50 Things I Wish I Knew Before Going into Business for Myself
Momma always told me there’d be days like these. (tweet this) Looking back on the first few months of working at home brought tears to my eyes. These are not tears of sadness, no not at all. They are tears of joy. It is with heartfelt gratitude that I release their memory. I’m so thankful that those lessons have been learned. Now it’s time for the next lesson in business, it lies straight ahead!
No one told or prepared me for the reality of working for myself, at home with family surrounding me daily. After all, our home is our sanctuary, that safe place where we get to kick off our shoes, unhook that constricting bra, sorry fellows but it’s the truth. At home behind the safety of those closed doors we can let it all hang out, right?
There just may be some real value for you in sharing my top 50 things I wish someone would have told me before going into business for myself. Had I known these things I would have done things a little differently. My expectations wouldn’t have been so high and mighty. Oh yes, I was very “black and white” there was no room for gray area in my home office.
Here you go, I hope that by sharing these things you will avoid some of the tears, stress and emotional trauma I endured and worked through in that first year of working at home.
Timely tips I wish I’d known
1 – Set the alarm clock. It’s true it’s your business; but, remember the early bird gets the worm
2 – Use a calendar to schedule tasks – don’t leave your bank account to your memory
3 – Set deadline dates on each task
4 – Use a timer for big projects – break them into manageable chunks
5 – Banker’s hours and days are a myth
6 – You must restock office supplies – the office fairy is not a real person or department
7 – Set aside time to pay vendors
8 – Allow time daily to reconcile checkbook to be sure there is money to pay bills
9 – Pay bills as money becomes available don’t wait. You do not get a paycheck on the 1st and 15th anymore
Passing the buck stops here
10 – It’s not as easy as it looks (tweet this)
11 – No calling in sick – you’re Chief Cook & Bottle-washer now
12 – No more finger pointing it’s all on you 
13 – You realize you call all the shots – the lump in your throat does go away eventually after you take full responsibility for all decisions, successes and failures
14 – You are the secretary – take notes on all phone calls
15 – There is no IT Department – you must back up the computer regularly or risk losing your data forever. I think Darth Vader is using his mental telepathy pulling it to the black hole
16 – When marketers call do not buy everything they are selling. Think like a multi-millionaire thinks – do I need it, will I use it, will it make my business money
17 – Under promise, over deliver
18 – Speak in the third party you are a growing business (even if it’s in your own mind)
19 – The computer is not for game playing, it’s now a valuable business asset. Treat it as such.
20 – Invest in quality tools to get the job done. Cheap buys you problems & costs you money.
21 – Do your homework before making any business decision. Ask questions, ask for references and take a 24 hour think it over period first.
22 – Think long term sustainability for business not short term income
23 – Track all numbers
24 – Be willing to admit your mistakes learn from them
25 – Do not put all of your eggs in one basket
26 – Develop back up plan in case be a forward thinker (tweet this)
27 – Be willing to put it ALL on the line, 100%
28 – Follow up, follow thru on everything you say you will do
29 – Market yourself no one else will 
It’s ok to take care of yourself
30 – You must eat breakfast, lunch and dinner … or get fat
31 – Take a break every 2 hours – even slaves got a pee break
32 – Set boundaries – the office is off limits to hubby, kids and grandkids during work hours. This is where work gets done and the mortgage payment comes from.
33 – Shower daily – take time for your personal hygiene or smell like yesterday’s trash (should go without saying but trust me, it’s that important to mention)
34 – Take your vitamins there is no time to get sick
35 – Drink plenty of water you sit more than you move
36 – Stand up, stretch even while on phone this helps you stop yawning in customers ear
37 – Schedule time for YOU
Office duties – You are NOT Wonder Woman
38 – Errands are tasks in your past – when you don’t pick up the phone you lose business. Employ the efforts of family members to do the essential errands
39 – Build a business not a job – a business takes care of you if you are sick and can not work the other, well…no work no pay
40 – Take out the trash or the ants come marching home 2 by 2, there is no janitorial department after hours
41 – Make sure you have the right equipment – is it portable remember if you are not there to answer phones you lose – can you take it with you to the little girls room
Home duties – I’m here but I’m not
42 – What about Fido and Tinkerbelle? You’re home all day long working…they need to go out, now what
43 – Company comes to the door how do you politely explain you are working when you are home and now is not the time for a cup of coffee
44 – If kids or grandkids are at the house you must explain that if they will let you finish what you are working on without interrupting you’ll give them a cookie and swing with them in a little bit.
Skills that need developed
45 – Keep mirror on desk to make sure you are smiling at each customer on phone (they hear your smile)
46 – Call your customer by name
47 – Be organized
48 – Assume nothing
49 – Network like your life depends on it (tweet this)
50 – Bring the real you to your business there’s only one you and your customer is waiting to meet and be served by the one and only
There you have them, the 50 things I wish I’d known before I went into business for myself. There are many more but I think for now if you are like I am…you can only absorb so much information at one sitting.
Think about these points. Mull them over in your mind. Make them your own thoughts before you go into business for yourself. Please share your nuggets of wisdom. Leave your comments below.
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40 Responses
What a list! WoW…It sure isn’t as easy as it looks but I trust it will all be worth it!
