I had the opportunity to go to my first Word Camp (Word Press Camp) earlier this year and it was amazing! I met some of the best in the business: designers, developers, copywriters and more. I also scored a tone of freebies and received a load of information. Seeing so many entrepreneurs and freelancers successfully doing what I have been striving to do was such an encouragement and confidence booster. Out of all of the presentations I heard, the most memorable one was “What I Wish I’d known as a Freelancer” with Nathan Ingram. The presentation focused on the challenges faced as a freelancer. I could totally relate to every single thing stated. What stuck out the most was, staying busy when the workflow is pretty much, well nonexistent.
I have been in situations where work was slow and I felt completely lost. I often found myself jumping from one thing to another and accomplishing nothing. Aimlessly searching for something to do with my extra time. Anyone that knows me knows how much I hate wasting time, but when work was slow, it seemed that that was the only option. So what was the solution to this problem? I learned from the Word Camp presentation that the solution was such a simple task. So simple that I almost wanted to slap myself when I heard it. The solution was none other than a to-do-list, or what Mr. Ingram called a “Someday List”.
Yep that is right, a sheet of paper and a pencil was going to solve my problem. Now I’m not talking about an ordinary to-do-list like pick up dry cleaning or pay a bill, but a list of business related tasks. Tasks that you don’t seem to have time to do when business is booming. For example, update your portfolio with new projects, start a blog (finally checked off my list), take a course, open a business banking account, do that boring accounting work you’ve been putting off or find an accountant to do it for you. This was a game changer for me. I normally make to-do-lists when I have a lot to do, but I’ve never made one when I had nothing to do (correction: when I thought I had nothing to do).
It’s easy to get stressed out when the workflow is slow, you start thinking about those bills that are lurking around the corner and try to figure out ways to bring business in faster. Having that “Someday List” will help to ease your mind and keep you busy; after all it is work that needs to be done to enhance your business anyway. Instead of wasting the additional time you have during the slow seasons, use it to your advantage. Just like an ordinary to-do-list, the “Someday List” will help you to focus your attention and prioritize your tasks. When work picks up again, you will have had all of those seemingly time consuming tasks that you “have no time for” completed. During the busy seasons you can add to that list and be well prepared when things slow down.
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943-239-9480
stephanie@smaysdesigns.com
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