Author: Susan Stecker Jones

So many small businesses have too much to do and not enough time to get it all done! Let's chat and see what I can take off your plate, supporting you to reach your goals.
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Need more time for your small business? SOPs could be the answer

Susan Stecker Jones

You’ve built your business with dreams, hard work, money, and sleepless nights. You have considered hiring a VA (virtual assistant) so you can focus on the bigger goals, but you worry about delegating your work. Creating written guidelines can smooth the transition and ease your concern when bringing on new contractors or employees.

Does one or more of these worries persist when you think of outsourcing work?

  • It’s just faster to do it myself. Many entrepreneurs (and parents! and managers!) feel this way about bringing in help. It’s hard to delegate, when you have developed a method that works for you and your clients.
  • Training takes too much time, and I’m already overwhelmed. Training any new team member can add to your already full plate–but if you have SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) in place, your hands-on time with your team can be focused on other priorities since the basics will be built-in.
  • I don’t want quality of work to suffer. You have spent time, energy and dollars to create your business. Your customers rely on you for the quality of work you provide. How can you ensure the work (which could include graphic design, physical products, social media posts, etc) will meet your standards?

Creating guidelines helps you, too.

  • Taking time to outline different tasks might shine a light on something that can be done more efficiently.
  • Your business reflects your style. By listing your steps from start to finish on a task, you demonstrate the care and necessity of each step. And you might even find a way to make it more efficient by working though it!
  • New tools may change the way you work. When completing regular audits of your business, take the time to review your SOPs and update as needed. Your business probably isn’t static, so make sure earlier SPOs align with your current model.

You hold your business to high standards.

  • Standard Operating Procedures are an important tool in creating consistency in your business, and it’s worth taking the time to write them out and discover what’s truly important to your success.
  • Block out an hour to brainstorm this week. Challenge yourself to finding at least one necessary task you would rather not do, and outline the steps you follow to complete the work. You’re one step closer to more time!

Bonus! Virtual Assistants generally work by contract.

  • Since VAs are not employees, taxes and insurance aren’t your concern–you can contract for five hours per week, ten hours per month, or as needed! This allows more time for you to focus on why you started your business, and keep it growing.

What can you delegate next month? Time to brainstorm and find out!

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Stuck on Software

Susan Stecker Jones

So many options – how to choose?

I’m kind of a sucker for bells and whistles. I don’t need *all* the tools, but as I work on consolidating my side projects into one site to host them all, I just think about all the tools I *might* need next quarter or next year. As a result, I have previously signed up for trials of many different programs over the years.

One of the problems with this is that I haven’t learned any of the programs well enough to simplify my business. When trying out a new program, I will start using it for the particular feature I needed at the time, then fall back on more comfortable tools and cobble them together for the project. For example, I may find myself piecing together a calendar from one program with automated workflows from another, using a spreadsheet for my task checklist, and creating invoices manually in yet another space.

How do I stop this madness?

As I mentioned last week–and this may become a recurring theme–I can definitely get stuck in research mode when starting a new project. After reading up on the sites I already use, and some newer ones that also show promise, I listened to my gut (and my growing project list) and decided that I am going to dive fully into one of the programs, learning it inside out over the next quarter.

Over the next few evenings, I’ll review where I have the greatest need for focus, and then run through the sites to see which has the best fit. Once decided, I’ll dive in and continue building the framework. Luckily, all of the quality programs have great tutorials–I’ll just have to use a timer to be sure I don’t get stuck in the research rabbit hole this time.

Thanks for reading. Cheers to being decisive!

Writer's Blog

Building a (small) business

Susan Stecker Jones

I love research. LOVE it. I’m really good at finding the “best” way to do almost anything. Pros and cons of different website hosts? Check. Optimal CRM software? Understood. Steps for building a successful resume, at the request of a colleague? Researched and written.

But I have to admit, I find that I sometimes use research to keep me in a safe place, rather than putting myself out there and risking failure. If this sounds familiar to you, then you may be in the same place I found myself: more time on work planning than actually working.

I have listened to *so many* podcasts and read *so many* books and articles on freelancing, writing, editing, business management, website design, and on and on. I could probably host my own podcast, after absorbing so much detail! Instead, here is where I am starting: a series of posts about building my small business from zero to $100K. Right now, I’m much (much!) closer to the zero end of that scale. That’s okay! We have to start somewhere.

