Tips for building a business on the side and turbocharging your productivity (which work like a charm even if you’re not self-employed!)
Not sure if you should ditch your day job to start or grow a business? Laura shares chapter three of her latest title, Money-Smart Solopreneur, which is packed with strategy and productivity tips, plus how she made the leap to full-time solopreneur.
Money Girl is hosted by Laura Adams. A transcript is available at Simplecast.
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Hey, friends! My name is Laura Adams, and I'm so glad you joined the show. If you're new here, I'm an award-winning personal finance author who’s been hosting Money Girl since 2008, with over 40 million downloads!
I'm also the author of several books, including Money-Smart Solopreneur–A Personal Finance System for Freelancers, Entrepreneurs, and Side-Hustlers. And I work with select brands as an on-camera PR spokesperson, consumer advocate, and multimedia creator.
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But today’s show is a little different because I’ll share a chapter from my latest book that I mentioned, Money-Smart Solopreneur. While the book is loaded with everything you need to know about building a solo business and creating long-lasting financial security as an independent contractor, or side-huster, chapter three really seems to strike a chord with readers and audiobook listeners.
In the chapter titled, Keeping or Leaving Your Day Job, I give tips for building a business on the side and turbocharging your productivity (which work like a charm even if you’re not self-employed!), plus I tell you how I eventually left my day job years ago to become a full-time solopreneur.
This episode is a little longer than usual but I think you’ll get tons of value from it. Here we go—I hope you enjoy it!
You’ve probably noticed that people are embracing entrepreneurship like never before. Due to technology, I don’t think there’s been a better time to become your own boss. If you’ve got an Internet connection and a smartphone or laptop, you can work from just about any location on the planet.
While there’s nothing wrong with holding down a W-2 job and getting a steady paycheck, having business income comes with many upsides, which we covered in the previous chapter. But if you’ve been dreaming of quitting your day job to start a business, you might be wondering if taking such a big leap is worth it.
The good news is that there are incremental ways to become self-employed that are stable and reduce risk, instead of plunging your life into a precarious and stressful financial position.
Here are five tips to face your career fears in responsible ways and prepare for the future by adding entrepreneurship to your resume.
Before changing your job or making the transition from employee to self-employed, take time to define what you truly want to achieve in your career. Sometimes our ideas of success come from other people, and they can cause you to follow a career path that never ends up being fulfilling.
Maybe your boss thinks you should regularly be working late to climb the corporate ladder, or a parent says you should go to graduate school. You might take a lucrative job that you don’t like because that’s what your friends are doing. But if that job requires frequent travel when all you truly want is to start a family, care for aging parents, or spend time enjoying where you live, you’ll never be happy.
If you don’t pause periodically to reflect on what success means to you, it becomes easier to fall into work based on other people’s priorities. If your decisions aren’t intentionally leading you toward a life that excites you, you’ll likely wander away from what you genuinely want.
Never let external markers of success, such as a big paycheck or a fancy job title, become more important than your heartfelt calling and goals for your life.
But getting in touch with your real desires isn’t always easy, and you might have to listen carefully to your inner voice. Try incorporating some quiet time into your daily routine. Upon waking or settling down at bedtime, think about what you’re grateful for—but also what you’d like your life to be. Consider your definition of success and any changes you’d like to make in the near and distant future.
Ask yourself these questions to understand your values and get clarity on your unique vision for success:
• What type of work makes me the happiest?
• Where do I want to live?
• What types of people do I want in my work life?
• What does a good life mean to me?
This exercise isn’t something you do once and figure out the arc of your entire life. You need to come back to these types of fundamental questions during different seasons of your life and career.
Your working life is sure to change for both the good and bad. When you find yourself getting restless or feeling like you want more, slow down and become more introspective. It can reveal a lot about what your next career or business moves should be.
