THE WORK FROM WHEREVER GUIDE

Transcription

1 THE WORK FROM WHEREVER GUIDE 10 TIPS TO BUILDING A BUSINESS THAT ALLOWS YOU TO WORK FROM WHEREVER

2 The Dream of the Corner Office Has Been Replaced. Melanie Duncan True success looks, tastes, and feels like freedom. The ability to go anywhere at a moment s notice, live out of your suitcase, see and truly experience the world. When I started my first business, I never dreamed I d start a movement, but I wanted to build businesses that would afford me the freedom to #workfromwherever. In fact, I was blown away by the response when I first started posting photos of me working all over the world using the hashtag #workfromwherever. My photos not only got many likes and comments, but people started posting all kinds of creative photos of their own showing how they #workfromwherever. It was then that I realized that I had touched on something powerful. Before I knew it, #workfromwherever became a sort of rallying cry for my community and a real reason behind why I do what I do: helping people build businesses that provide us with the freedom to #workfromwherever. Now more than ever, the real reason that people start businesses is to experience freedom. Our ambition is not to have the corner office with a huge company (and equally huge responsibilities tying you to it). It is having a business that allows us the freedom to #workfromwherever whether that means from a café in Paris or the park with your kids. For Devin and I, travel has always been an important component in the picture of our ideal lifestyles, so it was vital for us to build companies that could come with us wherever we wanted to go. 02

3 With the power of my laptop, I ve lived the #workfromwherever lifestyle by working from: A charming streetside cafe in Paris From my private plunge pool by the turquoise sea in Anguilla On the terrace of a chic apartment overlooking the Spanish steps in Rome From a cozy chalet with a dramatic view of the snowcapped Alps in Switzerland A brilliant bougainvillea-lined terrace with fresh sea breezes from the Mediterranean Sea in Capri A modern highrise with a side of room service in Tokyo Of course, not everyone is looking for international travel when they say they want to #workfromwherever. A member of my team stays home with her kids and works from the dining room table, the back yard deck, or poolside in the summer! Another member of my team was able to pick up her business at a moment s notice to fly home and be with her dad when his cancer came back and her clients never even experienced a hiccup, because she too could #workfromwherever. Yet, another is working for me while she travels around Portugal this month. You see, I don t just live it I want to help as many people as possible enjoy the freedom to #workfromwherever. It s a hugely powerful concept and a true freedom I want to help more women realize which is why I put together this guide. If a #workfromwherever lifestyle is your goal, then these tips will help you achieve it. 03

4 1 JUST BECAUSE YOU LOVE YOUR BUSINESS, DOESN T MEAN YOU LOVE THE LIFESTYLE. Just because you love doing something, doesn t mean that you will love the lifestyle that it affords. If you re serious about a #workfromwherever lifestyle, then you must take all the factors into consideration when deciding how to build your business. It s important to critically evaluate your business models based upon their ease of being able to work from wherever. That doesn t mean you have to give up your passion, though. It just might mean thinking about it a little differently. Obviously a yoga instructor can t teach her regular class when she s sunning on a beach in Bali but she could take the class with her by offering a yoga retreat in exotic locales, or filming yoga class videos on a beautiful beach. Ask Yourself: Does my current business model support a #workfromwherever lifestyle? If not, how can I change it to move toward the lifestyle I want? 04

5 2 OFFERINGS THAT OFFER YOU FREEDOM AND FLEXIBILITY. Once you ve determined if your business model supports a #workfromwherever dream, it s important to evaluate the fulfilment of your offerings for flexibility and freedom - especially as you scale. Avoid things that require you to be in a specific place at a certain time, like live events, in person coaching, and so on. Instead, ask yourself how you can deliver value from wherever. This might be with prerecorded course materials, Skype coaching, books, webinars, and so on. Considering scalability is also vital when considering your offerings. One-on-one coaching has a builtin upper limit, simply because there are only a set number of hours in a day meaning there is a limit to how much you can scale a one-to-one offering. Consider what your scalable business trajectory might include. For example, if you re coaching one-on-one today, you might scale by adding a oneto-many group program, and then training other coaches in your method, and so on. Ask Yourself: Are my offerings conducive to the freedom and flexibility I need to #workfromwherever? If not, how can I adjust them to give me that freedom and scale to the level I desire? 05

