In 2003 when I started my first business (a bookstore that I later sold) I was determined to handle the bookkeeping. I took a QuickBooks class and dove in, but I quickly realized that I hated it. I’ve never been good with numbers; I’d rather write a 10-page essay than balance my checkbook! After struggling for two weeks, I called a bookkeeping service and handed over the responsibility. It was liberating.

By taking that task off my To Do list, I gave myself more time to focus on the work that I was good at and that I enjoyed. More importantly, it gave me time to focus on revenue-generating activities. So paying someone else to do work that would have consumed my time actually netted me higher earnings in the long run because my time was better spent on tasks that made money.

In my early years of running BusinessInfoGuide.com, I spent countless hours learning how to use technology. I was proficient in HTML and updated the site myself. I couldn’t imagine handing this task off to someone else because I was convinced I could do it faster and better than anyone else.

What a load of crap!

I eventually outsourced the re-design of three of my websites and had them converted to WordPress, and what a difference that made. Not only do they look better, they have some slick new functionality that my old sites lacked. I also resisted the temptation to learn the inner workings of WordPress and all of its many bells and whistles because that would put me back in dangerous territory. Instead, I have a web designer on retainer to implement changes and fix problems. I also hired a content editor to help with posting new articles and managing guest blog posts.

When you let go of your need to do everything, you free yourself up for far more lucrative and productive tasks. I regret waiting as long as I did to convert my sites. I can’t imagine how much time I wasted fiddling with old technology and managing all the content.

Over the years, delegation has become a top priority for me. I currently work with eight contractors who keep my business running smoothly, allowing me to focus on what I do best. This investment pays for itself over and over again.

If you’re not yet delegating items from your To Do list, consider this a call to action. Let just one thing go and then notice how much relief it gives you. Continue handing off more items from your list and soon your business will run better than ever and your revenues will inevitably increase as a result!

What I’ve learned over the years is that as business owners, we need to take control over our businesses and allow ourselves to enjoy some of that freedom that attracted us to this lifestyle in the first place. If we’re not careful, we don’t run our businesses—our businesses run us.

I’ve worked hard to build a business that is both profitable and flexible so I know it’s possible! Here are some strategies to help you get your life back:

Set Clear Boundaries on Your Time

Early on I worked around the clock, and a big part of that came from my enthusiasm for my work. But over time I noticed that I was neglecting relationships with family and friends, and I simply wasn’t living a balanced life. As a mom, it’s more important than ever to put boundaries on my work schedule so that I have enough energy to enjoy quality time with my son.

Now I work from 9AM to 4PM and weekends are primarily for recharging. While I sometimes get up extra early to get a jump on the day, and I do travel a couple of days each month for speaking gigs, for the most part I stick to my schedule.

What has been amazing is that I am more productive now than I was when I worked 16 hour days. Because my work time is limited, I have to be clear about priorities. Low priority work falls down the list and loses its importance. I’ve learned to say “No” to opportunities that don’t align with my goals, and I feel more in control of my workload than I ever have before. These boundaries have been life changing.

Manage Your Schedule

For years my schedule ran me. My calendar has always looked like a Bingo card, but now it’s more manageable than ever before. Because my work hours are limited, I am protective with my time. Here’s how:

• Projects are scheduled in blocks of time on my calendar so they get completed ahead of schedule.
• I turn down most invitations for coffee or lunch dates, unless those meetings are revenue-generating. While the business networking community is conditioned to schedule coffee dates after exchanging business cards with someone new, that strategy isn’t productive for me.
• When I do accept an in-person meeting with a prospect or alliance partner, I handle it one of two ways. The meeting must be scheduled either at the beginning of the day or end of the day so that it doesn’t derail my productivity. Or, I pick a day where I will schedule several back-to-back meetings and tackle them all at once.
• I only check e-mail two or three times per day, and use my smart phone to scan messages for anything urgent that might be lurking. When I do check mail, I go through and delete junk first, then respond. I also have a lot of filters to route mail to folders for checking when I’m ready.
• I avoid business meetings on Fridays and instead use Friday afternoons for business development or down time. Yep, I often check out by noon on Friday and enjoy a little time to myself!