Even when you’re clear about what you want, one of the fastest ways to ruin your financial future is to take a flying leap from a steady paycheck. Jumping from a day job into an uncertain, full-time venture too early could mean trouble. You might face significant financial struggles and even get into debt. As I’ve mentioned, many businesses take years of hard work before they’re profitable enough to support you.
Instead of willingly taking on the financial and emotional costs of being your own boss, try doing it on the side of a more stable job. Hanging on to your day job gives you incredible financial security to try out new business ideas, especially if you have a spouse or kids depending on your income.
The best side gigs combine work that you’re excited about with something that you’re uniquely positioned to provide. These businesses may also come with a large existing customer base, or appeal to customers who are willing to pay you well for the skills and experience you offer.
I was a part-time entrepreneur for a decade before I said goodbye to an employer. I enjoyed having a mix of job stability and entrepreneurial upside. Plus, expanding your career by adding self-employment to a W-2 job can make you surprisingly better at both.
I found that by slowly adding entrepreneurial experience, I gained a variety of skills that made me more valuable to employers. That helped me enjoy my job more and even take additional risks knowing that my career eggs weren’t all in one basket. I could experiment with business-formation ideas without much stress, knowing they would complement my existing career.
The bottom line is that creating a business on the side protects your income, diversifies your network, and improves your skills, instead of leaving you financially vulnerable or with less. If you enjoy your entrepreneurial work and find that it pairs well with your day job, the benefits and personal growth can really pay off.
If you plan to start a business on the side, or already have, you know that you’ll be working more, perhaps a lot more. You might need to work early in the morning, late at night, or on weekends to fit it all in. That could stress your relationships or cause you to burn out if you don’t take some precautions.
Once you’re confident about your business idea or begin seeing promising revenue, you may find that you need more flexibility in your schedule. Consider different ways you can tailor your business for your day job and vice versa.
After my podcasting and blogging started taking off in 2008, my employer began feeling the financial pinch of the Great Recession. Instead of allowing my position to get downsized, I proposed a solution to my boss that he liked. I’d work four days a week for a couple of months and then go down to three days a week through the remainder of the year. Then we’d reevaluate where the company stood and if they could still afford to keep me.
My employer would save money by paying me less, and I’d gain a lot of time to work on creating content, partnering with brands, and writing my first book. If I hadn’t offered that solution, my company wouldn’t have known that I was willing to cut my day job hours. I didn’t volunteer to tell my boss what my plans were for my newfound free time, and he didn’t ask.
You may be able to negotiate with your employer for more flexibility. You might ask to work fewer hours, complete them in fewer days per week, or to work from home a day or two each week.
If you have a long commute or spend a significant amount of time getting dressed and doing hair and makeup, working remotely could save a lot more time than you think. Then you can invest that time in your side business.
If you can’t get more flexibility or you worry that even asking for it could put your job in jeopardy, there are other options. One is to structure non-negotiable time for your business into your day. For instance, make a rule that you’ll step away from your desk for a solid hour, or longer if possible, during lunch to accomplish something meaningful for your business.
Find a nearby café or book one of the conference rooms in your office where you can work and eat undisturbed for a portion of your day. I did that for many years, and it’s incredible how much you can accomplish in 45 minutes if you truly focus. If you can’t find enough privacy, you might work in your car.
If working on your business during midday isn’t possible with your day job, consider coming to the office an hour earlier or staying later. You could also work on your business from a nearby coffee shop before or after your day job. The idea is to create a routine that builds in regular time to focus entirely on your venture and to complete essential tasks.
Another option is to outsource a portion of your work. If you can afford to delegate some of your business or W-2 tasks to freelancers, that can help you balance both of your to-do lists.
When your day job is so unpredictable that it prevents you from working on your side gig for long periods, consider getting a different job. If you’re truly committed to getting your business off the ground, you may need to find a position with more flexibility so you can do both more easily.
