What’s it like starting an online business?
It’s a new world for me, working as a full-time web developer instead of as a nurse who is always aware of the date and time. Time is everything to a nurse. It’s a very orienting routine. In contrast, running an online business doesn’t allow for a set routine. Clients hail from all parts of the world and you want to communicate with them in real time over skype or chat or at least reply to their emails quickly enough to keep them happy. You’ve got to get yourself a good reputation and it starts with good communication skills and flexibility. Time is muddled; you don’t know whether you’re eating breakfast, lunch or supper. You shower at 3 in the morning and you miss entire days, lost in endless hours of code, clicks and keystrokes. I am not complaining though, I love my job but I do find that without a routine, it’s inevitable that you will crash.
I find myself either sleeping too much or too little. At times, no matter how much I’ve slept, I can’t keep my eyes open through the night to work. At other times, I could go full days without sleep, which may have certain hallucinatory side-effects that could either be fun or maddening, depending on which side of the insanity meter you’re leaning toward (I think I’d be the laughing type if I was mentally ill *giggles hysterically*).
Your body functions best when it knows what to expect and with my crazy hours, my body is raising some complaints. Aside from the sleep issues, I tend to sit for long hours in one spot straining my shoulder and neck, as the glare of the screen attacks my eyes. When you do this sort of work, time disappears in chunks and you’re stunned half to death when you open a window, expecting a starry black sky but finding rays of sunshine blasting in instead.
The point of this post is not to whine but to put it out there that running an online business has many challenges and it’s a rocky ride while you’re still trying to find a working system but if you have a viable idea for an online business, it’s well worth a go, and it is in fact one of the best ways to make money lately. I recommend that you do your research first though. Too many people jump right into it without much foresight for what to expect and then they crash and burn, giving up on their business prematurely.
I find it a valuable source of information when other people share their experiences on starting an online business. Everyone wants to take shortcuts and no one likes to read, but you’ll find that if you do your homework, you will make less mistakes and your business will flourish faster. So drop the know-it-all attitude and pick up a book, read blogs and forums. Get involved. Ask questions. Cross-reference information. There are answers to all your questions already available to you around the web. Subscribe to my mailing list and I’ll keep you posted on the most valuable online resources I’ve come across, as well as my some of my own experiences as I develop a better system for my online business.
Who knows maybe you could actually quit your nursing job if you’re burnt out with a broken back and a faulty bladder or maybe you could simply supplement your nursing salary and retire whenever you want. The truth is that if you’re truly interested in making extra money and you’re excited about the idea of clicks and keystrokes turning into a gold mine, and most importantly, if you’re willing to dedicate enough time and energy into it, then you’re probably a good fit. My interest falls in web design but there are many other fields you could get into, from selling cookies to affiliate marketing. Subscribe to my mailing list to get free books and guidelines on starting your own online business.
