How many of you are sitting there reading this right now thinking to yourself, I need a holiday but I can’t take time off?
I need a break, but my business will suffer. It’s only me in my business and I just can’t leave it.
There are 2 problems with the last sentence I just wrote, can you pick them?
Yep, that’s right. It is only me and in my business.
If you are the only person who is working in your business, then you are right, you will find it very hard to take time off or go on a holiday. If you do, the chances are your business will not generate any income or profit while you are away.
Everything stops.
But it doesn’t have to.
You can have your cake and eat it too as the saying goes.
When I went on a holiday to the South Pacific with my fam last year, if I still had my product based business I never could have left, unless I wanted to close down the website while I was away and you know what that means? No income.
So, know I have changed my business model, I don’t have that problem anymore.
And you know what, while I was away:
Sales were made.
Income came in.
Business kept moving forward.
My business on the outside looked like I never left.
Which mainly comes down to these 3 little tips right here:
Automation
It is so simple to do yet for some reason we are scared to do it. We are scared to put the trust of our business in the hands of the cyber world. But, once you do it, the freedom you feel is amazing. Think of something simple like emails. We can spend so much time sending out the same information over and over that you could set a template of what you need to say and automate it to send when needed.
I use a app called Zapier to connect a lot of my apps together, which triggers automations and takes me out of the picture. I also use Active Campaign to set up email funnels that educates potential clients about Business Jump, gives them all the info they need and lets them get to know me while I work on the profit-producing areas of my business, or in this case, am away on holidays.
I also use a program called Yesware to save templates of e-mails I send regularly. This ensures my clients receive timely replies to business enquires as well as saving me time replying to hundreds of emails each time a new business goes up for sale.
I also use a social media scheduling app called Post Planner. I schedule my Facebook business page posts and group post here and then they go out as I set them. I was still posting in my groups and on my business page from somewhere in the Pacific because of this simple app. Marketing was still happening even though I wasn’t in the country.
Delegation:
I love this one. I was so apprehensive at first handing over my “baby” to strangers. How could I ever trust someone to do as good a job as me or even care as much as I do. I quickly realised that there are plenty of amazing people out there to help you with your business. They love it and love the challenges. Who knew!
The sooner you realise that you don’t need to be the one working in your business, the sooner you can move aside and let it scale right past you. And by that I mean grow further than you alone can take it. There are only so many hours in the day and you can’t work for every one of them. But if you have just 2 people working alongside of you, that is 3 hours work you can be doing in just one. See how it works now?
I started with outsourcing my social media. My Facebook page was the first thing to be handed over and then some blogs and then a website and now my team handle a lot of the day to day running of my business while I work on the growth, client happiness and content that keeps it all ticking over.
I have an amazing team around me and each and every one of them help me to achieve my goals and aspirations. I couldn’t have grown my business so quickly and to the height it is on my own. It just isn’t physically or mentally possible. I have a team who build the gorgeous websites we create for our clients, a team who write the blogs and source the businesses to showcase on the new sites and a team of graphic designers or bring the logos and branding together.
Now, I could do all this myself. I am a trained graphic designer with years or business and website experience. But I can only do one business a fortnight if that. Now we are doing upwards of 20 businesses a month and growing.
Once you delegate, the sky is literally the limit.
Automated Income:
This is another of my absolute loves. I love a good passive income. Sitting back and seeing my Papal balance grow from something I have set up once but can profit from over and over again.
I have an eBook. You may have seen it! I wrote this book to share my passive income secrets with you all because I don’t believe there is any point in hiding that. There is more than enough passive income streams for everyone.
What I also get from writing this book though, is a recurring passive income each time someone makes a purchase. I wrote the book once, and now it sells over and over again via digital download. Instant access, instant income. Win, win.
I also have my eCourses which are also automated. I created the content once, and whilst I am continually upgrading the information to keep it fresh and relevant, it is a passive income stream for me. I have not had to outlay anything except my time to bring it to you and it is hugely popular. I get a genuine kick each time someone purchases one of my courses or packages.
If you aren’t quite at the eBook or eCourse stage, then you could try affiliate programs to kick-start your passive income path. I have affiliate programs set up with companies I use on a regular basis and trust. I feel if I am telling my clients to use a particular service, then I need to be using it too. It is just good practice. But you can also be a part of affiliate programs you haven’t used, just make sure they are trustworthy and related to your business so it doesn’t seem like you are just referring any old link.
You can find out all about affiliate programs and other passive income streams in the eBook.
As you can see, it is easy to step back once you make the move. Breaking free of your business will help you to not only scale it, but also keep your sanity and afford you the life you have always wanted. A life of freedom and profit.