I have years of writing and editing experience, a solid background in sales and service, and a strong eye for detail. I have used several CRM and project management tools for different client work. Programs including Salesforce, Basecamp, Dubsado, Canva, Audacity, and WordPress. Coursework from several top-of-their-field freelancers and marketers–I have the knowledge and skills I need to take my business to the next step.

Will you please follow along as I grow this business? Learn from my successes and failures, trial and error, and cheer me on as I build this successful business while working full time in another! I will document this process weekly, so watch this space. Cheers!

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Jumping in!

Susan Stecker Jones

Over the past few years, I’ve really started to notice how my expectations set my experience. I won’t go all woo-woo about setting intentions and bringing things to life, but I do believe that when you’re looking for something, good or bad, it will become apparent.

I was house-hunting for over a year during the pandemic, but none of the houses or apartments matched my needs or budget. When the right house was finally available, things just fell into place and it’s a perfect fit.

When I decided to commit to launching my freelance business in September 2022, I found great inspiration in a couple of new-to-me podcasts. Through one of those, I came across a course designed just for someone like me – a mom, working full time, looking to add extra income and start building my own success story. I bought the class and dove in for weeks of study, design, and planning. It was energizing!

I started my LLC in October and began to update this website and social media to make my first proposals. During that time, my local writers group had an in-person meeting and I was able to meet with the executive director and mentioned that I was launching a VA/freelance business. Within days, I was asked if I would be interested in a volunteer editor in chief position for the group’s literary journal. I’ve never taken on a project like this, but it aligned with my new venture and I couldn’t say no! What an opportunity, to learn new project management software, work with a dedicated team and follow/develop SOPs, and have a concrete goal with a target end date.

Now it’s December 2022. Having been on the EIC project now for about two months, I have an idea of the time I need to budget for that project, and I’m ready to add more clients. It’s an exciting time, and I’m looking forward to growing this business in 2023.

What are your business goals? Personal goals? Do you feel like you have too many tasks to do, keeping you from the work you love? Let’s set up a call and see what I can take off your To-Do list!

Writer's Blog

I’m a writer.

Susan Stecker Jones

My confidence was in bloom, as I sat at the table with my laptop bright and ready for work. 

OK. Now is the time. Isn’t it?

I have college degrees; a B.A. in Spanish, and a B.S. in Biology.  I have written stacks of research papers in both Spanish and English.  I’ve also written for pay, including creating new curriculum that I taught in a veterinary assistant program at a community college. Examples include Ethics in Veterinary Medicine and an overview of holistic/alternative veterinary medicine. 

I’m not a “real” writer, though.

I’ve queried and submitted posts for a local family website when my now-tweens were barely toddlers. Those posts still pop up now and then, and I enjoy re-reading them and seeing the photos of my little ones.   I also remember how exhausted I was as a mom of young twins, working full-time, creating no mental energy for personal work.  

The kids do their laundry and make their own lunches now, so it’s time, right?

Shortly before leaving my career as a veterinary technician and hospital manager in 2012 for a new opportunity, I began writing a blog for the clinic.  That blog developed into a short-term job writing posts for a local website developer/SEO, a new vocabulary and other lessons learned.

I started writing and studying the craft seriously almost ten years ago. I have a growing home library of books about writing, and am enthralled with learning how writers have made their own varied careers.  I have a list of writerly podcasts in rotation for my daily walks and chores; topics include grant writing, writing for kids and young adults, author interviews, scripted podcasts, communication and more.

Through 2019 and pre-pandemic 2020, I attended meetings of the Willamette Writers group when they started a chapter for writers in my city. I was working on several fiction projects, and delving into research on what writing path felt like the best fit. I even dragged my kids along to see my favorite local writer lead a meeting.

I’ve always wanted to write a novel.

I recently finished the first draft of a novel in November of 2020, developing a habit of writing nearly two thousand words a day for NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month).  This was my fifth attempt at writing a novel-length book, and the only draft I’ve finished. I have written a NOVEL. Yes, it’s a first draft, but still over 50K words, in an order of my choosing.

I have had this website for two years, daring me to put myself in the public view.  I have dreamed about what my writing career could be, but have been too set in my routine, too nervous to take a leap.

If not now, when?

Right.  Deep breath.  The time is now.  I am a writer.

Please share: what scary step do you want to take this year?