6 3 VISUALIZE. It s important to understand your own personal vision of #workfromwherever. Some of my community want to work in places like Monaco, Fiji, or a ski lodge in the Alps. Some have a dream of being able to RV across America with their kids every summer, or even just work from the sidelines of a little league game. They are all beautiful visions, worthy of the #workfromwherever moniker. But these visions have very different requirements (funds, WiFi access, etc.) so understanding your vision will help you make your plan come to fruition. There s nothing better or worse about wanting to be home with your kids versus wanting to be on a beach, but they will require different planning, different business models, etc. For example, if your #workfromwherever vision includes taking summers off to spend with your kids, your business model and needs will be different from someone who wants to spend a year in Sao Paulo or Rome. Dream big! But dream now so that your plan can make your dreams come true. Ask Yourself: What is my #workfromwherever vision? How will my business plans need to change to accommodate that vision? 06

7 4 MONETIZATION MATTERS. If you want to travel in style, you need funds hun. There are different ways to approach this. First, look at your #workfromwherever vision and decide how much you need to make to make that come true. Do you want to make enough to fund your travel? Or that plus maintain a home somewhere or save for something big? Are you dreaming of five-star resorts or a tent on the beach? Of course, your budget will depend on where you want to go and how you want to travel but there are affordable options no matter what your dreams. For example, you can stay at an allinclusive resort on the beach in Mexico for around $300 a night. Or, you can rent a small flat in Paris for around 500 a week which is less than most decent hotels. If you rent an apartment, you can also eat breakfast and lunch at home and save money for those memorable dinners out. Do your research, be realistic, and remember to factor in transportation costs (if you will need a rail pass or a rental car) as well as exchange rates. Next, look at what it will take to achieve your goals. Do you need to sell more units? Raise your prices? Some of both? Work out on paper how you will reach your goals, and you are much more likely to reach them. Ask Yourself: How much do I need for my #workfromwherever lifestyle? How do I plan to reach those goals? 07

8 5 GET OFF SITE ASAP. The next step is to remove yourself from roles that require you to be onsite ASAP. Most likely you will start out doing everything in the beginning, but identify the work that limits your mobility and create a plan for how to train someone else to do it. When Devin and I first started to step away from the day-to-day operations at Luxury Monograms, we had to start small. At first we spent one day a week working from home instead of at the store. Then we slowly built it up until we were working from home (or a coffee shop, or #wherever) most of the week, and only going into the office occasionally. That s how we knew that when we moved to New York and later took off to travel around the world that our company would continue to run without us. Ask Yourself: What tasks am I currently doing that someone else could do? What needs to happen for me to be able to delegate those tasks, and how soon can I make that happen? 08

9 6 TEAMWORK MAKES THE DREAM WORK. In order to delegate tasks, you must put together your dream team. Your team is an investment in your business just like anything else. And you must find the right person to fill each position in order to create a team that helps your business run smoothly. Start by making a list of all the tasks you d like to delegate, and then write down all the qualities you need in a member of your team, and how you like to work best. For example, if you decide you need a graphic designer, you ll also want to know that you like to work with someone who is willing to get on the phone with you to talk things through, not just , and someone who has worked in the beauty industry before. Those kinds of details will help you find the perfect person not just any person. Ask Yourself: Who do I need on my dream team? How do I like to work with others? And what s most important to me when it comes to collaborations? 09

