You know the phrase, "Time Is Money". How true it is.

The past few months I started cutting back on the number of websites I run. Many were not even making enough to cover their share of the server.

I decided to focus on just a few topics and manage my time better. In the past I talked about hiring a VA. This is something I may do in the future, but right now I am running a shoestring budget.

When looking into a make money venture, consider how much time you will spend.

Sorry for the delay in updating the blog. I hope to have some new products up soon.

Michael

Last month I started as a distributor with a company called Send Out Cards. I signed up as an entrepreneur and got my kit about 2 weeks later.

It cost $400 to get the entrepreneur license and is well worth it. This program is one of the best I have seen. If you want to try it out, just click on the link above and you can send a card for free to try out the system.

If you are interested in promoting Send Out Cards, let me know and I can coach you on the program.

Take Care,

Michael

I moved the BLOG from blogspot to hosting on my server. This is something I should have done a long time ago.

The RSS feed should transfer. I'm going to work on that next.

After all the set-up is complete I want to start working on the design.

If you experience any problems with the transfer let me know.

Michael

I made a video on a new FireFox plug-in that helps me evaluate websites to buy.

There are other uses for this plug-in that can benefit anyone.

Watch the video on the link above to see the power of this neat little tool. And if you are not already using the FireFox browser, now is a great time to get started.

Michael

I was going to do an article about virtual assistants tonight. But then I saw this post "Should You Start Your Own Home Business?" by Guy Kawaski.

You don't always need to start your own business to work at home. Do you think that your current job could be done remotely? How about twice per week?

That was a real eye opener when I read that in The 4 Hour Work Week. Working from home isn't for every job, but you don't have to start your own business to work from home.

That said, if you work from home for a business you will not have the same freedom that running your own business from home can bring.

Just something to think about.

Michael

Do you get paid by the hour or a set amount for completing a project?

Getting paid by the hour makes it easier on the home worker just starting out. This is because figuring out how much to charge for a project can be difficult.

Once you can figure out how much time it will take then you may want to consider charging by the project.

The only problem with a set price for the project is that the customer may change what they want after you already started. It is best to have a defined outcome with exact specifications before starting. Then adjust your price each time the customer changes what they want.

Be very detailed in your documentation. Fixed project pricing can have benefits, but so can hourly billing.

Michael

I am listening to the 4 hour work week for the 6th time. I love the concept.

Lets look at a working year.

52 Weeks in a year. How many vacation, sick and holiday days do we get off. Starting off with 2 weeks is common, plus some sick and holiday pay. So lets say we get 3 weeks vacation, 5 sick days and 6 holiday days. Since we can't do anything when we are sick lets not count the sick days. Better yet, lets say we are very healthy and don't ever use sick days.

So that comes to 48 weeks a year that we work. Getting 3 weeks for vacation and a little over 1 week for holidays.

48 x 5 = 240 work days a year

Not bad.

But what if we could work 4 days a week instead of 5. It could be longer days to make up the 40 hours or it could be you just don't work full time.

48 * 4 = 192 work days a year

So you can get an extra 48 days a year for yourself if you can work 4 day work weeks.

Michael

I owe Kathie of VADirectory.net a big Thank You for pointing out that I have comments turned off. I am going to return the favor and point out something that should help Kathie. If you hover over the link to her site you will notice the ?p=199. That is not a SEO friendly link. If Kathie goes into Options and clicks on the permalinks tab, she will see options for links that work much better with the search engines.

I am working on an Ebay project and might have some info to post shortly on that.

Looks like I will also have to re-post my message from last week where I was asking a question in one of my posts.

Michael

Should you hire a virtual assistant that lives in another country?

In my research I am finding that there are good points and bad points to having a VA in another country.

For example depending on the location you could have work completed while you sleep. And the economy may allow for a reduced out of pocket expense.

On the down side if phone communication is important then foreign assistants might need to be screened first.

What are your thoughts?

Michael

I spent the last 4 weeks doing research on my next work at home project. There is still plenty of research to do.

Tonight I started a small test to work out the details of a system and that got me thinking.

What is the main goal of people who want to work from home.

We all want to make money, so don't go down that path. Helping people is how we make money, so don't go down that path either.

What I want to know is if you had $100,000,000 what would you do with your time?

Post your answers in the comments to this post.

Michael

I finished reading The 4 Hour Work Week. This has got to be one of the best books ever. If you didn't read it yet, get it now!

My next step is to outline my business process and eliminate the waste. Once things are refined then it will be time to start looking for a VA.

I did think about hiring a virtual assistant before, but this time I have more info.

Based on what I do I'm thinking of a person that works nights or someone from another country that can complete tasks for me while I sleep.

