Time, Who has TIME?

I have been pondering where all the time goes when you have a home-based business. With the busy lifestyle we all lead, how do you find time to run a home based business, let alone start one up? My current issue is finding the time to keep all the paperwork in order from last year, finish the taxes for last year and keep the paperwork in order for this year. It seems that I sit down to the computer first thing in the morning, and find by the end of the day, the tasks I had planned on completing are still not complete.

What happened? We are all pressed for time, even when computers were supposed to make our lives simpler. It seems that we are now slaves to the computer and all the associated peripheral devices (Iphones, PDA's, hand-held computers, etc.). If computers were supposed to make our life simpler, and reduce the paper clutter, why is there so much paper on my desk waiting for me to do something with it? We may scan receipts, documents, important papers, but we still have to file the physical papers somewhere. I know there are people out there who may receive electronic invoices, but choose to print those invoices out to file them. What's up with that? Essentially we are now doing double work, filing both electronic and paper invoices...one is for ease of finding (yeah, right, who is kidding who...) and the other is in case the computer crashes and you lose all your data.

We have installed computer backup drives, but have to check them periodically. We may have the ability to do electronic tax filings and banking, but still, there is a paper trail that follows all of this because again, we are not entirely sure the computer will not eat the data and lose it forever. Granted the backup systems are much easier to use and store more data, but in the event of some catastrophic event, the data may get lost...or so we fear.

Also, with the advent of the computer, don't you find you are doing more work in the same amount of time, and still not getting the core tasks done? Perhaps part of the problem is the communication we now do over the Internet. All the e-mails, Facebook comments, Twitter Tweets, My Space comments, etc. These used to be limited to phone calls and regular paper mail. Now, comments, questions, jokes and requests for help are winging their way all over and demanding our attention now, not several days from now. With the new phones, you can even receive your e-mail over the telephone. So now, you travel with a phone (remember the times when, if you were away from your desk or home, you couldn't be reached?) where people can get you immediately, your phone may tell you that you have an urgent e-mail, or someone "text's" you to get in touch.

No wonder there is so much distraction in the world. It is really good that we can communicate so quickly, but the flip to that is everyone wants answers or solutions NOW, not in a few days. Our time is being compressed, we are doing more, yet we still seem unable to complete the basic tasks at hand due to the numerous distractions.

In a home based business, it is extremely difficult to stay on track. With all the e-mail inquiries, phone calls, appointments, and meetings, it seems that sometimes you are on a treadmill, going uphill at 60 miles per hour. It is extremely exciting to have a home based business in these times, but if you are not good at controlling your time and tasks, things can get out of hand very quickly. It is critical that you keep track of your core tasks which MUST be completed. You cannot allow yourself to be distracted by all the e-mails from friends and jokes sent. You need to treat your home based business just like you would treat a regular job. You would be more effective if you are able to prioritize tasks and keep that list on hand at all times.

There are several tricks to use to stay on track, but since we are running out of time tonight (really?) we will defer that discussion for tomorrow. Tomorrow we also expand this time management discussion to include how to manage your time when working a full time job and starting up a home based business.

Until tomorrow...