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As I worked on my Annual Review in December, I spent some time thinking about the Shaklee business I worked on for a year. As someone focused on healthy living and experiencing success with the Shaklee vitamin and herbal supplements, building a home-based business seemed to be a viable way to bring in extra income to pay for our children’s Catholic school education.
Unfortunately, the Shaklee business turned out to be a poor fit for me for a number of reasons which I won’t go into here. However, I learned a lot from the experience of building a business while being a stay at home mom. I do think I could do both; I just need to find a business that fits me. Blogging fits me.
Lessons Learned
- A home business needs work and discipline.
- You get out of it what you put into it.
- The more you practice, the more you come to understand what works for you and what doesn’t.
- Failure is as important as success.
- Get the full support of your spouse from the beginning.
- Be prepared to set boundaries with friends and family and other acquaintances. My biggest struggle with this has been my children’s school.
- Be frugal and discerning with your expenditures.
- Find someone else also starting out in the business and see if they want to support each other.
- Educate yourself. Some businesses have a greater learning curve than others.
- Socialize and network with other people in your business.
- Listen.
- Organization is incredibly important.
- Follow up is equally important.
- Make your yes mean yes.
- Be known for your word.
- Your business is worth your time and effort.
- Your business is worth sharing with friends and family.
What are lessons you’ve learned from having a home-based business?
Because I love meeting new people and sharing, this post is linked to:
Family Time, Frugal Tip Tuesday,The Mommy Club, Works for Me Wednesday
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{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Great post Barb. Sorry it didn’t work out for you. As someone who is thinking of venturing into starting her own at-home business (the special ed advocate thing) you’ve given me much food for thought!
Thanks! I haven’t regretted trying Shaklee; it just wasn’t a good fit for me. I’m sure you’ll have lots of wisdom to share as you figure how to make your business work.
Great food for thought! Having a home business is hard and comes with many disappointments and challenges. I hope to bring more balance into my life in 2012…still trying to figure out how.
Great list Barb! I can relate to many of the items you mentioned. Starting a new business is exhilarating and challenging. It is some times hard to make the separation between work and home life. Being open to trying new ways of marketing, networking, selling and not having them succeed is something I have had to get used to. Who likes to fail, right? However, I now can say though that failure is really so important to the growth of your business provided you can look back (as you have) and learn from it.
Fran {The Flavorful Fork} recently posted..The Best of 2011 and Goals for 2012
Hi Barb, I’ve been sooo busy getting so many of your ideas (new to us) into shape for this new year of 2012, that I haven’t been commenting anywhere much! I’ve caught up on 4 plus months of filing, started an organization of my desk (as per the book you recommended by David Allen: Getting Things Done, set up a completely different bookkeeping system using Quicken, Excel 2003, and YNAB, planned two full years, TWO FULL YEARS, of budgeting and goals. I have read so much of what you’ve recommended about resolutions and goals and forms, etc. We’ve set our new years goals and resolutions and are already implementing them! The review is kinda difficult…but, I guess that is next on the list! Whew! Oh yes, I am on my 3rd week of menu planning and using a Master Shopping List! I am reading with great interest all that you write and read key posts to my husband, Glen! You do make a difference, my friend! You keep us very busy…and, I thank you!
As for Shaklee…I, also, (1983?) used to be a distributor. And, while I did believe in the product, I needed some income right then and not someday down the line. But, it did need to be an in-home business, due to the life-threatening long-term illness of my second child. I hung on, but way too long and it caused some terrific financial struggles! It was great reading your honest introspection and could so relate! Yep! Blogging fits you!
These are really good tips Barbara! I have learned in my business to want it bad enough to make the sacrifices needed to make it work.
Uneeka Jay recently posted..Authors of Mom, Incorporated on Being Powerful Women
Good for your Barb. I bet doing your “own thing” will be far more rewarding in the long run!
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