For now my business process has to be analyzed and refined.

Michael

I post in at least one of my 12 blogs every day. Even the ones that don't get much traffic. If one person can learn from my mistakes, then I have done my job.

Having Problems Finding What To Say?

If you have a successful blog or a good idea for a story check out LuLu.com for print on demand publishing. You can have as little as 1 book printed.

Michael

Start your own home business blog today.

Build your brand, yourself, with a blog. I started blogging about 3 years ago. This is not my only blog and there is no reason that you have to limit yourself to just one. But don't overdo it.

If you start a blog plan on adding content at least once or twice a week. More is better, but be consistent and don't stop.

Start a home business blog and get feed back from your customers. This is a great way to find more products to sell or modify your service to suit the needs of your customers.

Michael

Would you rather build an online business or an offline business.

There are benefits to each as well as benefits to having a blended model.

This work at home update will be a quick one.

What are you the best at? What subject do people most ask you about?

Now focus on how you can leverage your skills into profits.

Michael

Do you know what Social Networks are online?

I use MyBlogLog to manage the community of people that visit my blogs.

Visitors can post comments and exchange profile information. It is a great way to get to know the visitors of your BLOG or website.

Michael

Last year I ran an Ebay store for a few months. At the time I was trying to figure it all out on my own.

Now there is help. With This Ebay Store Guiude you can set-up your own Ebay store the easy way.

The best way to grow and build a successful business is to learn from someone else. Now that I know about the Ebay Niche Store guide it might be time to open up an Ebay store again.

Feel free to post your comments or questions here.

Michael

I try to read as many book as I can get my hands on. Some I find it hard to put down and others seem to drag on.

I use a Moleskine notebook to keep notes on all the books I read. It makes it easer to find info on a subject I am researching.

Audio books play a big part or my information intake. My mp3 player is loaded with audio books and podcasts.

As for making money.

Do you perform a service, earn commission or sell your own stuff?

I do a little bit of everything. But not so much on the service though. That is too much like working for someone else.

Take Care,

Michael

If you work at home or work in an office, spend some time with friends & family this Easter season.

Happy Easter, Christ is Risen!

Michael

How To Make Money

With less then 1 week until Spring, we are getting a snowy mess.

It is a combination of rain, ice and snow. At first they said 1-3 inches, now it is 3-7 inches. Looks like we past the 3 inch mark already.

One of the benefits of working at home is not needing to worry about how much snow is on the ground. Unless you are like me and have to work away from home as well.

At least the snow won't last long this time of year.

Drive Safe!

Michael

Don't forget to backup your data!

Spreadsheets, contact lists, vendor information, etc. The information on your computer is important to the survival of your business.

USB Flash drive prices are dropping and there are bargains galore.

These little drives are a great choice for backups. Don't forget to store them offsite so if the business location is lost you still have your data.

Working from home or with a retail location, you still need to backup your data.

Michael

Today I upgraded my BLOG template. The Home Business Startup Guides blog is now sporting a new layout.

Not much changed with the new design, but now I can use the new labels feature. That will make it easier for people to find what they are looking for.

What kind of business are you looking to start? Are you just getting started and need marketing help?

What concerns you? I would love to hear what your needs are to help guide the direction of what I write about.

Take Care,

Michael

On my penny project I decided to auction off a text link. The ebay auction is my first investment in this project. Up until this point I either found money, earned advertising income or sold something in person that I got for free.

I took advantage of the Ebay 50% off listing fee day this past Wednesday. What I should have done is not used the Gallery option, that would have saved me some money.

So far I have 2 bidders. This is the best deal on ebay and if the amount reaches above my bonus amount listed then the deal is even better.

My Ebay Listing.

Much to do. Don't forget The Apprentice is on tonight.

Michael

I often hear people say that they want to work from home.

An often overlooked souce of work at home jobs is your local businesses. Contact local businesses and ask if they have any jobs that can be done at home.

Another option is to start your own business and offer local businesses your services.

Whatever you decide to do, have a plan.

Take Care,

Michael

The in thing right now is social networks. Some think of it as Web 2.0 of community generated content.

I like to use social networks for meeting people that are interested in talking about business and marketing.

When you work from home it is nice to stop and chat with someone online from time to time as well. Meet some new friends, take a break from work, etc.



Take Care,

Michael

There are a few websites where you can fill out surveys for cash.

Years ago there was only two or three that were any good. Today it is so easy to build a website that there are a bunch of scam sites.

In addition to avoiding scams you also have to consider your time.

Are you going to make enough money from completing the survey to make it worth your time?

On the company side of things. Having people answer questions about your products is a great way to improve you product.

If you have your own business, do you ask your customers questions to improve your business?

Michael