I have spent countless hours in someone else's office pulling my hair, getting side tracked with office gossip, leaving on Friday's with a twenty pound bag of work and working  diligently for a week to just have a 4-day weekend. Some of you can relate-the work came home every night and it went on vacation with me.  It was a rare occasion when the work stayed behind because when it did, it meant paying for it with work that seemed to find its way into my in basket.  I soon discovered this was my boss' way of saying thanks for leaving me behind to do my job!

This weekend, I realized what so many of my friends had advised me of over the years. "Shari, keep work at work." As I stood in pouring rain watching Va Tech take on and whip the Miami Hurricanes, I realized what steps it took for me to get to this point.  I had not worked tirelessly all week to take a couple days off.  I had not had to put anything on hold to be with my family.  I have finally mastered the balance of work and family. The balance that has only come because I work from home.  I would have NEVER been able to take a relaxing weekend without a 20 pound work bag coming with me.  This trip it was lite: me, the boys, the iPHONE (of course),  and FUN.

I didn't think about work until I received a text message from my website that I had a new client; that text came at half-time and I thought YES! I am making money while I am having FUN.  This is exactly what a good friend, Liz Urban meant by "I want to make money while I sleep." I am finally making the money and my website and efforts are working for me while I enjoy my boys.  YES! I have finally arrived...

Okay, how am I doing it. I am working hard 24/7 with a great balance.  Ever hour I spend on my business, I make the hour count.  I look for ways to do things that will pay in dividends and I educate myself weekly on all of the latest marketing trends and look to other experts for tips/ideas that have made them successful.  These simple things have made me smell success. Not to mention that I am giving back to the community that has supported me through programs like 30 New Clients. We all know what happens when we give, we receive.  

I am sure you want some detailed step by step instruction on how to make millions at home.  I can't give that to you because every step is different.  I can give you some easy things to do to get yourself started, but the millions are truly up to you and your vision:
   
  •   Find Your Niche.  Uncover what you already know or what you would enjoy learning.  I have a friend who recently was laid off. Immediately, she identified that she did not want to go back to an office type setting and wanted to pursue working for herself. Of course, she sees challenges ahead but we sat down looked at what makes her rock.  That was just last month, she has her first paying gig this month conducting a Customer Service training class.  (Something that she did quite frequently at her previous job and had forgotten that she is great at!)
  • Make a Plan.  If you have no map, you will end up NOWHERE. This is my favorite part of anything.  Making the plans which is why I am effective in marketing.  I can look at the overall situation and find a solution that is successful and the steps to get there.  A new client hired me to handle their website marketing.  The problem: They had paid companies that had promised high search rankings and they weren't working.  What didn't happen is that this company didn't take the time to make a plan.  An effective plan would have gotten this client results.
  • Do your HOMEWORK. Educate yourself if you don't know and keep your self on top of the game so you can compete.  You can never read too much.  Set aside the time to learn.  (Webinars ROCK!)  That same client that was promised so much and got nothing would have had success with the other companies had someone done their homework. They would have uncovered quickly that the website was not set up properly on the back-end and with a couple tweeks would have most likely made their efforts result in searches that the client was looking for.  One week later as my client, they are seeing results.  Why? I took the time to do the homework which made a huge difference with a simple solution.  Unfortunately, they lost hundreds of dollars with the other companies but I will make sure they are educated thoroughly so they will know for future.  (I am also going to figure out a way for them to see bigger rewards so that their investment in me pays off to include their failed investments.)
  • JUST DO IT.  Don't over think or second guess yourself.  I weigh things based on my investment.  For me, if I have little to NO money invested in a project I will launch it quickly.  Why? If it fails, I win.   If it works, I win.  Win, win situation. We learn and grow from failures.  By just doing it, you are taking a chance but if you have done your homework, what do you really have to lose?
In closing, you can find success in your company by just doing it!  If you are uncertain on how to do it, look for professionals that can help you realize your dreams and get you to your goals.  Often we are so far into what we are doing that we don't see the easy fixes that are sitting right in front of us. Take the steps so that you can get closer to your goals.  Sometimes you have to crawl first and other times you can take off running. You can work from home and you can make money.  YOU just have to do it!