The Hard Road To Success – What to Expect And A Dose Of Inspiration

Dream Big and give it a shot

As a follow up to my blog Working online from home - The lessons, I have decided to share a few other things that one should expect along the road to success and maybe inspire you to navigate these turbulent waters. Take note that this does not only apply to business. It also applies to any new ‘adventure’ one starts in all spheres of life; relationships, new hobbies, new courses at school etc. The idea is to let you know that this is to be expected so that when they occur, you would see them as normal and not break down or give up entirely. I suggest you read this every morning as a reminder to help you to keep on track. Ok, so let’s shoot!

Don't wait for the perfect situation

FAMILY

If you have a family who believes that being employed means, getting up in the morning and dressing up in suit and tie or putting on executive clothes (if you’re a woman), leaving home and going to an office every morning from 8:00am to 5:00pm, you’re going to have a hard time because they would discourage you. Don’t blame them, it’s not because they don’t want the best for you. Rather, it’s because they want you to succeed. You see, the fact is, all they have known in life is operating within a safe zone so they want you to travel the same path. I mean, they got some education and got a government job immediately after that, when the population was low. Back then, there was an appreciable and constant economic growth and technology was not rendering people redundant, unlike today. Their reaction is because they are scared that you won’t succeed; they actually feel for you. Forgive them, listen to advice, compare and contrast opinions and pick the best that suits your path but explain things to them constantly. Stick to your guns, focus and keep moving. Believe it or not though I am spending more time working online than a lot of people who commute to work daily, my family still do not think I am employed. It’s a war I fight daily with constant explanations and evidence of my success and investments. I stopped distributing my Résumé about a year and a half ago and my family thinks I am crazy but I know what I have discovered and what I am on to so I have always kept my focus. 

FRIENDS

Some friends would think you’re crazy and would try to discourage you. It could be out of genuine concern or it could be out of envy because they wish they were in your shoes.  You would lose some friends because you’re not ‘bringing anything to the table’ when you go hanging out. It’s a sacrifice worth making anyway because these are fair weather friends. Forgive them, keep focused and keep moving on. Communicate often with friends or people who are in a similar situation as yours. These people would act as your support group and inspire you on, trust me. Infact, I have the privilege of collaborating with friends and people I have met who are in a similar situation, on various projects online and offline.

YOURSELF

 You would break down and have self-doubts, oh yes, this would happen a lot, especially in times when things do not turn out as expected. There were many days when i had to choose between getting lunch or dinner and getting internet bundle so i could work because i had no support. Fact is, people are more likely to discourage you than encourage you in any new 'journey you take. This is likely to affect yourself confidence every now and then, when things go wrong. You would wonder whether you should abandon the whole idea and go back to what people consider ‘normal’ so you need to deal with it. In the end, when you succeed, they would try to emulate you. What would make you happier, knowing that you built your own life by daring to take reasonable risks or knowing that someone else built your life for you? Think about it!!

If you found this article useful, feel free to share and also share your opinion. Stay inspired!

3 Years Of Working Online From Home – The Lessons To Note

working at home

Three years ago, I left my job as a tax assistant in a public institution to start out on my own, working online from home. It’s not been an easy road, as it’s always the case when one decides to explore new waters. However, amidst the turbulence, there have been some remarkable successes. In this short article, I wish to outline the benefits and losses of working online from home to help anyone wishing to embark on this journey. This is not a text book narrative. Everything is derived from my 3 years experience working online from home. First of all, a question: did you land in this situation by taking a conscious decision, by circumstances or by both? I landed here because circumstances made me take a conscious decision. Now here we go!!

The Benefits

 Flexibility – The most prominent benefit of working online from home is flexibility. The fact that I can get enough sleep, yet wake up in time enough to get my daily gym fix before sitting behind my pc is awesome.  This is all made possible because I use the period that I would otherwise have used to prepare for and commute to work to do it. This, as you may guess, had improved my fitness a lot because I had very little time to exercise when I commuted to work daily. When I had to commute to work daily, I woke up as early as 4:00 am. Then again, I can create a relaxing atmosphere with some music whilst I work and also work at my own comfortable pace without an ‘evil boss’ breathing down my neck or an envious colleague sniffing his/her nose in my business. Better still, I get to take a 1hr siesta after lunch which gives me a refreshed focus to continue working. I could also use some of the break to read or do research.

Longer Working Hours – When working online from home, I realised that though I get more flexible hours, I am still able to work more hours. At my old job, I worked the basic daily 8:30 am to 5:00pm shift, came home tired, had dinner and jumped straight into bed. I could hardly read or do any research. Even then, there were lots of wasteful days when there was hardly any job to do at the office but I still had to commute to work. On days like these my colleagues and I spent the whole day arguing about politics, sports, etc; wasteful indeed.  At home, I am able to work longer hours with much effect sometimes to as late as 12:00 midnight if the need be.  The intermittent breaks I get enable me to do other things; flexible.

Incredible Opportunities – When I decided to try working online from home, I had no idea where to start initially. Using Google search to find opportunities usually led me to what seemed like scam sites selling fake teaching materials. However, I didn’t give up but continued with my research on social network sites until I made some awesome discoveries. My point exactly? I had always aspired to be my own boss someday but working in a public institution barely challenged me to seek and try other opportunities. It was an absolute comfort zone where I got paid at the end of the month no matter what. Leaving my old job really challenged me into succeeding on my own. It made me work harder to discover what I needed to do to become successful. In the process, I have been able to unleash some creativity that I never knew existed and also discovered great opportunities. Infact, now discovering new opportunities online or anywhere else has become a natural part of me. All this would never have happened if I was stuck in a very ‘tempting comfort zone’.

The Losses

Lack of Companionship – Working online from home can really be a lonely world, though this is relative depending on the individual. Though it was unproductive, I must admit I miss those free days at work when my colleagues, bosses and I, spent virtually the whole day arguing about sports, politics and other social issues and after, ordered a big lunch which we ate together in the office. Then there were those T.G.I.F. nights after work when we hanged out at our favourite pubs to relax with some drinks and enjoy some music. There is also the fact that, you can always get help from a colleague when need be and also learn a lot from each other. I consider myself as someone very comfortable with being a ‘lone ranger’ most of the time but even I, miss this work atmosphere a lot sometimes.

High Risk – Leaving a job that guarantees you a monthly income no matter what, to venture into ‘unchartered waters’ is really high risk because the future can’t be predicted with certainty. What you lose in this case is, a guaranteed monthly pay cheque, job promotions with its benefits and a guaranteed retirement benefits. I speak for my location in this case. If you are one for low risk comfort zone job, then great you need to stay put in your job because the truth is if you start out on your own, you’re going to invest some time and money which you’re likely to lose. Believe me, I have had days with nothing to eat. However, if you’re resilient and have the ‘never give up’ attitude then that’s also great because the rewards at the end, if it works out, is the best. You would never need to depend on retirement benefits to survive and you will be solving unemployment problems for many.

Conclusion

It is never easy leaving a well paid job to start working online on your own.. It can be hell if you have no idea where to start immediately (by the way if you need a starting point, read this: Easy online cash ). However, by my experience so far, the benefits of working from home online far outweigh the negatives. At this point, I honestly do not see myself working for someone else except being my own boss or partnering with someone and hopefully having the life I wish to have. Feel free to share your opinions and this article if you found it useful.