Building a Business Part Time

Learn how to build your own business part time.

Tutorial

At any given time, there are millions of part time entrepreneurs working towards the dream of self employment. During this time of dual employment - a day job with your part time business - you may find it hard for anything else!

I know how you feel, for six years I worked on my business part time before finally going for it full time. This is a great time to build a foundation and build up income so you increase your chances for success. Some businesses are more suited for this type of situation, others are much more difficult to work on while you are employed full time. In my situation, an Internet company was very easy to work on part time - this actually dragged out the time before I went full time - I could have launched the business full time much sooner but held off because of the ease of working on it part time. If you business is customer facing, you may find a need to hire employees to run the shop while you are still employed.

Time Management

Whatever your situation, time management is crucial to your success. You should start setting scheduled times during the week that you will work on your business. Keep a calendar and keep track of the time you spend working on your business. I use a free software package called Advanced Time Reports to keep track of my time. This is a free software application which lets me keep track of tasks and projects and how much time I spend on them.

Set Your Goals

Goal setting is also a task you will be required to perform as you build your business. This may seem at times like a hokey thing to do, but you can't go somewhere if you don't know where you're going. There are two types of goals you need to set:

1. Long term - long term goals for 1 year, 2 years, and 5 years. These should be specific and measurable goals. For example, a 1 year goal might be to grow revenues 50%.

2. Short term - once you have set your long term goals, you should break these down into short term goals. These should be designed to meet your long term goals. Short term goals are usually set for 3-6 months out. For our 1 year goal of 50% revenue growth, we might break that down into these 3 month goals:

a. 18% revenue growth
b. Acquire 15 new customers
c. Increase sales 25%

Write your goals down! It is essential to write your goals down and then measure whether or not you are meeting them. As with any business, goals have to be fluid. You may need to change these over time, but you should always be heading towards your goals.

Set your goals high. I typically like to set my goals much higher than I initially think I can actually accomplish. This forces me to work harder to attain these goals and also if I do reach these higher goals, all the better!

Keep Your Lives Separate

Your time at your job is owed to your current employer, give them 100% of what they deserve - even if you don't like your job. You never know when your connections at your current job will pay off. There are countless stories of people who left their jobs and ended up with their former employer as a client - or even an investor - of their new company.

Remember Your Family

One of the common problems for entrepreneurs is balancing their time working and family life. Remember to set aside quality time with your family each week and ensure their needs are met. A happy family at home will make your life much easier when you have to work late or have a commitment in your business.

Good luck in your new business!