Are You Really Ready to Telecommute?Written by Angela Wu
Telecommuting is a big thing these days: no more commuting nightmares, more time with kids, more time for yourself, flexible hours, increased productivity ... list goes on and on.But what about DISadvantages? And yes, there are plenty! Working from home can be a wonderful experience for some people. For others, it just isn't suitable. Some of difficult things about working from home include: * Constant distractions: a dirty house, TV, eager dog that wants to be walked ... you name it. Do you have willpower to ignore distractions and concentrate on your work? * 'Out of sight, out of mind': telecommuters may not be kept 'in loop' with regards to company announcements, team issues, whatever. Plus even if you consistently turn out excellent work, your co-workers and boss may not see you and therefore they don't really associate YOU with high-quality work. * Obsessive work: your home becomes your office, in a way, even when you use a separate room as your office. You may be unable to resist temptation to do "just one more thing" ... and before you know it, you spend much more time working than if you were in office.
| | THE POWER OF COMMUNITYWritten by Gary Shawkey
We are all members of communities. We all naturally associate with LIKE MINDED individuals. We know people near our homes and many people online as well. For now, let's focus on your PERSONAL community, people you know and who know you.What we need is to LEVERAGE POWER of our community. The three steps outlined below will help you to begin. If you REALLY do it, you will begin to benefit from tremendous power that is already in your hands. This is not a quick fix program but you will benefit from it for a lifetime. First, get a pad and pen or an open word processing page. Think for a moment about people in your world, both online and offline. Who do you speak with, meet with, exchange email with? What do you get from them? What do you give to them? How did you come together? Write down EVERY NAME and leave space to make notes next to their name. Once list is made, get ready to take POWER STEP. Mark out people you do business with now and next to every name remaining note down four things. First, what do they do for a living? Second, are you like minded with them? Third, how can they use what you do? Fourth, on a scale of 1 to 5, with 1 being lowest and 5 being highest, how close are you to them? Next, look at each name on list and think through how you can expand your relationship with them to include doing business with them. TIP: Thinking about what THEY do helps you see them as a complete person, not just a prospect. This will actually help you BETTER UNDERSTAND exactly how to approach them.
|
