http://pajamapaycheque.com Learn how to build a business from your pajamas! Pajama Paycheque is all about creating freedom and doing it on YOUR terms. Tune in to learn how you can create your dream life, now! Tue, 21 May 2013 03:41:54 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 Copyright © Pajama Paycheque 2013 pajamapaycheque@gmail.com (Pajama Paycheque) pajamapaycheque@gmail.com (Pajama Paycheque) 1440 http://pajamapaycheque.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/PP_podcast_170.jpg http://pajamapaycheque.com 144 144 Work at home business opportunities Learn how to build a business from your pajamas! Pajama Paycheque is all about creating freedom and doing it on YOUR terms. Tune in to learn how you can create your dream life, now! work, at, home, work, at, home, mom, work, at, home, opportunities Pajama Paycheque Pajama Paycheque pajamapaycheque@gmail.com no no http://pajamapaycheque.com/working-at-home-time-management/ http://pajamapaycheque.com/working-at-home-time-management/#comments Mon, 20 May 2013 17:00:44 +0000 Donna Sickinger http://pajamapaycheque.com/?p=243 http://pajamapaycheque.com/working-at-home-time-management/feed/ 0 0:01:50 When you are working at home, there are often so many other things pulling your attention in many directions, so time management is essential . Our home is a busy house, there are always people coming and going at different hours, the phone seems to[...] When you are working at home, there are often so many other things pulling your attention in many directions, so time management is essential . Our home is a busy house, there are always people coming and going at different hours, the phone seems to be always ringing, groceries need to be purchased, meals made, etc. I use multiple methods to manage my time in this often chaotic environment. First of all, I plan what my focus is for 3 months at a time. I like 3 month blocks because it allows me to change with the seasons and to be flexible in my life and my work. I also keep a list of things that I want to accomplish or focus on each month. Each week, I break down how I am going to spend my time, allocating things to be done on certain days. This allows me to get a lot done in a busy environment with many distractions. To make sure I don’t forget a conference call, I highlight it in my planner (that alerts me to the fact that this is a scheduled event that day), I put it in my Outlook calendar with a reminder, and I write myself a post it note and put it on the kitchen cupboard above the coffee maker. If I leave the house, I take the post it note and put it on my steering wheel reminding me I have a 1pm conference call. It’s not very high tech but it works! One of the easiest ways I have found to manage my time working at home is to group activities together. For instance, Tuesday is usually telephone day and I try to schedule most of my calls and conference calls to be done that day. This way I always know I’m busy on Tuesday and cannot schedule other things. Time management is an essential key to working successfully from home! http://pajamapaycheque.com/products/ Pajama Paycheque no no http://pajamapaycheque.com/what-about-distractions-when-working-at-home/ http://pajamapaycheque.com/what-about-distractions-when-working-at-home/#comments Mon, 06 May 2013 17:00:40 +0000 Donna Sickinger http://pajamapaycheque.com/?p=164 http://pajamapaycheque.com/what-about-distractions-when-working-at-home/feed/ 1 0:01:26 Working at home sounds so easy, but is it really?  Take this morning, I know I have a deadline to meet today but there are so many other things calling to me!  Suddenly I want to work on my other projects; lots of ideas are swirling around in my br[...] Working at home sounds so easy, but is it really?  Take this morning, I know I have a deadline to meet today but there are so many other things calling to me!  Suddenly I want to work on my other projects; lots of ideas are swirling around in my brain for them. Then of course there are always household chores like grocery shopping. I don’t even like grocery shopping but today I’m willing to grocery shop, I’m willing to allow it to drag me out of my office and not work. When you work at home, you’re never going to be completely free from distractions, but you can manage them. So what do I do on days when I feel overwhelmed with distractions? Well, if I don’t have a deadline, sometimes I find it is better to allow myself the distraction. It’s like my brain is asking for a little extra time to think. Often, while I’m doing my household chores or running around for a few errands, suddenly a great idea pops into my head.  I am forever calling my office and leaving myself a voice message about a new idea, afraid that if I wait until I get home that I will have forgotten it. This is probably a really good habit since I’m often only out for a half hour or so, and when I get back I see I have a message and forget I called myself! No, I’m not ditzy, I’m busy and I’m sure you are too! If I have to get something completed because I have a deadline (like today), I hunker down and get to work. That means closing my office door and channeling all my energy into the task at hand. If I want to earn a paycheque, I need to ignore all the distractions when working at home!   Entrepreneurship, Productivity Pajama Paycheque no no http://pajamapaycheque.com/should-you-go-solo-all-the-way-while-working-at-home/ http://pajamapaycheque.com/should-you-go-solo-all-the-way-while-working-at-home/#comments Mon, 25 Mar 2013 17:00:10 +0000 Donna Sickinger http://pajamapaycheque.com/?p=143 http://pajamapaycheque.com/should-you-go-solo-all-the-way-while-working-at-home/feed/ 0 0:00:17 Just because you’re working at home doesn’t mean you have to be the only one doing the work.  Ultimately, that decision is yours, but here is my thinking.  