This week I wanted to focus on something that I am dealing with. I am officially out of college now and I have to time to really focus on my blog and grow my business. I am also looking for a job in social media or digital marketing to further grow my knowledge. In the mean time I have a lot of free time.

In the summer when I started my blog I focused a lot of time on it and it helped me feel productive on my vacation. Now however I am looking to blog more as a profession than as a hobby. I don’t want to view my week as being “off of work” or on vacation. I want to figure out how to “BE MY OWN BOSS”.

Now the tips that I have come up with apply to anyone- from someone who is like me and wants to run a business from home, to the stay at home mom. We all need to feel productive no matter what we are doing. I think the biggest challenge of being your own boss is how to discipline yourself.

I’ll let you in a on a secret. There were days in the summer that I could binge watch a TV show in the morning because- WHY NOT? I didn’t have to be anywhere… but I don’t think that is a healthy outlook for a long-term job. I don’t want to feel that I have the option to be lazy in bed. Don’t get me wrong, giving your self a day off every now and again is awesome, but it should be a treat!

Here are my tips for being your OWN BOSS-

Set a goal

I think it’s always helpful to have a 5-year goal that you are working to achieve. Goals are amazing they keep you focused. It doesn’t mean that your goal cant change but you should have one. Then lets crack it down by year and then month. Starting off the week with a goal in mind will keep you moving ahead. I love lists and I love checking things off! I wrote myself a list this week of what I want to accomplish- work on editing my resume and cover letter, make myself a logo for my website and design and order business cards.

Those goals to me are attainable and I hope to reach them by the end of the week. Don’t be discouraged if you can’t complete all your week goals. Sometimes things comes up that you didn’t foresee. Keep going. You got this.

Make a Plan

Once I set my weekly goal I divided up what was most important and which things I would work on first. Be sure to give your self some wiggle room. I also find that doing exercise is helpful when I wake up in the morning. If you can make your own schedule and you don’t need to leave early in the morning to got to the office- GET SOME EXERCISE in! It’s a great way to start the day. I find that booking my Orangetheory classes in advance helps me get up and out early and have a productive start to the day. BBG is great if you can’t leave your house whenever your desire because it can all be done at home!

Get out of the House

Now I’m not saying that you need to do all your work out of the house, but I find that when I go to a coffee shop to work on the comupter I get a lot more done. I don’t have the fridge or TV as a distraction and my only option is to work. It is also important to see people! It doesn’t need to be a weekly lunch date but some sort of social interaction so it’s not just you and your thoughts all day!

At the end of the week look back and think if you felt accomplished and productive. If you did, then great! If not, think about how you can make next week better! Stay strong and make your goals happen! I wish you the best on being your own boss and I hope this post helped you gain the motivation you were looking for.

I have included some tools that I find helpful and fun to keep you on track. Everything is under $15!

Cheers!

Batsheva