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You are here: Home / How to Start / How to Go From Self-Starter to Self-Finisher

How to Go From Self-Starter to Self-Finisher

October 15, 2009 By Melinda Emerson 3 Comments

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From time to time as SmallBizLady, I conduct interviews with small business experts that could benefit my audience. This is excerpted from my #smallbizchat interview on Twitter with Michelle Mangen @mmangen is a Virtual Assistant specializing in Accounting, Payroll, Excel and Social Media services. She helps sole proprietors and small businesses by reducing the amount of time they spend on administrative and accounting tasks while helping them to achieve a better work/life balance.  Her social media skills include WordPress and Aweber set-up, and copyediting.  Michelle is skilled in analyzing problems, troubleshooting crises and delivering alternative solutions.  She constantly revises and “tweaks” the process to get project complete as quickly and efficiently as possible.  She’s a valuable resource to grow your business and realize your full potential.

Smallbizlady:  What keeps self-starters from finishing their projects?

Michelle Mangen:  A number of things can prevent self-starters from finishing their projects – for example: needing info from someone else, lack of focus, interruptions, too many things to do, overwhelm

Smallbizlady:  What role does isolation play in getting things done?

Michelle Mangen:  For me having isolation while getting things done is critical. When I am deep in a project I will go as far as to turn off the phone & email because I am easily distracted, especially by the email. Always wondering what goodies are waiting in there for me.

Smallbizlady:  As entrepreneurs since we do 12 jobs minimum. What strategies do you suggest for handling daily tasks and the “to do” list?

Michelle Mangen:  Strategies I swear by for handling daily tasks and my “to do” list are: writing everything down, scheduling appointments with myself, outsourcing what I’m not good at, learning to say NO.

Smallbizlady:  How do we get through all the little frustrations that pile up at work?

Michelle Mangen:  I think this is to be defined by each person. For me, I just try to keep it in perspective. For me, projects and clients equals money and satisfaction that I am making a difference in the world, one business owner at a time.

Smallbizlady:  What are your top 3 strategies do you use to help people finish what they start?Michelle Mangen:  1. Set aside the appropriate time for the project – for example: don’t start a 3 hour project if you only have 30 minutes

2. Try to anticipate what may be needed from others before starting

3. Bullet points of what still needs to be done – try to get “full picture” outlined so it seems more manageable

Smallbizlady: How do you keep going when you feel completely overwhelmed?

 

Michelle Mangen:  As counter-productive as it may seem that is when I actually take a break. Even 10 minutes “away” can make all the difference in overwhelm (or a few very deep breaths). If I’m really feeling overwhelmed I’ll call a friend to have a five minute vent.

Smallbizlady:   What if I realize I need help to grow my biz? How do I find a partner?

 

Michelle Mangen:  I know this is right around the corner for me. I’m working on finding people to work with me that share same vision, drive and have skills that I don’t. I have been outsourcing several of my own administrative tasks for several months now and I am continually trying to see what else I can hand off to others.

Smallbizlady:  How do you turn away a client without looking like a jerk?

 

 

Michelle Mangen:  I am upfront and tell them I don’t think it’s a good fit. I also offer to help find someone else who may be more suitable.

Smallbizlady:  How do you keep from getting overwhelmed with a new idea/project, especially when you’re short on time?

 

Michelle Mangen:  Normally it’s my own “wish” list that I get overwhelmed with. I have many things I want to learn & I feel as though I cheat myself sometimes. If it’s a big project I will break into 30-60 min sessions. Again, I write everything down so I can revisit ideas at a later point. If I am really overwhelmed with my own list I will sit down and re-assess the list. There are times I find that things I wrote down several months ago no longer interest me.

Smallbizlady:  How can one stay motivated daily when working on a long-term project? Michelle Mangen:  I would suggest breaking the project down into smaller pieces. Visualize the desired outcome. I also always work on long-term projects during my high energy times, which is why from time to time people won’t see me on Twitter first thing in the morning.

If you found this interview helpful, join us on Wednesdays 8-9pm ET follow @SmallBizChat on Twitter. 

How to participate in #SmallBizChat: http://bit.ly/S797e

For more tips on starting or growing your small business subscribe to Melinda Emerson’s blog at http://www.succeedasyourownboss.com

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Filed Under: How to Start, SmallBizChat, Solopreneurs Tagged With: melinda emerson, michelle mangen, self-finisher, self-starter, SmallBizChat, smallbizlady, virtual assistant

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About Melinda Emerson

Melinda F. Emerson, “SmallBizLady” is America’s #1 Small Business Expert. She is an internationally renowned keynote speaker on small business development, social selling, and online marketing strategy. As CEO of Quintessence Group, her Philadelphia-based marketing consulting firm serves Fortune 500 brands that target the small business market. Clients include Amazon, Adobe, Verizon, VISA, Google, FedEx, Chase, American Express, The Hartford, and Pitney Bowes. She also has an online school, www.smallbizladyuniversity.com, that teaches people online marketing and how to start and grow a successful small business and publishes a blog SucceedAsYourOwnBoss.com. Her advice is widely read, reaching more than 3 million entrepreneurs each week online. She hosts The Smallbizchat Podcast and is the bestselling author of Become Your Own Boss in 12 Months, Revised and Expanded, and Fix Your Business, a 90 Day Plan to Get Back Your Life and Reduce Chaos in Your Business.

Comments

  1. morris anderson says

    October 19, 2009 at 7:20 pm

    Liked the article – Narrowing your focus, squeezing more work out of the time you have and outsourcing where you can sounds like a formula for success!

    Reply
    • admin says

      October 21, 2009 at 12:49 pm

      Thank you so much for your comment. What entrepreneurs lack most is time and resources. I am glad that this interview is helping them sort out how to handle the day-to-day stress of running a small business.

      Best–
      Melinda
      @Smallbizlady

      Reply
  2. Rachel Rofe says

    October 27, 2009 at 11:52 pm

    There are some AWESOME points here. I read once that every time someone gets distracted from a project, it takes an average of 9 minutes to get back in the “zone”. Crazy, right? That’s why I strongly recommend shutting off email and the phone during projects, too!

    And breaks are HUGE. It’s so counterintuitive, but it works like gangbusters.

    Thanks for this awesome refresher. 🙂
    .-= Rachel Rofe´s last blog ..Protected: Richard =-.

    Reply

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