JAN’S IDEAS

Not only was Wal-Mart a good move for the advancement opportunities, training, and raises…..it fits with becoming self-employed! I got the OK from the assistant manager that is over the department that I work in to go to 4 days. It will go into effect in about 2 1/2 weeks.

While I was waiting I got a weekly and monthly writing job. I am focusing on my one day a week that is dedicated to self-employment, mainly writing.

These steps will be fine tuned for one day a week and later I will use the same process to add other days and later apply the same process to passive income. Income is the money AFTER expenses. With writing I don’t have hardly any expenses since I already have a computer. The only expense right now is the small fees that Paypal charges to do my payments through them.

THE STEPS OF PHASE ONE

1. Return to writing (May 2008)
2. Promote writing services (June and July 2008)

• Updated my writing services page on blog
• Put link in my signature on Wickedfire forum posts
• Wrote a package of 5 related articles with researched keywords and offered for sale on Wickedfire (sold in less than 24 hours)
• Helped other writers (3 threads started to benefit all Wickedfire writers)

1. Received orders and delivered articles (July 2008)
2. Added to iTrader of clients and received iTrader points (July 2008)
3. Decided I had enough work to replace one day pay a week at wage earning job (August 2008)
4. Brainstorming about other self-employment income to cover one day pay-photo taking idea (August 2008)
5. Create secure income (Currently working on)

• (one day wage earning pay X 2) X 12 = savings needed before I repeat process on another day per week
•  Have steady and regular income from writing that equals two days pay for 3 months
• Begin plans for secondary self-employment stream

I will have the income for that one day backed up by 4 other sources of income and a 5th one in the works.

Initial day of pay will be covered by the income from writing. This is how I will make sure I have additional income to cover that SAME day in the event any income fails or drops:

1. Flexible/relief shift at a second wage earning job
2. Enough article writing orders to cover twice what is needed to replace the income for one day at wage earning
3. Savings that is equivalent to 3 months of pay from that one day
4. Secondary writing income (pre-written article packages)

I will develop my photo business plan and test it out.

This provides 5 income streams for one day and another one in the works. I could loose any one of them and my level will not change. What will I do if more than one income stream brings in money? I will enjoy 1/3 of the excess income, save 1/3 of the excess income, and reinvest 1/3 of the excess income back into self-employment business development. Once I have 3 months of savings to cover that one day, I will move towards a second day of self-employment and repeat!

I was at Costco and a calender for my daughter caught my eye. I went ahead and put it in my basket (Christmas shopping begins). As I walked down the isle, a book caught my attention “The 4-Hour Workweek” by Timothy Ferriss. I worked almost 70 hours last week and since I have two jobs it was not all overtime after 40 hours! Well, I decided to splurge on myself and buy the book. Besides, it’s a business expense! Plus at Costco I saved $8 off the cover price.

There are a lot of principles and exercises in there that make sense. When I read books like this, I know what worked for the author may not work for me in the same way. That person’s life experiences, skills, and circumstances are different than mine. For me, often these types of books are stepping stones that take me on another path and trigger an overflow of ideas of things that will work for me.

I’m sure I’ve read and been told similar stuff to what is in the book, before. Right now though, my circumstances make me more open to absorbing what I’m reading. Reasons why I am open to the ideas of this book:

• I have two wage earning jobs and am working some over-time at my primary job
• I’ve taken some steps to look into making some big changes at my wage earning job to better support my family
• I just came back from vacation and want to be free to go back to Colorado more often and for longer periods of time
• I’ve begun internet projects that will contribute to self-employment and passive income
• I’m 47 years old and don’t want to wait around any longer for a life free of financial struggles
• My children are old enough (25, 23, 21, 13, and 10) that they aren’t as dependent on my for care
• I’ve taken big jumps towards financial stability
• I’m very ready to work smarter instead of harder

So, I just started reading the book and am inspired already. Do I believe by this time next year I’ll be working only 4 hours a week? Of course not, but I know I will be closer to that than I am today!

After I finish the book I will go back and use it more like a workbook. I have decided to work on three things while I’m reading the book first time through:

1. Organizing my home office
2. Identify top three income producing internet projects
3. Identify my most efficient income generators

Organizing my home office:

• Purchased sturdy literature organizers
• Organized bills and other personal paperwork
• Threw away lots of papers, old bills, useless receipts, and outdated coupons
• Non-paperwork items (craft supplies, memorabilia, etc.) put in a box to be sorted through later
• Organized some business papework, sorted a lot of it

This has been very helpful already. I have a lot of resource material for writing for one of my top three internet projects. No, when I commit to writing I will have all the material (what I’m looking for and what I forgot I had) in one spot! Today and tomorrow are my easiest days wage earning. I will go through as much as I can today and then stop. Tomorrow I will start writing!

Top three internet projects:

1. Jan’s Group Home Support
2. Jan’s Ideas
3. RUB (code name) Blog

Top three efficient income producers:

1. Photography services
2. Overtime wage earning
3. Artwork

I spend the most hours on wage earning at regular pay-the least efficient of my income. My internet projects are more like an investment…….I’ll reap the benefits later when it matures. They may not be efficient now, but I will continue to work on them when I reorganize my time. I enjoy #1 and #3 and it doesn’t seem much like work when I’m doing it. When I get to doing something with this information, the enjoyment factor will carry a lot of weight.

OK, back to sorting trough my many piles of paper!

A little history on Jan’s Group Home Support and what I am doing that made it my most successful project (still little, but growing!)

Next I will email a link in a personalized email to the contact email on the sites of the service providers.

On the flier I included a small ad for my photography services stating I will do portraits on location and on have experience with special needs. No results from the add, yet.