10 7 GET TECH SAVVY. Before you take off to exotic locales, you have to get your tech in order. When you re #workingfromwherever most of your data and processes need to live in the cloud so that you can access them from anywhere. Start moving anything you need to work on into cloud-based applications and get a good backup system in place. This might include your accounting, inventory tracking, employee communications, task management, contact management and anything else that might be living on a single computer (or paper??) at home. Digitizing your work and getting it into the cloud with proper security and backup systems in place is vital to knowing that you actually can #workfromwherever. You ll also want to take inventory of your tech. Is your computer up to snuff? Do you need video cameras, still cameras, or microphones that you can take with you? Get the right tools to get the job done right whether that means hardware or software. Ask Yourself: Which tasks and processes need to move into the cloud? Does any of my tech (hardware or software) need an upgrade to make #workfromwherever easier? 10

11 8 SYSTEMATIZE YOUR MONEY MAKERS. You must have systems in place that allow you to be making money even when you re not on. When Devin and I first got into Internet marketing (long before we were living the #workfromwherever lifestyle) we set up our computer to make a ka-ching! noise every time we made a sale. That thrill of hearing it go off when we were making dinner, relaxing, or doing anything other than working was what got me hooked on Internet marketing and sales. Take a look at how your sales work and see how you can further systematize so that you can be making money no matter where or when you re working. Depending on your business model, this could mean anything from outsourcing order fulfillment to pre-recording webinars. Systems aren t scary when they give you the freedom to #workfromwherever. Ask Yourself: Where can I put better systems in place to ensure that my business is making money 24/7? 11

12 9 WORK REMOTELY, BUT NOT FROM REMOTE PLACES. You re getting closer, starting to plan your first #workfromwherever escape! When you re in the planning phase, don t forget to take the work part into consideration. Your dream may be hiking in Tibet or sleeping in a yurt in the jungle, but it s not likely you ll be able to get good WiFi in those places. If you need to be working, that s not going to work. Remember that there s a difference between #workfromwherever and a vacation. You need to plan to make getting your work done as simple as possible. This isn t just a concern when you re going to be in a remote place; even if you re renting a flat in Paris, you need to know if the flat comes with WiFi or if you re going to have to find a café every day to work from. Ask Yourself: What are my work needs while I m away? Do I need great WiFi, a quiet place to concentrate, privacy, a place to shoot videos, a place to record audio, etc.? Do I need to invest in additional/ different equipment? How can I ensure I have everything I need while I #workfromwherever? 12

13 10 FIND YOUR FOCUS. Finally, find your focus. This is perhaps the most important thing you can do to create a #workfromwherever lifestyle. First you must focus on creating a goal; you have to know the route before you can get where you want to know. Use the other tips in this guide to help you create your detailed goal including: What will your business model be? How will you make recurring income? What does your vision of #workfromwherever look like? How much will you need to make to create that vision in reality? Then, devise the metrics that will really tell you how you re doing. For example, if you need to sell X units a month to reach your income goals, and you know that for every Y number of visitors to your site you sell one unit, then you can create a traffic goal and work towards it every month. I also recommend creating daily and weekly routines that don t vary whether you re slouching around at home in your bathrobe or sunning by an infinity pool in your bikini. These routines should include all the tasks that keep you and your business running smoothly. Some of my routines include spending an hour reading and writing every morning, checking my analytics weekly to understand what s working and what isn t, and spending a set amount of time working on my social media each week. Ask Yourself: What are the core metrics I need to know to understand where my business is succeeding and where I need to change course? What daily and weekly routines can I create now to ensure that everything runs smoothly no matter where I am? 13

14 AU REVOIR! NOW IT S YOUR TURN! I hope this guide has inspired you to realize that whatever your #workfromwherever vision looks like, it is absolutely possible and within your grasp. And now, it s your turn! xx Melanie Duncan Post a photo on Instagram using the hashtag #workfromwherever and tell me what Work from Wherever means to you! Be sure to tag or, if you re not on Instagram, post to my Facebook page. Show me your #workfromwherever lifestyle and inspire others to create the life they ve always 14