Hire Help

Without a doubt, hiring help has been the biggest key to my success. By hiring others to do the tasks that I don’t like or am not good at (bookkeeping, administrative work, research, etc.), I free up my time to focus on revenue-generating activities.

Think about it this way: If you earn $50 per hour and it costs you $10 to $25 per hour to hire someone to help with tasks you don’t enjoy, you come out ahead. They say you can’t buy time, but in this case you can! Outsourcing doesn’t have to be a big deal. Start with a freelancer or independent contractor. You can ask around for referrals or use Craigslist.org or Elance.com to find competent professionals. I’ve used both with great success.

Decide You Want More

Aside from the strategies listed here, a big part of taking back control over your business is making the decision to do so. It can be scary to make big changes, but you can ease into them. I didn’t do all of these things in a week. They evolved over time. As a result, my business is more profitable, my life is more balanced, and I feel like I’m finally reaping the benefits of business ownership. And guess what? You can do it too!

Well, there are actually numerous benefits to keeping an organized and tidy home office. And these benefits often can mean more money in your banking account. Here are just 10 of these numerous benefits.

1.      Efficiency

I think all home business owners would agree that efficiency is king. There are only so many hours in the day, and when you work from home, work tendsto spill over into your personal life. To prevent this from happening, you need to be as efficient as possible during your set aside work hours. One way toincrease this efficiency is through an organized work space. By knowing exactly where everything is located, you can cut down on unnecessary search time and get more quality work done. The more efficient you are with each working minute, the more work you can complete, and the higher your hourly earnings.

2.      Less frustration

There’s nothing more frustrating than having to tear apart your desk trying to find an important document. It can make you late for meetings and really put a negative outlook on the rest of your day. And, when we’re frustrated, it affects our mental capacity, making us work slower and have a less productive day.

3.      Motivate you to work

A clean work environment can really motivate you to work. When working from home, there are already plenty of distractions – be it housework, cooking, family members, pets or even entertainment outlets like television and movies, there are more appealing ways to fill out your day. And when you’re sitting in a disaster zone of an office, it makes work look even less appealing.

But when you have an organized area to start your business day, you feel like you are in an actual office and away from all of your home life distractions. And once you’re in your home office, you’ll want to stay there and work!

4.      Increased professionalism

If you work in a messy environment, you’re more likely to produce messy work. And messy work is likely to lead to less available work in the future.

Starting off the day in a professional environment is going to put you into a professional mindset. You will care more about the work you are producing, which will lead to an increased probability of gaining additional work in the future.

5.      Pay your bills on time – every time

There’s nothing quite as embarrassing as missing a payment on a bill. This is especially true when it’s for a vendor that you regularly rely on. Unfortunately, missed bills cost you more than just pride. Often, there are also hefty fees that will be imposed when you’re late on your payments.

A messy workspace is a minefield for missed bills. After all, as the popular saying goes, out of sight, out of mind.

6.      Be prepared for the unexpected

Just because you don’t have a traditional office space that a client can drop into doesn’t mean that you will be free from unexpected contact from customers. They can still call you up with a question or for a last minute discussion. You want to be prepared and appear professional with each client interaction. This makes it all the more important to keep your work organized. This way, you can grab your client’s file the moment you see their number pop-up on your caller ID.

If you fumble through a phone call because you’re searching for the information your client has called to ask about, they may question your business abilities to go elsewhere for their next big job.

7.      Make it so someone else could step in

Often, home businesses are a two person team, where a spouse or roommate helps out with the business responsibilities. You want to ensure yourworkspace is orderly so if you were to get sick or injured, your business partner can easily find all of the necessary files and information to keep the business running until you are able to work again. Otherwise, every day that you are away, revenue making opportunities are slipping away.

8.      Keep important documents secure

If you have piles of papers and documents stacked on your desk, it’s rather easy to accidentally throw away something important. Implementing an organized filing system will prevent this from happening.

Locking away the most important of documents will also help ensure that they are not stolen in the instance of a home intrusion.

