This is Frightening!

Well, I didn't write in my blog this week (I went to Vegas last weekend and spent a few days at the beach this week, so I have a VERY good excuse), so I thought I'd leave you with this. "Profit Moffat" is at it again and this time it's very frightening:

http://www.jasonmoffatt.com/dir/42

The Semi-Retirement Plan

2005 has definitely been an a great year - personally and professionally. My business has grown by leaps and bounds and I've also rediscovered a lot of things about myself that got lost in the past 3 years slaving over my computer. If you're slaving now...and slaving smartly...there is light at the end of the tunnel. I promise!

Anyway, business is going good. I'm not filthy rich and couldn't live off my life savings, but I'm already working on my semi-retirement plan. Over the past few weeks, I finally realized that I was spending more time on the computer than I actually needed to (could you be guilty of this as well?). I have devised a new schedule for myself that will have me working about 10-12 hours per week (or less, if I feel like it) and still GROW my business.

That's the beauty of it...I'm going to cut back how much I work, but I am not limiting my income potential. On the contrary, I'm increasing it. I've shared in the past that when I work less, I'm more focussed and I tend to get more done. I know others experience the same thing and I bet you would find the same.

Accomplishing this has been a combination of building passive income and having other people do the hard work for me, while I just oversee everything. I've been outsourcing a lot of work for over 3 years now...but now I'm increasing the amount of help I'm getting and really getting things systematized. This is going to be a major overhaul for my business and my life.

I've put together some useful tips for you in the FAQ and if you haven't checked them out, I encourage you to now:

How to Outsource on a Budget
http://aliceseba.com/faq/content/view/59/1/

How to Work on with an Assistant
http://aliceseba.com/faq/content/view/61/1/

and I'll add more tips and suggestions as I go along.

I've told a few people of my plans and they asked me if I will continue with my blog and projects like InternetBasedMoms.com. Absolutely! This is what I love most about my business - sharing ideas and things that have worked fro me - and in that 10-12 hour schedule, I've included plenty of time to work on my newsletters and add to the FAQ. So you can expect to hear a LOT more from me. ;-)

Remember This?

Remember, when my kitchen counter looked like this?



Well, just about an hour and a half's work (on my part) and I have finally caught up 7 months of bookkeeping and paperwork. Now, my kitchen counter looks like this:




Phew! This is a load off my mind and has given me more focus on the things I need to do. You know when you have this daunting task hanging over your head, you tend to procrastinate about everything? I know when I was in university and needed to study, I'd have sense this overwhelming need clean and I'd get nothing done. Well, with the paperwork hanging over my head, I wasted a lot of time doing things I didn't need to be doing and creating "busy work" for myself. Well, it's done and now I have a bookkeeping "secret weapon".

And that secret weapon is Raquel Morphy of Raquel Morphy Business Solutions. It only took me an hour and half to sort the papers and ship them off to my virtual bookkeeper is handling all the details...because as you may already know, I hate math and should not be trusted with numbers. ;-)

I think we all need to find the things we're good at and leave the other things to more qualified people. In my last entry about my "bookkeeping shame", a couple people asked if my bookkeeper was taking more clients. Raquel gave me the green light to send a few referrals her way, so feel free to tell her I sent you. Her website is located at http://www.rmbizsolutions.com.

I Pulled a Winona Ryder!

But I swear there were no prescription or illicit drugs involved.

Today, I was at the 7-Eleven getting my regular Diet Coke Big Gulp (just the 2nd size up, not the HUGE one) and I was thinking about how I was really getting my business, organized and systematized so I don't have to work as much (more on that tomorrow and next week) . I finished pouring the drink and walked right out without paying!

I didn't even realize it until I was part way down the street and thought, "Did I pay?" I looked in my wallet and I had the same amount of cash in there as when I entered the store. Holy smokes! I shoplifted a Big Gulp!

I hurried back to ask the lady at the counter if I'd paid. She said no, but that I had looked at her and her manager, smiled and walked about. Because they recognized me from my regular Big Gulp trips, they figured I was just running out and coming back to pay. So, of course, I paid and left. Then I spend the next 15 minutes wondering I'm insane, a kleptomaniac or both...but I got over it soon enough. How embarrassing, though.

Anyway, if you don't think I'm too nuts, I'll be back tomorrow with more details for you on my organizing and working less project.

Could It Be True - 2 Of My Favorite Things TOGETHER

This is almost like when peanut butter met chocolate in the Reese's Peanut Butter Cups!

Rap music (yes...it's true, I'm a fan) and Internet marketing have come together. A fellow Internet marketer, Jason Moffatt has created a rap in honor of Ed Dale's 30-Day Underachiever Challenge.

Listen to it here:
www.jasonmoffatt.com/podcasts/jmoundiesong.mp3

(Now...my dear friend, Sheri...does this make it clear what I actually do online? Hee hee!)