It's that time again!

Hi,

Well, the hubbub of Christmas has settled and I'm ready for the New Year.

I'm starting my schedule for 2011 (if you need a speaker, I'm currently booking) and finding that my set work hours are more important than ever. I know freelancers who work when they "want" to, but the most successful ones set hours when they are working and hours when they are not.

I love the flexibility of working for myself, but most days I settle in, even if I don't feel like it, and work. I arrange for childcare during those hours. Since this is my last year of full time homeschooling, (on top of everything else) I wonder what 2012 will bring in terms of scheduling. Will I have more or less time to work? However, I can't worry about that now. I can only worry about the next year. Am I right?

I often hear the excuse that people don't know the future so they don't schedule. I know one woman who is actually actively resistant to any type of schedule. She becomes defensive and upset when asked about her work hours. My response would be to ask why she's upset, is it  because she's not getting anything done?

I know another freelancer who fiddles the day away, running to meetings that go too long, lunches that take half the day and then, when her husband is due home from work, she sits down to write. Like a child caught not doing her homework, she then makes a big display of working into the evening. I'm not sure if this is a maturity issue (that she can't self schedule her time) or a starting work issue. There are always a million little things that we need to do, but if we put those onto the schedule as well then we can't use them as excuses. For example, on a heavy writing day, I schedule laundry. That way I don't sit all day long. If I get into my work, especially my fiction, I can sit for eight hours. Not ergonomically good for me. If I schedule laundry, I get up every hour. The trick is to JUST do the laundry.

I have another friend who thinks that writing time means get on the phone and chat time. I used to get calls saying, "I knew you were home today writing, so I thought I'd give you a call." ERG! If she knew I was working, why would you deliberately choose that time to call me? I realized ... that's what she did during HER writing time. Chatted on the phone.

My solution if you want a coffee break ... and her work days were a continual one ... schedule them! E-mail a friend and ask if you can enjoy a cup of coffee together from 10:00 until 10:15, then stick to it! I had another freelancing friend who was an amazing scheduler. We'd chat for a scheduled 15 minute break then go back to work.

My lunches at home are an hour long. I flex the time I take lunch sometimes but typically I take lunch when the rest of the world does .... from noon until 1:00 p.m.

My biggest pet peeve is not making deadlines. I have one friend who never misses a deadline. I hire him for almost anything I need jobbed out. I know the job will be done, and done well. It will come in on time and make sure that I get my work done when it needs to be so I make my deadline. He's always so flabbergasted when he gets a holiday bonus, he says he's just doing his job. Yeah but ...... there are so many who don't.

At any rate, I digress. I am doing my annual scheduling today and blogging will be back on the schedule weekly. For a while I was blogging daily but with the new company and the adjustments in business I'll need to redo the schedule so that it's workable.

I wish you a Happy New Year and a blessed schedule for 2011.
Much love and joy,
Karen

Book Proposal Disclosure

I wrote a book proposal for my first book, Children of Light. It's a fifty page marketing report that took me nearly a year to write. It outlines my marketing plan in detail.

Now, anyone in marketing can tell you that the way you plan to market is highly sensitive. You hope that you come up with ideas others haven't, found venues others are still looking for, and in general, beat people to the punch. So, it should come as no surprise that marketing reports are not to be shared.

Recently, I've received help with a website and business start up from an agency that keeps pushing to see this report. Sheesh. I've sidestepped as much as I can and I finally had to say ... not going to happen! I asked some of the members of my consultancy board and they agreed that the report needs to remain close to the vest.

The odd thing is that this agency tends to believe that unless they see it, it doesn't exist. It doesn't really affect me, but it's a strange way of doing business, wouldn't you agree? hmmm. It's funny, the main gal has been immensely helpful in setting up the LLC and getting my sellers permit but kind of treats me like I don't know what I'm doing. She runs to a local writer with questions, which is fine but doesn't realize that I have about seven times the credentials. I've written for so many national and international publications I quit keeping track and just throw the complimentary copies in a bankers box when they come.

I have, however, had a two and a half year gap shere I made a transition from magazine writing to book writing and that may be throwing people off. You know what? I'm okay with that. I'm okay flying under the radar for now.

All this to say .... everyone is soooo curious to see this marketing report. With good reason. It's a how-to map to my selling! WHY, pray tell, would I share that with ANYONE! Sheesh. I'm not an idiot people!!! Keep your plans to yourself unless you want others beating you to the punch.

Have a great day,
Much love and joy,
Karen

Research

I love doing research. For a while, right after I graduated from college, I looked into working for Rand Corp. and doing it full time, but life has a way of leading you down a different path than you've mapped out. Now I must content myself with researching books and articles ... you know what? That's more fun anyway!

The only research I don't love is technological. It's a different language for me. This weekend I upgraded our phones to ones with keyboards and added texting to the plan ... the day after they outlawed texting in cars. My argument has always been that I didn't want to receive them either, because I knew people were contacting me from their cars ... except for my nephew. He's a paramedic and is anal about stopping to text or call. He's seen the results of trying to do both.

Now that it's outlawed in cars I feel more comfortable having texts as a part of our lives. Not only that, I had major discounts on our phones if I upgraded. All that to say ... I have to learn a new phone! Blech! I read the little book. It gave me the bare essentials. My son's eyes lit up as he saw e-mail and search engines on the menu. I reminded him that he's limited to tools for now. No "Get it Now" crud. We went through a time when I was calling our cell phone company once each month on some weird thing they'd sent that appeals to kids. If I had it to do over again, my son would be the second line, not the third. He gets tons of stuff sent to him by the company that we never get on the first two lines. I think they're playing the odds that the third line is a kid, you know?

At any rate, I'm doing research for my second book today and as soon as I finish chatting with you all, it's back to work.

Have a great day!

Much love and joy,

Karen