It’s all too easy to think that stuff we find fun isn’t work or doesn’t have a price tag on it.
Here’s what happened to me about twenty years ago. When I had to quit my job and started doing freelance PR work. I shortchanged myself not just a little, but a lot.
I’d have potential clients call me and we’d chat and then set up a meeting where I’d go through everything I’d do to help them and their business get noticed. Most of the time, we’d meet in a café or coffee shop and yes, I’d even pay for the drinks or meal. I’d spend an hour, sometimes more, with them, setting out my PR plan in a very detailed way, thinking they’d be so impressed they’d hire me on the spot.
That never happened.
All of them told me they’d, think things over and get back to me. None of them ever did but when I did a follow up call, I’d hear the same thing over and over again.
You gave me so many great ideas that I think it’s enough to get started doing my own PR so after much thought, I don’t need to hire you.
It made me angry about these time wasters and almost made me want to start looking through the want ads for a job. That was until one day I sat down and thought about who my anger should really be directed at. It was me not them.
I’d given away too much too soon. I needed to quit giving away so much detail about my PR plan…they’d get that later when they hired me. I also realized that this PR consultation was worth something. I was offering my expertise and the knowledge I’d gathered over years of working in the business and I should at least get paid for it.
I had a new strategy,
I’d meet with them but give them a brief outline. That way they couldn’t do everything on their own. I’d also charge for what I now called a one hour PR consultation. And yes, one hour and no more. Even if they didn’t hire me, I hadn’t wasted my time and come away empty handed.
If you’re in business or starting a business, get paid what you’re worth. Nothing should be given away for free unless you’re offering your services to charity. Don’t shortchange yourself because it can ruin your bottom line and even put your business in risk of going bankrupt.
I’m a firm believer that by setting goals you’re half way along the road to success.
I’ve set goals for saving money, writing books, losing weight and exercising, and even for projects that need tackling around the house.
Think about the business you want to start or the way you want to start making money. Brainstorm for five minutes about all the tasks you’ll need to do to get where you want to go. Then start breaking them down into baby steps.
For example, overall goal, launching a new graphic design business.
Baby steps might include-getting a web site set up. Getting business cards made. Joining your local chamber of commerce. Having a launch party etc.
One thing you have to do is write down your goals and place them somewhere you can see them. Revisit them every week to check where you’re at and how you’re doing. Even make yourself a vision board (more about these in an upcoming post).
One other thing you need to do is give yourself a deadline. Remember you’re no longer working for someone else and no one’s telling you to do something or when a job has to be completed.
Get in the habit of giving yourself deadlines and let goal setting be one of them. Some of mine are to get an Etsy store set up so I can start selling my homemade jewelry-deadline May 1st. I’ve also given myself until June 1st to grow Budget Smart Girl with more followers and more traffic.
Get last thing you should do is keep reassessing your goals. What did you achieve, what didn’t you achieve, why, and what can you do to shake things up?
What are your goals? Feel free to share them here at BSG.
Over at my writing site, I do a weekly round up of things I’ve been up to and it’s known at Friday Ramblings From An Author. I thought I’d try that on this site too, well, a month by month Ramblings to begin with just to give it a test run.
So here’s what I got up to this cold and snowy February.
This year I knew I had to get more organized about what had to be done, what should be done, and what wasn’t worth bothering with. In January, on I created a file on my laptop with the name of the month and the words to do. Inside I added everything I felt need to be tackled and when it was done I’d remove it from the folder. I’m not sure if it was the enthusiasm of the New Year kicking in or what, but when January 31st rolled around, it was empty. I changed the name to February and guess what, it’s already empty! I’m not saying I’ve found a magic formula for getting stuff done, but give it a try and see what happens.
A couple of things that were in the folder were launching BSGFreedomU, I hope you’ve checked it out. This week I added two more classes, one on productivity and the other on making money with affiliate marketing.A couple of things that were in the folder were launching BSGFreedomU, I hope you’ve checked it out. This week I added two more classes, one on productivity and the other on making money with affiliate marketing. Here’s the link if you missed it. https://budgetsmartgirlfreedomu.zenler.com/
Back in December I published Fabulously Frugal which gave me the idea for a whole series of 30 Day Makeover books. Last month it was about decluttering, this month it’s organizing. Yesterday I hit the publish button on that title and here’s the cover. Hope you’ll check it out and its just 99 cents.
