I was recently talking with someone about making their online business more efficient.

Sometimes it can be a challenge starting an online business and working from home.

Avoiding distractions, setting work hours, setting deadlines and making a profit online are just a few of the challenges many of us face.

When starting out….. Make Sure You Have A Plan.

I have a friend that is currently working on launching an online business. Now I think very highly of my friend and know he has what it takes, I see the market potential, I see the work involved in launching the site, I see the challenges ahead…but the one thing I don’t see is a business plan with deadlines!

The result – This “launch” has been in the works for nearly 5 years now!

There is even talk of a “bricks and mortar” store being unveiled.

How can this happen?

Last year….maybe even 2 years ago there was discussion about choosing the design for a gift card.

A Gift Card? A What?……Yeah….a gift card for a website that doesn’t exist yet.

Gift Cards and physical locations to compliment a website that isn’t live yet.

In any business there needs to be a vision. Having a vision of gift cards…multiple bricks and mortar locations all of that is a great thing.

One needs to know what the end result looks like. If you don’t know where you are going it will never happen.

However….

You can’t do everything right now. You can’t focus on everything and ever see any measurable results.

Everything has it’s time in place along the continuum.

Have the big vision…and also have the pieces laid out in a logical fashion.

Focus on what’s important right now. Don’t jump ahead.

Don’t plan what celebrities will endorse your product when you haven’t even registered a domain name yet =)

When setting your deadlines, do your best. You can always make adjustments. You may not know exactly how long each step will take. That will come from experience. Don’t let not knowing how long something will take prevent you from laying out a plan with deadlines.

A open ended deadline will postpone your success.

Specific goals get specific results.

Wish you the best!

Robert Avila