9.      Prevent duplicate purchasing

The cost of office supplies can really add-up. This is especially true when you’re buying duplicate items simply because you cannot find the original! Reduce these unnecessary purchases by having a specific spot for all of your office supply essentials.

10.     Fewer doctor visits

As surprising as this may be, if you keep your workspace clean, you will reduce your number of illnesses each year. This is because dust and mold can cause you serious problems, especially if you are prone to allergies and asthma. So, once a week, set aside a time to dust your workspace. Also, keep some antibacterial wipes handy and wipe down your phone, keyboard and desk on a daily basis. This will free your space from any germs that are tracked in by any family, friends or roommates. This task will be much easier and quicker to complete when you have a clean desktop that is free from clutter!

Author Bio:
Debra Wilson is a social media advocate at CreditDonkey.  Debra blogs about small business credit cards.

One of the greatest challenges for any business is to generate new customers, yet some people are really good at building their client pipeline. They do a lot of networking, demonstrate competence in their fields, and therefore the phone rings with plenty of new customers—and they say YES to every opportunity.

However, they also fail to make a plan for handling all of those new customers. They over-promise and under-deliver. Customers inevitably feel frustrated by the lack of response and missed deadlines. In the end, a project may ultimately get delivered (late), but that customer is not likely to return.

The Repercussions of Poor Customer Satisfaction

Even though you might be good at client generation, if your clients don’t want to do business with you again, that’s a problem. You miss out on that client’s business, plus the referrals they would have sent your way if you’d delivered on your promises. Worse yet, it can tarnish your reputation. When word gets out—and it eventually will—that you have unhappy customers, prospects will think twice about working with you. Eventually the house of cards can crumble as you lose the customers you have, while new customers move on to your competitors.

How to Get Out of “Too Busy” Mode

1. Hire More Help

If you’re too busy to keep up with priorities on a daily basis, you need more help. Even if you think you’re the only one who can do it all, you’re wrong. Trust me. The right person(s) is out there ready to take a big load of work off your plate, and ultimately help you grow your business in a more professional way.

2. Set Proper Expectations

If your project pipeline is full, set expectations with new customers and let them know when their projects will be completed—even if that date is weeks away. If the client can’t wait that long, it’s better to be honest and let them find another solution, then to end up in a sticky mess of a situation later when you can’t deliver on your promises.

3. Evaluate Your Services

Take a close look at your service offerings and decide whether or not they all make sense for your business. Perhaps you offer some services that consume way more time than other services that you offer. It might be time to either increase pricing on those services or remove them from your menu entirely.

4. Have Integrity

Apologize to your clients when you make mistakes or miss deadlines. Accept responsibility and do what it takes to make it right. When you place blame elsewhere and fail to own up to the situation, it only makes it worse. Your clients will respect you more for your honesty, and they will also be more inclined to forgive.

5. Invest in Solutions

It’s been said before—you’ve got to spend money to make money. Hiring help and investing in new business solutions may temporarily dent your bottom line, but it benefits your business in the long run. Don’t be afraid to invest in the long-term growth of your business.

The fact is that all businesses on a growth path also experience growing pains. It really can be a good problem to have. But try to stay one step ahead of that growth and look for solutions. Without addressing the problems at hand, you will inevitably get stuck and your business growth will be stalled—possibly for good.

1. The Sticky Note To-Do List

This is my best productivity tip of all. I keep a running To-Do list on my desk on an 8×5 steno notepad. Each morning I choose three to five tasks I plan to accomplish for the day and write them on a sticky note that goes on top of the list—and that becomes my focus for the day. If I have some extra time, I’ll pluck an extra item off the running list, but at least I know I’m handling the biggest priorities first.

2. Filter Phone Calls

Years back when I worked in software sales, I watched one of my coworkers ignore most incoming phone calls. I was appalled! “How can you do that?” I asked. After all, we were sales people and I viewed each call as getting me closer to a purchase order.

He told me that he let calls go to voice mail for two reasons. First, he didn’t want the constant interruptions in his day when he was trying to focus on projects. Second, he liked having the opportunity to think through his responses before returning a call.

