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Head on over to the new and improved ByTrevor.com

Head on over to the new and improved ByTrevor.com

Head on over to the new and improved ByTrevor.com

Head on over to the new and improved ByTrevor.com

Head on over to the new and improved ByTrevor.com

How To Work From Home The Right Way

Working from home is getting easier and we are getting lazier thanks to technology. Being self-employed and your house being your office has it's benefits but others can tell you that they still face challenges. Here is how to work from home the correct way.

1) Set Up Regular Work Hours
This is a common mistake. Working from home, people seem to think they can work anytime during the day (or night). This isn't the best idea. To really get your mind and routine on track, try setting up regular business hours. This does not have to be 9 to 5 but that is recommended as most of your clients/ customers will be communicating with you during this time.

2) Keep Personal Home Issues and Business Home Issues Separated
It's easy to get distracted when working from home. The laundry needs to get done, the dishes are a mess, you need to run errands and go get groceries. Set aside personal time for after your scheduled work hours. Doing these types of things during work hours can affect your concentration and quality of your business life. The same goes for after business hours. Anything that happens after hours that is work related can wait until your next business day. This will keep you more organized and won't make you feel like you are working non-stop.

3) Dress For Work, Not For Bed
There are mixed feelings over wearing work attire at home verses wearing pajamas. Dress to impress even if it's for your dog. This will keep your mind active for business. Get a routine going. Wake up earlier, make some coffee, jump in the shower, and put on work attire. This does not mean put on a suit everyday. I have work shirts with my logo on them. This will help your work day feel separated from your house (even though you work from home) and will make you feel more confident.

4) Work In One Spot
Make sure to have a designated work area in your home. Ideally, this should be a spare bedroom. But if you do not have that luxury, making your spot at the kitchen table, a sun room, or desk area in the living room is better than sporadically working throughout the house. This will help your mind work on, well, work and not home stuff.

5) Take Breaks
This is one of the most important steps. Taking a normal break will help your physical state. Go to the gym, go out to eat with a friend or client. Go for a jog. Just like working in an office, breaks are needed to keep the mind fresh and energized. One of the best benefits with working from home is flexibility with your breaks.

The Master Plan For The Ultimate Entrepreneur

Setting up a master plan for your business may seem long and drawn out but it doesn't have to be that way. If you are reading this, most likely you are an entrepreneur looking for some skilled advice on starting up your own online business or looking for strategy help with your current business. Here are some steps to get your master plan into gear.

Goals

I know right? Goals. Practical. Simple. But very important. Most common mistakes entrepreneurs make is based off pure laziness when it comes to goal setting. Yeah, you have an idea in your head but what have you written down? Most of you would probably be saying "ehhhh...well...." and that's not a good start. Your journey doesn't begin until you set yourself up for success. Grab a pen and notebook. Where do you see yourself tomorrow? What about next week? Next month? Next year? And what about 5 years from now? The beginning of your entrepreneur journey starts with just a pen and paper. Or your notes app. Whichever. 

Schedule

When I first started out with my online shop I just went with the flow and did what I needed to get done for that day. I wasn't sure what that was exactly and just did whatever happened to pop up in that moment. Being self-employed, you can easily get distracted and not use your time wisely. You want to start out with a normal 9 to 5 work week, jot down your schedule and time frames. For example, reply to unanswered emails from 9am-10am then head to the post office from 10am-10:30am and so on. This could differ depending on your situation but it's good to keep a balanced self-employed work life. If you have a full time job then you understand you have a goal and deadline for the day to get things done. The same goes for your personal business. 

Network
Ah, heard this before? People often see networking as a huge waste of time. Keep in mind, networking doesn't exactly mean something will happen today, tomorrow or even this year. It's always good to know people and doing the leg work today could mean huge possibilities within the next year or two. You just never know. Seriously, get those business cards handy and start networking.

Failure
You will fail. It's simple as that. This is all about being an entrepreneur and learning from your mistakes. I still fail today. How? I spend money on new products that just don't sell and could have gone without wasting my time designing and crafting. But that one failed item saved me from 3 others. How does this coincide with your master plan? Write down your failures just as much as your accomplishments. It's all about learning. Your business is just like your life. Treat it the same way.

Loyalty
It takes time to earn someone's trust and loyalty. The same goes for your business. Remember to always demonstrate loyalty to your customers. Experience is everything and creates the best word-of-mouth advertising. How many people have you told to go to that new local coffee shop or new music store because they were just so kind, caring, and made you feel valued? That could be somebody else talking about you and your business. Jot down in your master plan log just how you can create an experience that keeps the same customers coming back and gets your business earning new ones. This could be from some seriously cool packaging to possibly one of the most positive and appreciative reply from an email. It's the little things.

I have no doubt that if you strongly follow these steps to getting your master plan into motion you will see some nice results with your business.

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Inspiring Work Spaces

People often confuse the meaning of "rustic" as this full blown old and grimy antique farm design. Well, that is not entirely true. Rustic is the example of many different styles from simple to countryside. Imperfection on purpose mostly describe the word rustic. Just because it's aged and mossy wood doesn't mean you can't clean it up, throw some white paint on it and still call is Rustic. Perfect example are these inspiring work spaces below. Some have that dark "rustic" feel, and some have that clean simple "rustic" feel. The work space you place your business in can affect your process and imagination. You would be surprised what you can do with a simple window and desk.

Which space is your favorite? I personally love space 5 & 7. Now, if I could have a combination of these two work spaces, I would be in self-employed heaven.