Thank you Carl. You can bet your bottom dollar it will be worth it in the end. Freedom from a time clock, an unhappy supervisor who knows less than you do and being tied to the office. Working from home is work, no doubt about it but the rewards outdo the work 10:1.
Great tips! This is an older post, so was unsure if I had commented before. Great content though.
Thank you Martha for not skipping on by. Glad you enjoyed these tips and took the time to share.
This is all so true, Carla. So many people go into business for themselves–or even work from home for someone else–and have no idea what they are getting into. When people ask how I became an entrepreneur, I always tell them it was because I was too young and too dumb to know what I was getting myself into.
But I wouldn’t have it any other way!
Ha ha ha, too funny Marie. Yet, at the same time what you say is true. I believe that if I had known the amount of blood, sweat and tears it was going to take to make money working at home…I might have considered staying at a job that I hated…NOT! It’s been worth every tear, every up and down, every failure and success. Working for myself, at home is the best decision I’ve ever made.
What an awesome list! Jeepers… 🙂 These are the ones that I take seriously: “Use a calendar to schedule tasks – don’t leave your bank account to your memory & Set deadline dates on each task” These work well to keep me on track BUT there are a lot more I liked that you shared! Great post, Carla… Kudos!
Thank you Norma. I value your input and time to visit my blog. Good to know I’m not the only one who uses tips, tools and mentors to keep me on track!
Thank you Norma. I value your input and time to visit my blog. Good to know I’m not the only one who uses tips, tools and mentors to keep me on track!
Thanks Dani…I bet you’d be great at working from home. I’m blushing as I read this and appreciate you so much.
Great info! Thanks for sharing this Carla
Thanks for taking time out to share our info Mark.
I love this list & can relate to so many of your points. Fortunately I have few distractions (my hubby stands in office doorway & asks if he can interrupt me now), he does all food shopping & errands & is a great support. I shared my transformational journey at 72 last year & am now moving into more content & intend to revisit this list for blogging ideas. Thanks.
Thank you Roslyn for sharing your experience, too. I’m looking forward to reading about your journey and any tips you can share 🙂
Love all these tips, Carla! They all are so helpful! Thank you for sharing!
Thank you Alexandra. So glad to see the tips were useful to you.
Holy smokes! There’s so much meat in those blurb tips! You could totally take all 50 of those – and expound on each one – and then voila, you have your entire blogging schedule figured out for the YEAR 🙂 Seriously, they were little tips, but they were really SO BIG 🙂 Loved them, thanks for sharing your wisdom and experience.
Robin you are a “Rockin’ Robin” in my book. Thank you so much for your leadership, friendship and loyal readership. By the way, how did you know? 🙂
Carla, fabulous post for those of us already in business, as well as for the beginners!! There is so much that I learned the hard way and wish I’d have had access to these amazing insights when I was starting out. You’ve really given a realistic view of what being in business for yourself is really about!
Thank you Sherie. Isn’t hind-sight twenty-twenty? I’m glad you enjoyed these tips and thank you for sharing them. Maybe we can save another man or woman making the transition to work from home a little easier.
This is an excellent list Carla. I agree that most people think working from home is more relaxing but I find that you have to use time management to make sure that you get all of your work done each day. I do use my computer to play games occasionally but I don’t do that when I am steadily working.
Thank you Christy. Time management seems to be the ugly stepchild of us working at home.
I carve out a minimum of 3-4 hours to complete all of my tasks. However, I usually end up tweeting in the late evening too. I love using Twitter and learning new things from others.
Thanks for sharing what has worked for you, Christy. Women who transition from working outside of the home can use all the tips we can share with them.
Great post! Very helpful and entertaining to read!
Smiling as I read your comment, Yvonne. Thank you, glad you enjoyed the post.
Great info AND entertaining (and oh so true!)
Thanks Tammy for stopping by to read our tips and strategies in business.
Hey Carla,
Thanks for sharing these great tips. It is obvious that you put a lot of thought into this list and learned from your experience.
These pointers will help many people. Love the use of the images and the humor you injected into the post.
It is so important to take your business seriously and treat it as a business and not a hobby, especially when working from home.
To your success,
Marc
Thank you Marc, it’s always a pleasure to have a businessman of your stature to critic my post. I’m very appreciative to you for taking time out and sharing your thoughts.
Great list, Carla. Thanks for sharing.
Glad you enjoyed the tips, Pat.
People who are not in biz for themselves don’t understand any of these 50! I like it’s not as easy as it looks, because people think its so easy to run a business… its so not!
You’ve got that right Rob. Funny, a friend and I had this conversation this morning…they want what you’ve got but don’t want to pay the price you’ve paid. Sorry, it doesn’t work that way. Those in business who succeed…have paid their dues and now reap the benefits of their work.
yup exactly! i have this conversation many times over with people..
LOL, thanks Rob. You are so good at what you do and I’m thankful I met you and am part of Kungphoo.
Fantastic Tips! Thanks so much for sharing all 50!
You are welcome, Natalie. Hope these 50 things help you or someone you know going into business for themselves.
Wow! Incredible in depth list of helpful tips! Thanks!
Thanks Denny. Stepping back in time to recapture these things made my brain hurt. Hope they help others then it will have been worth it.