The biggest lesson I got from that was that business doesn’t come to a halt simply because you don’t answer the phone. Phone calls can be a big interrupt in the flow of things, so reviewing messages and returning calls later actually makes you much more efficient. It also prevents you from having to take unexpected, annoying sales calls.

3. Minimize In-person Meetings

I know that a lot of business owners love to schedule coffee dates. It’s part of the whole business networking community where you plan to meet for an hour and figure out how to help each other with business (or sell to each other!). Though I enjoy meeting new people, I have grown to loathe these kinds of meetings. A better use of time is to schedule a 15-minute phone call. You can get enough information from each other in that time to get started. If a follow-up meeting is warranted, then fine. See the next step…

4. Schedule Meetings at the Beginning or End of the Day

On the rare occasion that I attend an in-person meeting, I always request either first thing in the morning, the end of the day, or before or after another event that I’m attending. I remember in my early years as a business owner, I ran myself ragged going to networking functions, attending coffee and lunch meetings, and saying Yes to everything.

Then it finally occurred to me that I could put some boundaries around my time. Just because I don’t have something officially scheduled on my calendar at 11AM doesn’t mean that’s a good time for me. Going to a meeting at that hour breaks up the flow of my day and eats up too much time. The good news is that you can take back control of your time and suggest meeting times that work for your schedule.

5. Plan Ahead

If you have projects with deadlines, waiting until the last minute can throw your entire schedule off. Instead, block out time on your calendar well before the project is due. Devote that time to that project only. Getting it done in advance of your deadline will take the pressure off, keep your schedule in check, and will allow you to produce the best results possible.

- Stop the madness. I have unsubscribed from most mailing lists and instead follow blogs with RSS feeds or follow senders on Twitter or Facebook.

- Create folders to filter incoming mail. I have a “To Read” folder to capture the few newsletters I still receive and a “To Do” folder for items I need to get to. Note that those items also get noted on my To Do list so they aren’t forgotten.

- As an avid online shopper, I like to receive retailer discounts. But instead of having them land in my Inbox and interrupt the flow of life, I filter them to automatically delete! I only empty my deleted items folder once each month, so if I’m planning to make a purchase, I search my deleted items folder to find the latest offers.

- Delete with abandon. That’s right, I delete the vast majority of messages I receive unless action is required.

- Turn off automatic receiving of messages in Outlook. This way I decide when I’m ready to open the flood gates and let new messages in.

- Minimize e-mail time altogether. I’ve learned that the world doesn’t come to an end if I only check e-mail once or twice each day. Also, I am continually amazed at how little time it ends up taking to go through it when I review it all at once. Keep in mind that I receive several hundred e-mails per day. However, when they all come in at once, I sort by name and delete in bulk. I also quickly move items to designated folders and get on with life. I also remind myself that e-mail doesn’t own me!

- Oh, and I do “peek in” on e-mail with my Blackberry during the day. But I simply scan for urgent messages and if nothing is there, I close it quickly. Shazaam!

Do you have any special tricks for dealing with e-mail? I’d love to hear about them!

2. Tweetdeck – If you are participating in Twitter, this is my favorite tool for monitoring Twitter activity. You can set up columns to monitor your favorite tweeters. You can also send out message to Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn all at once. Good stuff.

3. Hootsuite – I use this one to schedule posts to my social media profiles on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Note that I don’t advocate scheduling all of your posts for social media, but it does make it easy to share your content—just be sure you’re still engaging with your audience!

4. Google Alerts – If you want to monitor what people are saying about you online, then you’ve got to take advantage of this free tool. Create alerts for your personal name, business name, website URLs, book titles, etc.

5. Yahoo Site Explorer – Use this to find out how many other sites link to your site. Incoming links are important for search engine optimization (SEO) so monitor this periodically and make sure this number is always increasing.

6. Google Keyword Tool – Use this slick tool to investigate key words and phrases your potential customers would use to find you. Next, incorporate them into pages on your website. Note that each page on your site should have a key phrase that you use in the page title, description, heading, and two or three times in the copy on the page.

