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January 12, 2007
Biting Off More than I Can Chew, What's a WAHM to do?
Just a very quick blog today.... do you ever start a project and about mid way through it say... "what in the world was I thinking?"
I find myself in that predicament this week. The site has needed a redesign for a LONG time... for many reasons - a big one being the Content Management System we were using. It was NOT url friendly and did not mesh well with SEO. I searched and searched and just could not find one that gave me the kind of control that I needed or wanted. All were too limiting so I made the decision to go back to html and shml pages to manage the content and pages of the site as opposed to a CMS.
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So, I have had a large job in front of me, something that actually could take up to two people doing this full time all week to complete. And, as a typical WAHM, I don't have a staff of two extra people to dedicate an entire week's worth of their work time to do this. Nor, could I afford to pay two people for full time HTML coding. My solution, is to divide and conquer. Instead of getting overly frustrated and to the point of giving up before the entire project is done (which, yes, in the past I have done and regretted it).... I break the project up into parts and only do so much each day. I make sure that I also step away to work on other projects. This not only keeps me from getting burned out on the existing large job, but lets me come back to it with fresh eyes. |
I was able to hire a couple people part time to do a part of the project that didn't require any special training or knowledge of html to do.
If you have a large project, before you start, make a game plan and try your best to stick to it. If you piece it out and spread it out over several days or weeks (depending on what the project is and timeline required to finish), subcontract out what you can afford, if necessary, you'll find that it will be much more doable and won't be as unmanageable as you may have thought.
Posted by Cyndi at January 12, 2007 03:52 PM
Comments
Boy do i know how you feel!!! That is great business advice by the way! I have one of those projects that are just enormous but i know in the end it will be quite worthwhile not to mention profitable! I'm going to try to take the "bit by bit" method and see how it goes!!
Posted by: Tammy Munson at January 13, 2007 11:00 PM
Well you know what they say, "Don't bite off more than you can chew." If this happens then you learn to do things in small pieces and it seems to go better as you have mentioned. The work turns out to be great, you are less stressed about it and can handle more than one project at a time. Then it doesn't seem to be an overwhelming job either.
Good going on your blog also. :)
Posted by: Darlene at January 16, 2007 05:49 PM
I find that, with 4 little kids, my time is stretched thin as it is. Trying to work on a non-profit, a home-based business, and two other volunteer roles sometimes has me pushed to the limit. I have had to make decisions (one of which is that I will be resigning my Board position for my non-profit) about what things are most important. First is always my family, and then my business, and then my other commitments. It's tough, but I completely understand!
Posted by: Katie Tierney at January 16, 2007 06:00 PM
I can totally relate to this. I recently purchased a WAHM website and I've really enjoyed making some changes and additions to it. I have a long list of things I'd like to do to it, but there is never enough time in any given day. Thanks for the advice to break it up into parts; I may just have to try that.
Posted by: Angie at January 16, 2007 06:02 PM
I often bite off more than I can chew, but isn't that just the way things get when you are a WAHM? You have to dig into those large projects sooner or later, so it might as well be sooner. Breaking it up like you said you do is the perfect way to get it done and follow the natural progression of a WAHM (meaning you are always going in 10 different directions).
I have two online businesses and everyone who has an online business knows how much work they are. I also have a 3-1/2 year old and again, anyone who has a child knows how much work they are. So, put those two jobs together and you have a lot of work ahead of you and some days it just feels like "You bit off more than you can chew". I love staying at home with my daughter and watching her grow up, I wouldn't have it any other way.
I wish I could hire a couple of pt helpers. LOL :)
Posted by: DancerBee7 at January 16, 2007 06:04 PM
What WAHM doesn't bite more than they can chew on a nearly daily basis? I mean, seriously, MOM is a F/T job, but then the be a WAHM... I know I never feel like there is enough of me to go around. The jobs are always too big, the money coming in is never enough, the house is never clean enough, and I am always "behind." There's a real SuperWoman complex within our generation that we'd all be alot healthier without... but alas, the bills keep rolling in so....
Posted by: Valerie at January 16, 2007 09:47 PM
When I do ever not Bite Off more than I can CHEW~! LOL
It seems like a everyday battle where I am stressed like no tomorrow and just want to give up!
Thanks for the tips...Now if I can just MAKE myself spread it out...
Posted by: Cindy Torres (MomOfCruz) at January 17, 2007 01:12 AM
That's a good idea dividing a job into smaller sections. I find that if I make a list of things I need to do I tend to get more of them done. Ok I do have an antique hutch sitting in my garage waiting for me but most of the time a list helps!
Your website looks great :)
Posted by: Vickie M. at January 23, 2007 02:40 AM
