Starting your own or running your own service based business comes with a lot of perks. I mean, being your own boss can be so nice & fulfilling. I think one of the nice things is that you can pick and choose what type of services you offer and how things are done within your business. What I tend to see though is falling into doing what we think we ‘should’ be doing rather than what aligns with what we want. The reality is that everyone’s life is different. Putting skillset aside, some have families, some have kids, some are single, some travel all the time, some have medical things going on, there is such a range. So I think it’s important to make sure that you’re making decisions and providing offerings that work with that. Here are 4 ways to make sure your business services align with your life.
What Do You Enjoy & Brings You Joy?
Pinpoint the type of work you really enjoy doing and dive in deep into what that is and how that looks like. One question I tend to ask myself when I’m doing this is “if I offered [blank] and it worked out, would I be happy? If the answer is yes, then you’re good. If you’re still a little iffy and unsure, then it’s either worth exploring for a short amount of time to learn that for yourself or shift to what will bring you joy. For example: if you like design but hate web design – then don’t do web design. Maybe just focus on logos and branding. Just because it may work for someone else, it may not work for you.
What Are Services You Don’t Like Offering?
This one is going to be simple. If you are offering services you no longer even like doing – don’t. It’s time to move on a get rid of them. If they are services that you want to keep because they work well then consider outsourcing.
Where Is Your Happy Place/What Will Make You Thrive?
If you like work with one client and doing the work quickly – then offer that. If you prefer to spend longer on projects, do that. If you want to have retainers, do that. There is such a range of what can be offered, especially as designers, that you can pick and choose what you enjoy most and what makes you thrive.
What Does Your Life Look Like?
Are you parent? Are you traveling? Are you taking care of someone? Are you able to work whenever you want? What responsibilities do you have? Are you able to focus all day or do you need time? Are you able to do fast turn around or do you prefer slow timelines? How many clients can you take on? + What would you like your life to look like?
You have to take inventory of your own life since it’s going to look different than everyone else’s. For instance – I don’t have children, if I want to work late, I can. If I want to take a meeting early morning or all day of meetings, I can. That would probably change if I had children. So see what works for you and start seeing if your current services align with that or if there are changes or other offerings you can provide. What services allow you to have more time in your day or what can you spread out in case you need a day? Go through and see what really works and aligns with your life and what you would like your life to be.
Ultimately you need to remember that, yes it’s a business, but it’s YOUR business. You have control over what you want to offer and how you want to offer it. It’s also YOUR life and I think you deserve to create a business that aligns with what brings you joy.
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