7. Google Reader – One of the best features that blogs offer is really simple syndication (RSS). You can subscribe to a blog’s feed and keep track of new content without having to go visit that blog each day. There are several tools that allow you to monitor RSS feeds, though Google’s reader is my personal favorite.

8. E-junkie – Want to sell products or digital downloads from your website? I’m a big fan of E-junkie’s ecommerce solution. You can participate in the affiliate program and allow others to promote and sell your products. You can also create coupons and special sales. Very sophisticated for a reasonable price.

9. W3 Schools – If you need a cheat sheet for HTML tags and color codes, this site makes it easy to find what you need.

10. YouSendIt – Do you send large files to clients digitally? This service allows you to upload and send large files via e-mail. The recipient receives a download link instead of a giant file that may choke during e-mail transmission.

11. Connected Backup – If you’ve ever had your computer crash you know how important it is to backup your data. And if you haven’t had a crash, set this up before you learn the hard way! Iron Mountain’s backup service provides secure backups to an offsite location so you’re protected from natural disasters, theft, etc.

12. Grasshopper – This digital phone tree system provides you with a toll free number and multiple phone extensions that can be routed to different phone numbers in geographic locations. This is deal for small businesses with remote workers or for business owners on the go since you can transfer your extension to your cell phone or a land line.

13. Google Places – Claim your free business listing here and your business will be added to Google Maps, Google Earth, GOOG-411 (phone-based search directory), and Google Maps for Mobile. Listings also receive priority placement in standard Google searches, making this essential even if your business is global.

14. Yelp – Claim your free business listing here, especially if you operate a local retail business, restaurant, or other service-based business. Yelp has become an increasingly popular directory that users search to find local businesses.

15. eFax – I love the portability of efax. This service allows you to send and receive faxes from any location using your computer and e-mail. It also eliminates the need for an extra phone line and just makes life easier.

16. Meetup.com – Are you looking for something to do or a new business group to join? Look no further than this brilliant social site that allows you to find in-person groups locally. Also consider starting a group if you want to cultivate an audience in your own community.

17. Groupsite – If you want to start your own online community, this service makes it easy. You can create a private or public group and take advantage of message boards and file storage. The basic level is free.

18. Clipart – Just because you find an image online, it doesn’t mean you have the right to post it on your website! To avoid potential copyright infringement, purchase royalty-free images from a site like this one.

19. iStockPhoto – Need high-resolution images for marketing materials or book covers? You can purchase high quality photos and clipart here.

20. Free Conference – Want to host teleseminars on conference calls with multiple parties? This service is free and reliable. A nominal fee is charged for recordings.

21. Instant Teleseminar – If you plan to host a lot of teleseminars, this service offers a robust solution. As the call host, you can use the online tools to view how many callers are on the line, along with their phone numbers. You can easily manage muting the line, allowing callers to ask questions, and more. Expect to pay a modest monthly fee for a reliable and robust solution.

22. Audio Acrobat – This is a simple recording service that allows you to create MP3 files using your telephone. Use it as a back-up recording service for teleconferences, have customers call your line to leave an audio testimonial, or use it to record your own audio programs.

23. Google Docs – Yet another free service from Google, this one allows you to create and share all kinds of documents including spreadsheets, PDF, presentations, and even web-based forms that you can ask people to fill out and submit.

24. Survey Monkey – If you want to do some market research look no further than this easy-to-use tool. Once your survey is created, e-mail the link to participants and they can easily submit their answers.

25. Eventbrite – If you’re hosting an event, whether in-person or online, this tool makes it incredibly easy to manage registrations.

Aside from the bad date issue, there’s the all-important time factor. A coffee date is a commitment that can derail your schedule. While the meeting itself may only take an hour, it can take another hour of time to travel to and from the meeting place. Most days I work between 9AM to 4PM, which is a personal commitment I made to myself as a mom in order to balance my family life. Because my business could easily consume a 15-hour workday, my limited work hours must be extremely productive. Every minute counts.

The truth is that I prefer in-person networking at larger group functions. I’ve formed many great business relationships over a complimentary cocktail and a 10 minute conversation in a room full of people wearing name tags. In many cases, a follow-up coffee date would just waste an hour covering information we’ve already exchanged. If clarification is needed, it can be achieved via a quick phone call or e-mail.

