Residual Victory Blog

Keeping Focused while Working from Home isn’t always easy, but there are ways to conquer distractions.  Stay focused and I’ll share them with you.

1.  Don’t go online and look up articles on how to stay focused while you are working from home.

2.  Don’t go online. 

3.  Don’t surf anywhere you are not supposed to go. 

4.  Don’t play games online.
 
5.  Don’t play games on your computer.  Hide the icons.

6.  Don’t read your email.  Keep two separate emails.  One for business, one for pleasure.

7.  Stay away from forums and blogs.

8.  Keep your instant messenger closed.

9.  Shut of the phone.
 
10. Give the kids money to go to the mall.  Make sure the mall is in another country.

The secret to staying focused while working from home is to get rid of the computer, the phone and the family.  I’ll just make the wild and crazy assumption that you can’t do that.  What are more conventional methods? 

Planning is paramount.  Make a plan on what your objectives are for the today.  The advice is tried and true.  You can also better evaluate where your strengths and weaknesses are, measure your productivity, and monitor your progress.

Become one with your project.  Okay, so that sounds a little corny.  Absorb your thinking and environment into your project.  When you do housework, (if you do), let your project fester in your brain.  Keep pen and paper around the house so you can jot down ideas when they pop into your head.  Try not to lose the pen and paper.

Stay organized.  I hear you laughing.  Another classic tidbit of advice.  Try it, it just might work.  Buy fun office supplies.  Even if they don’t work, at least you had the chance to go shopping.  (Stay focused when shopping.)

Some advisors suggest having schedules and set times.  I advise you to become familiar with what motivates you and times you feel most productive.  It’s not the same every day.  No sense staring at a computer if your brain is blank.  If your job is mundane, do something that tires you out before you work, then you’ll enjoy the time to sit down.  Better yet, do something you hate even more than work so work looks enticing.

Get help.  It is not a sin to get help.

Make your job easier.  Discover new ways of doing things, try new computer shortcuts.

Exercise.  Another tried and true method.  Get up and stretch.  Go for a walk. Relax.  Think.

Appreciate your job.  Remind yourself of the values of working from home, and if you aren’t productive, those values won’t be available to you anymore.
Talk to yourself.  Talk about your problems outloud to yourself.  Make sure the neighbors aren’t watching and act crazy enough so your family leaves you alone.

Make sure you love your job.  If you love your job, you will naturally be happy doing it.  If you hate your job, get retraining and start doing something you love. The biggest distraction you can have is hating your job.  So focus and get back to work.
 

Residual Income is power.  Or, is that “Money is Power”?  I was always one to believe that information is power.  Without information, there is no money.  Without money, there is no residual income.  Information is Power.  The Journal of Accounting and Economics, in their Empirical Assessment of the Residual Information Model agrees with me.  I’ll try not to argue over who thought of it first.

The definition of residual income has taken a beating.  Simply put, residual is a remainder.  Income is financial gain.  Translation: Extra Money. Investopedia, affiliated with Forbes, uses the common definition of residual income as “the amount of income that an individual has after all personal debts, including the mortgage, have been paid.  This calculation is usually made on a monthly basis, after the monthly bills and debts are paid.  Also, when a mortgage has been paid off in its entirety, the income that individual had been putting toward the mortgage becomes residual income.”  Residual Income is more commonly known as “Value Added” income or equated with “Economic Value” income in the financial world.  As defined by MIT: “Residual Income for Equity Holders is the Net Income minus the Capital Charge.”  Alternatively, it can be defined as: “Operating Income minus an Imputed Interest Charge for Investment.”  Another term for Residual Income, according to MIT, is “abnormal earnings.”  I prefer to call it “the stuff left over.”

On the web, residual income is equated networking, MLM, affiliate programs, work at home programs, tiered commission based referrals, and a multitude of other options for anyone seeking to earn some extra money.  This often refers to residual income from multiple divisions or multiple people and is similar to dividend cash flow.

The power of residual income is that it is yours. You create it, and you make it. The power of information can help you decide what to do with your income and how to do it. It is important to use the power of information to evaluate the risks/return relationship, the economy, the costs, and the time and investment involved, as well as the level of personal sacrifices you are willing to make.  As with any investment, it is important to plan and determine your business goals and objectives before diving in. 

If money is the power you’re looking for, then invest your residual income to make more residual income.  Investments are best tailored to your individual strengths and weaknesses.  If you’re a financial whiz and like to take a chance, you can invest in the stock market.  If you’re a pro at sales and enjoy teaching, you might be interested in network marketing.  If your residual income is substantial; the real estate market is always a source for investment.  Develop an Internet site about your own little niche.  Sell those 57 Chevy parts on the web. Like some of the great philosophers say, “do what you love and the rest will follow naturally.”  Hopefully the “rest” includes residual income.
 

Working at Home versus Working for a Boss is a no brainer.  At least for me.  But, everyone is different and everyone has different working styles and preferences.  When you work at home either you are your own boss, or your customers are your boss.  There will always be somebody who is a boss.  If it’s not your boss or you or your customers, then it’s your kids - and I’m sure the dogs are standing in line.  If you are debating whether to work at home for yourself or work for a boss, there are a few factors to consider. 

1.  Do you want to work at home?  Seriously, if you don’t want to work at home it will be even harder to motivate yourself.  If you hate your house, or perhaps you’re sick of looking at the neon orange shag rug, and you enjoy the camaraderie of the workplace more than being at home, postpone your decision.  It’s easier to keep a job and quit later than it is to quit your job and ask for it back.  Get rid of the rug first.

2.  Noise.  Is your home noisy?  Is your workplace you share with your boss noisy?  Does noise bother you?  It bothers some people.  Maybe the kids are gone and home will be too quiet for you.  Maybe the kids are home and the home will be too noisy for you.  It depends on what environments you are used to working in and what type of work you do. 

3.  Kids.  See number two above.  Kids are and should be the biggest factor in deciding whether to work at home.  If you want to work at home to be with your children, then that factor weighs far greater than any other factor.  If you can’t get any work done because the kids are around, you may decide to work outside the home or arrange for childcare for the children while you are working at home.  Kids also destroy things.  I have six of them.  Trust me.  I know.  They spill things.  They don’t mean to.  They will probably spill something on that 500-page $100,000 proposal you were almost finished with.  If you decide to take the risk and work at home, get your ground rules in first and fast and stick to them.  I never did and I have the stickiest computer around.

4.  Flexibility.  How much flexibility does your boss give you?  How much do you need?  Can you take off for school plays, sports, medical appointments, or when a child is sick?  Can you take off when you are sick?  Can you be late?  Can you leave early?  If you are single and healthy and have relatively few demands, working for a boss can give you a great deal of security.

The important thing is to be happy with your decision.  Work is a large part of everyone’s life.  Happiness equals productivity.  If you’re happy, your boss is happy, your kids are happy, and the dogs probably are too.