Automating Online Business And Making Lemonade

Table of Contents

Why I Need An Automated Business

Automating online business is my ultimate dream, because the offline business has struck again. So I have to drop everything online to attend to the latest crisis in one of my offline businesses.

Something I had been expecting to happen in a month’s time happened last Monday, with no notice. Just a phone call on Monday morning to tell me it had already happened. If the agents I pay to look after my interests had been keeping me up to date, I would have been prepared.

The previous Monday I dropped in to check on progress and my last words were: “I need a date this will happen as soon as possible”. Somehow, this seems to have been heard as “Let me know AFTER it has happened, so I can’t make any advance planning”.

On Monday I was furious, but my entrepreneurial son Matt and his wife – who were “lined up” to come and help me in a month’s time – managed to scrape me off the ceiling and calm me down. Although, quite understandably, they couldn’t drop everything right away, they’re able to come along in a few days time.

Meantime there ARE a few preparations I can make in advance – including dashing off Sunday’s blog post (this one) in advance so I have Saturday and Sunday free to work with Matt on the offline project.

Making Lemonade

Matt, who is wise beyond his years, found the positive points in the early triggering of our joint venture. He pointed out to me the possible down-sides if it had, instead, dragged on beyond the planned-for mid-September.

The “wise words” that came to mind after talking to him were “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade”. Because that’s what we’re doing now.

After all, having “too much business” on my plate is a problem that many others wish they had.

The Online Business Lesson

The bulk of my income comes from more than one successful offline business. Cumulatively they’re paying me well – but they take a lot of my time.

There’s very little control over when I’m needed. I’m very much at the beck and call of my clients. I can be sitting about waiting for work one day – then BAM – everything kicks off at once and I’m pulled in several different directions. It’s completely unpredictable.

So while I sometimes talk glibly about the benefits of being my own boss and time freedom, in all honesty I haven’t 100% achieved this. Because I am still very much tied to my offline business.

Yes – if I want to go out for lunch with a friend one day and do that day’s work from 8pm to 2am it’s no problem. But there are times when I’m at the simultaneous beck and call of MORE pay-masters than your average wage-slave.

Effective Time Management in my own business is still a “Work-in-Progress” for me. But a solution is coming together.

A Solution For Part-time Online Entrepreneurs

Whether you are working for one boss, or like me, still juggling four or five “bosses” for the bulk of your income, you need to be realistic about the time you can allocate.

Those of us still lucky enough to have a regular income will be wise to allocate some of that income to automating or out-sourcing certain areas of our online business. Your business can grow faster than if you were completely inactive.

Your online business can continue at some level while you carry on with fee-paying activities to help grow the online business to the stage when it overtakes the offline business.

In my case, the goal is to provide the comfortable retirement I forgot to prepare for while being “busy-busy” in my offline business. What’s your goal?

Business Tasks To Automate

I have written before about tools to help automate my business. To me it makes sense to focus automation on areas I don’t enjoy doing, or areas I’m poor at.

Creating presentations to turn into videos is an area I’m weak on. I’ve already found someone who will do that for me, plus some tools that let me add the finishing touches.

She works on the other side of the world, so if she isn’t already too busy, I can send her a “job” at my bedtime and it’s ready for me when I wake up.

My automation plans are underway, but not yet completely ready.

The “crisis” this week just reinforced how much I need to focus on automating online business using something that can work in parallel with me – and, even better, while I sleep.

If you don't find a way to make money while you sleep, you will work until you die. Warren Buffett Share on X

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