Having an exit strategy is a common concept in the business world. Partners and investors want to know what will happen after clearly defined milestones are reached, such as taking a company public or selling it after a certain profit margin is achieved.
But employees should create exit strategies too. It’s a great way to force yourself to think about the future and what you would or should do next. With a W-2 job, you never know what’s around the corner.
Your company could suddenly downsize after a merger or an unexpected loss of market share. Your department could be reorganized after new leadership begins.
It’s wise to start all professional relationships with an idea of how they could end. This planning ensures that you’re never caught entirely off guard. Knowing that you’ve thought about the end of a job or a business partnership can make you feel more secure about a potential split.
If you’re unprepared for an interruption in work or business income, it can be devastating to your emotional and financial life. So, no matter if you’re laid off or you voluntarily quit a job, prepare for it now.
If you have a financial runway to find new opportunities or you’ve built an income from a side business, quitting or getting fired can be a positive experience. Having a good exit strategy can make the difference between feeling crushed by the loss of a job or becoming empowered by it.
No matter if you leave a day job to jump feet-first into starting a business full-time, or you dip a toe into a side gig, you’ll need to become a master of productivity. While this isn’t a productivity book, I will recommend essential tips that help me stick to good work habits and achieve a lot more for my business in less time.
The Three-Minute Rule
This concept is an incredibly powerful way to get small tasks off your plate so you can focus on bigger ones. The idea is to complete any task or chore if it takes you three minutes or less.
The activity could be related to your work or home life, such as sending an email, putting clothes in the washer, cleaning your desk, or filing something. Apply this rule to any task that needs to be done—or that’s distracting you from your work. If it would take you less than three minutes to complete, do it now.
Give It Ten
When there’s a more significant task or project on your plate, but you’re procrastinating, for whatever reason, tell yourself to give it ten minutes. Often, we avoid tasks that we think will be complex, take a long time, or that we don’t like doing.
While you might not complete a big task in ten minutes, I find that beginning it will unlock your ability to maintain momentum and get it done. Maybe you’ve heard the idiom, “Well begun is half done.” In my opinion, that’s productivity gold! Simply getting started on a project—especially one you’re dreading or not sure why you’re procrastinating—makes it so much easier to keep going and complete.
So, the next time you keep pushing off work that you need to do, give it ten minutes. You might use a clock or timer on your phone to keep track. Yes, you have permission to stop working on it after ten minutes. But you’ll usually keep working once you realize the task is easier than you thought or that it’ll take less time than you anticipated.
Taking action by getting started can unlock a world of achievement.
Match Tasks to Energy
While no one has more than 24 hours in a day, the quality of those hours varies considerably. Your energy level throughout the day depends on many factors, including your sleep and wake cycles, known as your circadian rhythm. You might notice that you have a dip in energy at the same time every day.
Pay attention to your body and notice when you’re most alert and thinking clearly. This time is when you should be working on what you value most. If that’s your budding business, carve out that slice of time to focus on it.
For instance, if you’re a morning person who works a day job and a side business, get up a little earlier to knock out business tasks before you head to the office. If you’re spent mentally after a full workday, the evening might be the best time to exercise or do household chores. The reverse is true if you’re a night person.
The idea is that adjusting your life and work schedule to match your natural energy patterns will make you more effective and efficient at everything. In reality, we only have a few peak hours per day to fire on all cylinders, so don’t waste them doing low-priority tasks. Save your errands, chores, and physical activity for times when you’re not as sharp mentally.
If energy-matching is a new idea for you, begin observing how easy or difficult it is for you to complete different tasks. When you feel challenged, instead of pushing yourself, try doing it at a different time of day. You may get it done faster and with a better attitude.
Although I usually wake up early, I wouldn’t say that I’m a morning person. After getting up, it takes me some time to feel completely alert. So, I enjoy doing high-priority and high-focus tasks, such as writing or project planning, in the mid to late morning. By then, I’ve had some coffee and gotten a few low-priority chores out of the way. By mid to late afternoon, I usually don’t feel as focused, and I’ll turn my attention to administrative business tasks, errands, and exercise.