There are some things that needed to be done, and there are some things that need[...] Just because you’re working at home doesn’t mean you have to be the only one doing the work.  Ultimately, that decision is yours, but here is my thinking.  There are some things that needed to be done, and there are some things that needed to be done by me.  By letting go and outsourcing some of the things that just needed to be done, it freed me up to do the things that needed to be done by me. That meant I didn’t go crazy trying to fit it all in. I had a business and a life! It also freed me up to focus on revenue generating activities because although I am excellent at paperwork, doing my own paperwork took up valuable hours, hours where I could be growing my business. I can hear you thinking, “Yes, but it costs money to pay someone else to do that, I can do it for free.” You are absolutely correct. You can do it for free, but there are only 24 hours in a day. Why not spend your valuable time making money so you can pay someone else to help you with the stuff that just has to be done? Which leads me to another point, what are you good at? You see, technology and I have an understanding. I understand that I don’t really understand! I work to understand what I need to know and pay others to make the rest happen. A technology expert can do in one hour what may take me hours, or days, to get right. I believe that one of my keys to success was not going solo. Right from the start, I hired a neighbor to do my paperwork. I wasn’t making a lot of money, and I couldn’t really afford to, but I needed the help.  I had four small children and although I enjoyed working at home in my pajamas late at night, at some point I had to get a least a few hours of sleep! Know your strengths and outsource your weaknesses!   Pajama Paycheque no no http://pajamapaycheque.com/older-children-and-stay-at-home-mom-jobs/ http://pajamapaycheque.com/older-children-and-stay-at-home-mom-jobs/#comments Mon, 18 Mar 2013 17:00:26 +0000 Donna Sickinger http://pajamapaycheque.com/?p=353 http://pajamapaycheque.com/older-children-and-stay-at-home-mom-jobs/feed/ 1 0:01:38 If you have older children and are working a stay at home Mom job, you too can benefit from a childcare plan.  While they do not need the constant attention a preschooler does, they still need supervision. A lot of the same principles from my previo[...] If you have older children and are working a stay at home Mom job, you too can benefit from a childcare plan.  While they do not need the constant attention a preschooler does, they still need supervision. A lot of the same principles from my previous article about working with kids still apply, but instead of nap time, you work during school time. Once the kids are at school, it’s work time, just like it would be if you worked a job outside of your home. Here is what worked for me when the kids were in grade school. Our boys came home for lunch and then were out for the day at 3:30. I would see them off in the morning and then work while they were at school, taking my “lunch break” with them while they were home for lunch. After lunch, I would work until 3:00 and then I would make myself a cup of tea and enjoy a few minutes of peace before I went to school to pick them up. Once they were home, had a snack, and we had chatted about their day, I would sometimes go back to my office to finish up.  I made sure not to leave important calls for that time, knowing I may be interrupted a few times. By the time we got to dinner, I felt good knowing that I had worked, been with the kids, and even had a few minutes to myself with my cup of tea.  If I had an all day meeting or event I would arrange for them to go to a friend’s after school for a play date. Having a stay at home mom job is a dream, and it works as long as you work.  You are not a stay at home mom.  You are a stay at home mom with a job, a job you can do from home. Pajama Paycheque no no http://pajamapaycheque.com/do-you-need-a-virtual-office-service/ http://pajamapaycheque.com/do-you-need-a-virtual-office-service/#comments Mon, 25 Feb 2013 17:00:03 +0000 Donna Sickinger http://pajamapaycheque.com/?p=44 http://pajamapaycheque.com/do-you-need-a-virtual-office-service/feed/ 1 0:01:32 Working at home is great and it allows me to lead a fabulous lifestyle because I get to choose when and how I work (and there is always lots of work).  How can you tell if you need a virtual office service?  Look at what needs to be done, and look a[...] Working at home is great and it allows me to lead a fabulous lifestyle because I get to choose when and how I work (and there is always lots of work).  How can you tell if you need a virtual office service?  Look at what needs to be done, and look at what has to be done by you. You may be surprised to find that a lot of your work just has to be done.  As long as it is done on time and correctly, your customers won’t care who does it. Then there is the stuff that must be done by you.  If you hire a virtual office service to do the stuff that just needs to be done, that will free you up to do other things such as building your business, making more money, and living your life! I couldn’t do this without my virtual office service. Lisa does all the things I don’t want to do, or don’t have a clue how to do.  Yes, it costs money, but look at the rate per hour.  If I ask her to do something for me that involves technology, I guarantee you I end up spending a lot less because she knows what she is doing and does it quickly and correctly. I’m sure I could figure it out, but at what cost, and would it be done right? My policy is, stick to what you’re good at and make money to pay for help with those things that you are not. This has allowed me to grow a successful business and still have a life. To me, that’s priceless. So thank you to my virtual assistant!  Because of you, I work in my pajamas late at night because I want to, not because I have to. . Pajama Paycheque no no