You’ve left your corporate job for a new venture of remote work. You now manage your own time, your progress, and your to-do list. But if you struggle to balance all this, you may need to evaluate whether you’ve adjusted your mindset to your new lifestyle.
If you still function as you did as someone’s employee, you need to shift your mindset. You’ve got to drop unhelpful habits that just won’t fly as they did at your old job. The employee mindset won’t serve you on your entrepreneurial journey.
Why an Employee Mindset Doesn’t Work for Entrepreneurs
It’s time to develop new habits and mindsets so that you can set strong standards for your own business. Changes like this feel difficult, success in your remote business requires mastering these standards.
When I worked in the restaurant business, I had structured accountability from my supervisors. What did I do when I left that industry and started my own business? I had to figure out how to find motivation even when I didn’t feel like it. If I didn’t, my business would fail. As a remote worker, you hold the responsibility for your business. Its success depends on the level of commitment you have. It depends on you putting in the work and seeing it through. No one else does it for you.
What kind of mindset qualities won’t cut it when you run your own remote business? Let me tell you a few.
Five Things that Don’t Work as a Remote Business Owner
Drop these habits if you want to find your way to entrepreneurial success:
1. Not Having a Schedule
Now that a manager doesn’t hand you a weekly schedule with set hours, you might think you can work whenever you feel like it. But if you let your workflow fall to the whims of how motivated you feel on any given day, you’ll end up in a pickle before you know it.
Start by setting an alarm in the mornings and establishing a morning routine. Keep to a routine as you go about your work day, too. Do what works best for you and your workflow. Set up healthy boundaries around the times that you work and the times that you stop.
Have a clear vision for what you need to accomplish each day. Even though you might initially feel restricted by it, a schedule actually helps you set expectations and stick to deadlines. You’ll have a general outline for the time it takes to accomplish your work, and you can more easily set expectations for your clients.
2. Not Taking Responsibility for Your Work
Obviously, no one else will finish any work you leave undone as an entrepreneur. It’s up to you to complete it and follow through on your commitments. You have to do the work and the research. You’re responsible for making this dream a success.
If you start a project, see it through until you finish it. If you tend to let projects fall to the side, you can combat that. Invest in a coach, so you can work through the steps you need to take. Join a mastermind group to find accountability. When you hire employees, remember that they rely on you.
3. Ignoring Your Budget
If you don’t pay attention to a budget, you have a disaster waiting to happen. So many business owners fall into this trap; They feel the excitement and passion of owning their own business, being in charge of their time, and exploring their skills as a business venture. But they risk their entire business by not keeping track of their costs and expenditures. If they don’t learn to manage their finances, they quickly end up in a hole and wonder how they got there.
If you have no idea about where your money’s going… who else does? Do you know your biggest expenditures? Do you have a plan for how to manage revenue to build your business even further?
You can get financial tools for your business at a relatively low cost. Set a regular time for managing your books. If you need help, hire somebody to do it for you.
4. Having a Negative Outlook
You’ve likely experienced toxic workplaces where employees complain to each other about the state of their job. It’s an unhealthy environment. Continuing with that mindset in your own business will do you no favors.
If you tend to think like a pessimist, the weight of entrepreneurship will get to you fast. Find ways to grow a positive outlook, so you can keep moving forward to success in your business. It’s great to think realistically, but don’t forget to hope for the best outcomes when you set a solid plan in place.
Owning a remote business will send plenty of challenges your way. You need encouragement and positive thinking. Don’t dwell too long on self-pity and avoid complaining. Pay attention to positive influences. Be choosy and limit the media you consume. Listen to success-oriented sources and learn from those mindsets and strategies.
5. Having a Non-Committal Mindset
I tell every entrepreneur I can about the importance of endurance—it’s probably the most important quality to have. As a remote worker, you have to commit to your business. You can’t just get a little wet—you’ve got to jump in the pool. If you’re not all in, it’s not going to work.
If you want help reshaping the way you think about business and making your remote work a success, get in touch with us. We’ll help you build a recession-proof, automated business. Check out our FREE, 15-minute training and start generating at least $8K per month in weeks.