One other thing I knew I wanted to do was get this site refocused and that happened last week. I hope you’re liking it and I’d love your feedback. Is there something you want to see, a question you have, contact me at budgetsmartqueries@gmail.com
One thing I do every month is check all money that’s coming in and money that’s going out for running my business. It gives me a clearer view of what I’m spending money on and if it was worth it for my business or not. I also check memberships I have and if they no longer serve me or my business, I cancel. It’s something I recommend you do as soon as you launch a business or even if you’re starting a side line business. My biggest problem has always been focusing on things that while they’re fun, haven’t brought in the biggest return money wise. This is a topic we’ll get more into next month.
My goal is to have something for you on this site five days a week. It might not happen straight away but it’s what I’ve set as a long term goal. Starting on Monday and every Monday, I’ll also be copying something I also do over at TWL, and that’s post something motivational. For this site it’s going to be a quote and image that I hope you’ll take with you for the week as you work on living the life you love.
My post the other day was centered on finding your passion?
The next thing you need to figure out is how you’re going to channel it into something that makes you money.
Are you working a full time job and thinking about taking a side gig? Or do you want to quit your job and take the plunge and launch your own business?
Maybe it’s a bit of both things, you’ll continue to work at your job and launch your own business that you’ll pursue in the evening and at weekends.
Are you going to put a hobby to good use. Maybe you make sweaters or clothes that you can sell online. Perhaps you’re an artist and you’re going to begin making cards to sell on platforms like Etsy.
Or it could be you’ve worked for years in consulting and you’re thinking about being a freelance consultant to other business. Maybe coaching is more your thing.
Brainstorm and write down your talents and what you love doing best and use this as your starting point while you explore which direction you want to go.
Let’s kick off the making money journey with a question.
What’s your passion?
If you had to explain it in one sentence what would it be?
I’m a firm believer in when you choose a business or a side gig, it’s best to go with something that you’re passionate about.
Sure, you can choose the hot trend of the year, something that you know others are making thousands of dollars doing, but if it’s not something that you’re passionate about, it’s not going to last…you’re not going to last.
When you work for yourself, you’ve got no one telling you what to do next, no boss watching over your shoulder making sure it gets done so it’s all to easy to let things slide and before you know it you’re back looking for a regular job.
Being passionate about something prevents that from happening. It’s fun, it’s the reason you get out of bed in the morning.
Working for yourself is tough. The people who say it isn’t have never tried it. Even after working for myself for the last twenty years, I still get days when I want to throw in the towel because someone’s not appreciated how much hard work I’ve put into a project. Someone leaves a snarky remark or the project that you thought would bring in more money fizzles and dies. However, you don’t quit because this is something that you love doing and you keep on wanting to share your passion with the world.
So before we dive in deep to starting a business, launching a side line gig or even starting to think about ways you can make money, think about your passion.
Write it down, keep it handy because it will not only help you narrow down what you should be doing to make money but keep you motivated on the days when you want to call it quits.
Here’s a review of some software I did for my writing site, This Writer’s Life www.thiswriterslife.com and thought the product might be a good fit for BSG too as we’re now focusing on launching a business and I think this software could be helpful.
I’ve never reviewed products here at TWL before but I was
recently approached by a company to do just that. So disclaimer up front, I
received the product in exchange for an honest review.
What is the product and why did I agree to review it and
share it with you?
It a software program called PDFelement and it’s made by
Wondershare Software LLC. At first, I thought it might not be a good match for
TWL’s audience but after checking it out I realized a lot of you, like me,
could put it to good use in your writing life.
Since I began getting rights back to my books, I’ve been
using Adobe to convert the old pdfs to Word so I can then format them ready for
republishing. I can’t remember exactly what I’ve paid for it but as we all know
things quickly add up. PDFelement does the same thing but for a lot less. In
fact, once you’ve purchased the software, you don’t have any more reoccurring fees. So if like me, you’re publishing back titles,
or will anytime in the future, it’s going to be easier on your budget.
The conversion to Word and then into my self-publishing
template hasn’t been without its issues even with using Adobe so I gave this
PDFelement feature a test run to see how things compared. While it wasn’t
exactly perfect because there were still some gaps between words and
paragraphs, it was actually a lot better than when I uploaded the Adobe
conversion file into my template.
One feature I’m especially excited about is being able to
type information into the pdfs it creates. As many of you know I teach writing
classes and I’m currently putting together workbooks that I save as pdfs. Now
it means my students won’t have to print out the workbooks if they don’t want
to and can add text straight into them.
PDFelement also has a file of templates you can use…always
love templates because they cut your worktime in half. I was pleased to see
there’s a newsletter template. I gave that a test run and have to say I loved
it. When it comes to words and graphics combined together in a file…well, let’s
just say I’m not the best designer but it looked pretty good. I’m probably
going to start using it to send out to my students to keep them up to date on
classes and writing tips.
