Working from home and being the boss of your own home business is a dream come true for me and a path many others have or would like to follow. It’s a great feeling and a very rewarding experience in more ways than just financially.
However, not everything is easy and it just fits when you are working on your own business from home. One of the things that I struggled with and still have to work with on a daily basis is maintaining a balanced budget.
I always thought that if I could work within the constraints of my available money, I was good to go. I soon learned (sort of the hard way) through trial and error and success and FAILURE that creating a work budget means much more than just keeping track of your money.
I found out that there are actually 3 things you need to keep track of during your daily work schedule. Money, effort and time are very important assets that you have at your disposal every day. Each plays an important role and neglecting one or all of them is often the difference between having a successful business, just surviving (you know the feeling, hanging by a thread) and that dreaded word: failure.
I wrote this article to try to help others avoid some of the mistakes I’ve made. For me, one of the best parts of working in Network Marketing and really any home business is the amount of sharing and help available from people who actually follow this business plan.
So read on and learn that there is much more to budgeting for your network marketing business than just watching your money. To be successful in MLM, or really any home business, you need to not only budget your money but also your effort and time. Tracking how you do things and the results you get can help you better manage all three (money, effort, and time) until you find the formula that works for you and your business. Teach yourself to create success and avoid the waste that so many home-based businesses get caught up in.
Budget planning is not usually a topic that comes up when you start your network marketing business. Business planning as a whole is not at the top of the list when you get hired or when you ‘discover’ your network marketing company that will make you millions. But once the dust settles and the initial ‘fire’ dies down, are you ready to do whatever it takes to succeed?
Budgeting your money, working your hardest, and managing time effectively are skills needed to be successful, but they are not skills we are born with. Procrastination and lack of a boss and deadline are real killers when you become your own boss.
Have you ever found yourself checking your email even though you checked it 10 minutes before? Or maybe you’re reading about the next big thing that will take your network marketing business to the next level. I mean who doesn’t want to double or triple their income just by writing a better headline in their email. But honestly, if you’re just getting started and you don’t have a list to send that email to, how are you going to double your money? I’m sure these programs work fine, but take a look at where you are and what you have. Where can you really spend your time, effort, and money most effectively building your business?
I know you probably do these things because I did (and to be honest) and still do unless I focus. To help me, I created a little acronym: MET, which stands for Money, Effort, and Time. I ask myself, “DID YOU MEET your needs and your budget TODAY?” before straying down the path of easy dreams.
Let’s take a closer look at all three parts. M or Money is the part everyone thinks of when you say balancing a budget or budgeting basics. It really is important, but it may actually be the simplest of the three to manage. First, you need to decide how much you actually have to spend on your business each month. Maybe it’s $100 or maybe it’s $200; It’s different for everyone and it’s okay if it can only be $20. Once you determine this, you need to decide what is important to your business RIGHT NOW! If you’re just starting out, you may need business cards or some office supplies. If you’ve been working for a while, you might want to invest in an email autoresponder system or buy some leads or purchase promotional material. It all depends on your goals and where your business is on the road. But once you establish your money budget, stick to it. Decide what is really needed for the place where you are. You don’t have to buy every good-sounding product or have all the bells and whistles. Get established, and then use some of that new income to help you meet more and more of your needs.
Next we have E for Effort. It really is even better to call it Effective Effort. Many of us spend a lot of time in front of the computer or looking at the phone and we say that we are at work. But how much effort is really being put in and is it effective? Maybe you have two hours to work today. One around 7pm right after dinner and another around 10pm after the kids go to bed. Well, if we decide to spend 30 minutes reading a training manual, and then 15 minutes responding to an email, and 15 minutes working on writing an article, we’ve done a lot of effort. These are all things that Network Marketers must do. But if we did all of this at 7 and then saw that we needed to call a new prospect or call one of our new team members and sat down at 10 pm to do it, we’ve wasted time. It’s too late to make our phone calls. So even though we were very good at making our list and doing our job, we didn’t do it effectively, so we wasted some of our time. And I haven’t even mentioned that most people (with me being very guilty) are turned off by the cool YouTube video or the interesting email or the great sales pitch. Focus is critical to the effort and making your efforts effective.
This brings us to T for Time. I saved this for last because that’s where the acronym fits, but even more important because it’s what I consider to be their most important product. Money with which we can work and even earn more. The effort can be relearned or refocused and thus improved, but TIME is here only once. The hour I wasted or missed today cannot be replaced. He went away. Time is precious and fundamental to everything you do and want to do. So take a hard look at your time and how you want to spend it and how you actually spend it. You can’t get it back. I started this home business as a way to spend more time with my family and do the things I love, so for me, budgeting for this block of time came first. I too (like most network marketers) started my home business while still working my 9 to 5 job. So once I got these time blocks out, I was able to make a realistic budget for how much time I could dedicate to my home business. Again, this is different for everyone. So don’t be guided by what someone else did, do what is right for you.
Then look back at all 3 areas and BE REAL. Are you really going to work at the shop at 9 on Saturday night? Do you really have an extra $250 EVERY month? Will you be able to focus and put in 100% effort at 5 o’clock when the kids are hungry and dinner necessities are ready?
To get a true assessment of how much money and time you have to spend and how much effort you can really put in, start tracking what you do. Look around you at successful businesses. You can bet they track things. Do you think they spend a million dollars on a Superbowl commercial and then don’t follow up to see if they’re making a profit? What is Return on Investment (ROI)? You can do the same. Create a tracking sheet to keep track of when you are working on your business or when you have downtime. Keep track of where your money is going and if you have anything extra to invest in your success. Keep track of what you do in the time you spend working.
Tracking will not only help you make a balanced and realistic budget, but it will also help you focus and use the resources you have more effectively. Effective effort rears its head once again. See how it all keeps tying up in a big circle.
It’s time to start. Don’t waste any more of your money, effort or time. Work on setting your goals, and then use the basics of balancing a budget to create a balanced budget. Stay focused and realize that success doesn’t come overnight, it comes in small packages if you just have fun and enjoy what you’re doing. That’s the reason we wanted this home business in the first place – remember?
Success in this business is not defined by speed. It’s okay to take a little longer than the guy you read about online. In all honesty, it takes most Network Marketers 2-5 years to reach what they consider to be a successful level of business. Of course, the more you have MADE your budget and the higher the budget, you can speed things up. More money, more effective effort and, of course, more time can get you there faster. But before you give up, look where you are now. Are you happy with what you have or where you are headed? Are you willing to spend the extra money, effort, and time necessary to achieve the life you dream of, the life you deserve?
Have you MET your goals? Avoid waste and start breeding successfully. Budgeting your money, effort, and time is the best way to create success. Stay focused and remember to keep all 3 in mind during your daily routine.
Think about it!
