasters
Technology
It can save you time but you can allow it to waste your time too. Social media, playing with apps, emailing, texting, playing games, watching YouTube clips. The list is endless. Sure, in moderation these are all great, but when they start interfering with productivity or prevent the achievement of goals, then we really need to take a look at reducing their use.
Television
How many shows do we really need to watch? And then there’s all the time spent watching just the ads. Research revealed that in 2016 the average Australian watched 2.6 hours of TV per day. That’s 18.25 hours a week – Everyone could run an online business if they cut out their TV time alone.
Other Time Wasters?
Can include such things as shopping (especially online shopping), reading “trashy” books or magazines, excess personal grooming, and even exercise (especially if it involves a lot of talking rather than intensity).
To create more time in the day to start, build, and run an online business, it would make sense to eliminate our time wasters, or at least reduce them significantly.
Here Are Some Steps You Can Take To Eliminate Or Reduce Your Time-wasting Activities.
Step 1: Identify Your Time Wasters?
To discover your time wasters, note everything you do throughout your day for a good week. Keep a notebook handy to record how much time you spend on things such as your morning rituals, social media, entertainment, sleep, fitness, time on phone calls, time spent driving through a drive-through to buy your coffee or take-out food, even time spent pursuing bad habits – absolutely everything.
At this stage, have no judgment, purely note how you consume your time.
Step 2: Categorize Your Routine
Use the following as headings:
- Family
- Work
- Achieving goals
- Health
- Entertainment/hobbies
- Distractions
- Socializing
By doing this you will gain an understanding of where you spend your time and if you spend too much time on activities within a particular category.
Step 3: Change Your Routine By Reducing Or Eliminating Time Spent Within A Particular Category
ENTERTAINMENT
Have you noticed you watch too much TV? I used to watch too much myself. What I do now is record any shows I really enjoy and spend about 2-3 hours once a week watching them (with the ability to fast forward the ads).
Using Social Media in excess? No need to eliminate it all. Social media is a great way to stay connected to family and friends. Perhaps schedule social media time. I generally spend around 20 minutes on it every evening. You might like to spend 20 minutes each morning and night. Perhaps use it whenever you find yourself in a situation where are waiting in line for something (eg at the grocery store or when banking in person).
HEALTH:
Do you spend longer talking to mates at the gym as compared to actually training? This is something I came across a lot working as a Personal Trainer within a gym. Some gym users would take 2 hours to complete a workout that would normally take 30 minutes thanks to their over-active jaws. I suggest using a timer to keep you on track. There are also apps that can keep you focused on your workout. Save a brief “catch up” chat ’til after your workout. Better still, arrange a social night out with your gym mates.
WORK:
Does work take away from your family life? A great reason to get started with your online business. Give it the time and attention it deserves and it can provide you with the income and time freedom you deserve.
If your current job does take up way too much time in your life, are you able to hire a personal assistant or delegate more of your tasks to others? What about incorporating specific time management skills into your workdays such as allocating specific times to check emails, allowing your messaging service to take calls during certain times of the day, or scheduling time in your calendar where you close the door on all distractions?
If none of these types of suggestions is an option, maybe it is time to look into another career, one that offers you the time you need to do the things you are passionate about. Why live to work when, in this day and age, it is even more possible than ever to work to live.
DISTRACTIONS:
Mobile phones are a stickler for this due to the fact they enable you to be “on-call” to everyone all of the time. I like to switch mine off whenever I can, especially when I am working on my own online business. Voicemail will take care of any missed calls and I can schedule “return” phone calls when it’s convenient for me.
Step 4: It’s Time To Implement More Of What You Want To Do In Your Life
You’ve now created time to start, build and run your new online business, one you can run from pretty much anywhere 🙂
Final Note:
It may take some time to adjust to your new routine but keep at it.
Consistency is key!
It may take 3 – 4 weeks to fully implement the changes you desire into your life.
My suggestions may not work for you but at least it will get you thinking about ways you can free up 15 – 20 hours a week to start work on your new online business.