Trying to fight your body’s clock typically doesn’t work. So, use your natural energy rhythms to your advantage and always schedule work that matches it.
Schedule Everything
Speaking of scheduling, that’s another critical way to get more done. Try scheduling everything in your paper or digital calendar. When you have your entire day mapped out, it’s easier to stay on track and avoid distractions.
I even put taking a shower, cleaning out my SPAM inbox, and engaging on social media in my digital calendar. For me, if it’s not on the calendar, it just doesn’t get done. Use the repeat function in your digital schedule to set up any recurring business and life tasks that you don’t want to forget.
Knowing that everything I need to do is centralized in one place gives me incredible peace of mind. My job is to focus on and complete what’s in my calendar. And if I finish ahead of schedule, I can begin the next most crucial item, turn to an easier item, or take a break.
And speaking of breaks, be sure to schedule those, too. Whether you need time to eat, mindlessly surf the web, or take a walk, taking breaks will boost productivity. My favorite way to rest my mind and reduce stress is to listen to short podcasts or chapters from an audiobook during breaks.
Delegate More
The most effective way to boost your productivity is to delegate or outsource more tasks that someone else can easily do. For example, I have a virtual assistant who helps me with communication, graphic design, and social media outreach. My goal is to perform the core business tasks that I do best and enjoy.
Letting go of tasks isn’t easy, and it may make you uncomfortable. If you’re a control freak, like me, you probably believe that no one else can complete a task as well as you. And you may be right.
So, begin delegating slowly. Also, remember that in many cases, getting low-value tasks done quickly, but not necessarily perfectly, is better than having them pile up on your plate. Plus, outsourcing creates opportunities for other business owners.
Stop Being Busy
Have you ever heard of Parkinson’s law? It’s one of my favorite adages because it’s so true. The English writer, Cyril Northcote Parkinson, said, “Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.”
Consider making it your computer screensaver or putting it on sticky notes where you work. It’s a great reminder to stop being busy with low-value tasks and to start doing work that matters.
We’ve all been in situations where we procrastinate doing something for days or months, but somehow, we pull out all the stops and complete the task just ahead of a looming deadline. If something must be done tomorrow, you’ll get it done tomorrow. If you have a week, you’ll take a week.
You may not have more time than anyone else, but often, you can use the time you have in better ways. We all can do much more than we usually do.
However, don’t try to get more done by multitasking. You really can’t focus on two things at once, especially high-value tasks. It’s much better to focus entirely on one thing and do it well than to complete several things poorly.
Check in with yourself throughout the day to see what your energy level is and whether you’re busy or productive. If you’re not solely focused on the most valuable task possible for your business, switch gears quickly. Focus on high-value tasks by setting strict deadlines, scheduling them in your calendar, and getting to work!
Only you can decide whether to keep or leave your day job when you’re building a business. In the next chapter, we’ll cover how to ease the added financial pressures of becoming a solopreneur.
OK, that’s the end of chapter three. But each chapter in the book includes an Exercise to complete and this one is called “What’s Your Exit Strategy?” Try it out!
Imagine that you lose your job in three months. Answer the following questions to help prepare an exit strategy for leaving your job.
• What would I like to do next that’s truly exciting?
• What can I do now to build a business that gives me an additional stream of revenue?
• Who should I connect with in my existing network?
• What industry events should I attend to make new contacts?
• Do I have enough savings to last a period of unemployment?
• What lifestyle changes can I make now to reduce expenses?
• What job benefits should I use before leaving?
• How would I negotiate a severance package?
I hope you enjoyed a little sample from Money-Smart Solopreneur and can put those powerful productivity tips into practice no matter if you’re an employee or have your own business.
That's all for now. I'll talk to you next week. Until then, here's to living a richer life.