If any of you run a business…I know a few of you do, they
also have gift certificate templates and even W-2 Forms.
So, what did I think about the ease of installing the
software? As many of you know I call myself Ms. Untechy because anything in the
technical realm, especially connected with a computer, sends me into a panic.
The installation was fairly easy but I have to say it seemed a bit sluggish.
I’m not sure if it was my laptop or the fact there’s a lot to install but it
did take some time and then when the laptop restarted that took a long time
too. When I first used PDFelement, it immediately did an update to a new
version.
As for ease of use when you first start out, there are
tutorials, but all in all, the icons are straightforward and self-explanatory.
It’s similar to a Word Doc so that makes things a lot easier…especially for me
because I hate having to learn everything from scratch again. You can change
colors, import images and there are different fonts. Depending on how
creativity you want to be, the sky’s the limit.
While I’m on a deadline from the company to get this review
published, I’ve not had time to play with all the things this software has to
offer, however, I’m really looking forward to exploring more and using it in my
own writing life and business.
I know many of you are probably Adobe fans, but if you’re
looking for a less expensive alternative for your writing needs, then at least
give it a try. Yes, you can sign up for a trial before you make a decision
about purchasing it. The link below offers you a 50% discount if you do decide
to go ahead and purchase it. That’s my initial review and I’ll keep you updated
the more I use it.
I’ve been telling you about the overhaul for BSG for a few weeks, and today it kicks into gear.
No longer will you find post on clipping coupons, pantry makeovers or anything you’ve seen before. This site is now geared toward ways to start a business, put a business you already run into high gear, or even just ways to make some extra income.
It will be focused on freedom and finding a way to live the life you dream about.
I’ve been working for myself for close to 20 years. It’s not something I set out to do. My last outside employer type job was as a publicist. I loved it but then things took a turn for the worst. There were things going on with the owner I had no idea about…well, it cut the story short, I quit and decided I’d put my fate into my own hands and launched a freelance writing/PR company.
I won’t tell you it was easy because I worked three jobs while I got the business up and running. And of course, business changes and evolves and once I turned to writing books, the freelance writing sort of fell by the wayside. For ten years, I’ve also been teaching and tutoring aspiring writers.
So what will you see on the new face of BSG…I hope to help you live the life you dream about. There will be articles, interviews with other entrepreneurs, anything that helps you get on the money path you want to follow.
The first thing I want to share with you is my newly created BudgetSmartGirlFreedomU. It’s an online school I’ve set up with classes you can take to help you on your entrepreneurs journey. I’ll be adding more classes soon and here’s the link-
I’ve also added an affiliate link for you, so here’s your first way of maybe making some extra money. If you refer someone to the class and they sign up, you get 20% of the price of the class.
I also have two more schools at Zenler with affiliate programs so check them out. Even if you’re not interested in any of the classes you might know someone who is, and once again, it’s a way for you to make some money
I’d love to know what you’d like to see on BSG? Contact me at budgetsmartqueries@gmail.com or if you’re a subscriber, hit the reply button when you get your post.
Speaking of subscribers, if you’re not already one, sign up so you don’t miss anything that’s coming up at BSG.
Hope you enjoy the makeover and here’s to new beginnings and your success with living your dream…
I told you a few weeks ago that I was thinking of rebranding this site. After much brainstorming, I’ve decided that instead of focusing on saving money, it’s new theme should be making money. You can learn how to save at the store or whatever just about any where these days so I want to give you something different.
The site will show you ways to make money, be it a side gig, starting your own business, selling your arts and crafts…you get the picture. While there still might be the odd post or two about ways to save time, and yes, recipes you can easily make while you’re busy building your empire, its main focus will be about helping you make money and life the life you’ve always dreamed about. I also intend to set up an online school where you can take classes on various topics to help make you a success in whatever venture you choose.
I’ll have more details coming soon, but in the meantime, I’ll be overhauling the site. I hope to do the makeover sometime this week so things might look strange for a bit while the whole process unfolds. Here’s a sneak peek at the new header and tagline.
If you know anyone who is interested in being their own boss and master of their destiny, then I hope you’ll send them to the site where they can sign up and subscribe.
If a money makeover is on your New Year to do list, I hope you’ll check out my new e-book that I released yesterday. It’s already on the Amazon bestseller list in the budgeting category.
Each day you’ll get a simple, quick suggestion on ways to save money…sometimes even make money. Best thing is it’s currently on sale for just 99 cents.
You can buy it here on the BSG site…you can find it on the left of the screen or at Amazon…it should be available on other online stores later this week.
I hope you’ll check it out and please tell others who want a quick and easy money makeover about it too.