I’ve been mulling over this problem for a long time and I’ve finally come up with an alternative that combines the best of both networking worlds—one-on-one and group meetings…

What if instead of one-on-one coffee dates, you held four-way meetings? For example, if someone invites you to coffee, you could suggest that you each invite one more person and make it a party of four. This adds value by introducing additional people to the mix, while also saving time (meeting those three people individually could cost you three to six hours of time!). This 4-person structure ensures that the conversation will be lively, and increases the odds that a good connection will be made by all.

It’s so simple! Why didn’t I think of this sooner?

What do you think? I haven’t tried it yet, but I think I’m going to give it a shot. Let me know if you want to join me!

It’s easy to do when the phone is ringing and there are bills to pay. Add to that the passion for what you do and a burning desire to succeed, and you have a recipe for anything but freedom. What you have is a cycle that is hard to break, which can be like trying to run a marathon on a hamster wheel. Unless you can get off the wheel and cover some mileage, you cannot make it to the finish line.

Following are some of the biggest mistakes entrepreneurs make that keep them running on the wheel.

Say yes to everything.
When you fail to set boundaries on your time, everyone wins but you. It is important to know the difference between an opportunity and a poor use of your time and energy. A giving spirit is a great personal quality, but can be a big business inhibitor. Overcome this by scheduling your time to complete projects, return calls, check e-mail and manage your business. When an invitation comes along that can potentially derail your schedule with no obvious benefits to your business, politely decline. Putting boundaries in place with give you a feeling of overall control and can have a dramatic impact on your productivity.

Avoid new technology because it takes too much time and effort.
The internet offers businesses more opportunities than ever and though you may not want to learn new technologies, there’s a good chance that you will miss out if you don’t embrace them. At the very least, make sure you have a website that is optimized for the search engines. Consider adding blogging to the mix as well as social media engagement via Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter. These technologies are fast becoming a way of life and without them your business could be left behind.

Do it all yourself.
Entrepreneurs tend to have type-A personalities, which means we like control. That can also lead to a belief that “nobody does it better than me.” While in some cases that may be true, this is the kind of attitude that keeps you running on the wheel. If you want to grow your business, you must delegate some of the work to others so that you can have time to focus on what you do best. You can outsource functions like bookkeeping and administrative work. Consider hiring a virtual assistant or an intern. Once you begin to hand tasks over, you will truly begin to create freedom in your life.

Hang on tightly to every dollar.
Big companies typically invest at least 10% of revenues in marketing activities, and so should you. Marketing is an investment in your business and the right tactics will make the phone ring, which translates to an investment that pays for itself over and over again. Start setting aside 10% of all revenues and invest those dollars in marketing strategies that expand your business.

Don’t take time to learn.
Times are changing rapidly. New technologies, shifts in the economy and changes in the ways families conduct daily life—all of these issues and more mean that businesses need to change too. Continuing education about your industry is essential to staying competitive in a world that is changing so quickly. Spend time taking classes, reading books, participating in related trade associations and reading industry-related blogs and publications that help you maintain your competitive edge.

Figure you can take a vacation next year.
The biggest sign that your business is running you is when you stop taking vacations. If your business comes to a halt when your child stays home sick from school or you get the flu, and the idea of taking a vacation is completely out of the question, then it’s time for some major changes. Begin by developing processes for everything you do in your business and figure out how you can bring in additional support. That might simply mean forming a strategic partnership with someone who does what you do so that you can back each other up, or it might mean hiring more help. Whatever it takes, make it a priority to reclaim your freedom and reap the rewards of your hard work.

Keep doing what you’re doing.
What you have been doing in your business has gotten you to where you are now, but isn’t necessarily going to take you further. If you want to have more free time, make more money and continue growing your business, then your strategy needs to shift. Moving a business from one level to the next takes action, and for each business that action is different. It might mean building a sales force, hiring more support staff, ramping up your marketing efforts, increasing production capacity or launching new products and services. The point is that to move from one level to the next, change is essential. Embrace change and you will truly create the freedom you deserve.