teresapersell Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 Help! This is the 2nd time I have tried to get my business working efficiently. My problem is taking control of my time. Last time I ended up closing my business because my grandchildren needed me. Right now I work at a shop, doing trade shows and making samples. I cut back shop hours to build my business. My Business is picking up, but I can see how I can quickly lose control. How do you manage your time? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peggy (SewAsylum) Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 I feel for you. I cannot help you with this one because me life is so different from yours. I am on disability, and my time, and what I am doing, is totally based on how much pain I am in. On good days, I sew, on bad days, I do handwork or watch tv. It is as simple as that. Could you set a certain number of hours per week, a certain schedule made to fit in after your job, that is dedicated to your business and nothing else? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ffq-lar Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 I have a degree in procrastination! Well, I would have a degree if i could just concentrate and take that last class so I can graduate!! If you have the discipline to stick to a schedule and are able to train the family/friends that your working hours are for working, that would be key. Then manage your customer quilting by getting a handle on your available hours per month and estimate how long it'll take to quilt a specific quilt. Fill the slots you have set aside for quilting. Say you have 15 hours per week realistically available to quilt. If you have a big overall to quilt and figure it'll take six hours to finish, fill six hours plus intake and pick-up time into your weekly allotment. That leaves maybe 7 or 8 hours of quilting time left for the week. You can finish an easy one or start a big custom that will run over into the next week. If you underestimate the time needed, you'll be playing catch-up, but having some flexibility built into the schedule will help. Things that will sabotage the plan? Family responsibilities, illness, machine down-time, customers (that's a whole different post best kept for later!), and burn-out. Unless you're depending on quilting revenue to pay the mortgage, schedule down-time for yourself into the equation. When I first starting my business, an instructor had a mantra for quilting--"Plan the quilt and quilt the plan". Meaning, don't switch plans in mid-quilt. Make decisions at the start and things will go easier. Change it a bit to "Plan the business and stick to the plan". See what works best for you and stick to it. One problem I have is saying yes to emergency quilts--those destined for people who are ill or for the families of those who have died. I'm a sucker and then over-extend myself. Every time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quilting Heidi Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 Ditto what Linda said. I'm taking a break right now just because I was hitting burnout and family drama, problems just kept getting in my way. I found not having any downtime was just making me lose my mojo even more. After months I'm finally starting to feel somewhat normal but still way too busy. My day job really can take it out of me and having the motivation to quilt a couple hours each night after work was beginning to be a huge chore. Not to mention that my mother just can't get it through her head not to call between 7 & 9 which was my quilting time. She always called and said, "Oh are you quilting?" Then she would get annoyed when I said yes. The only reason I would answer was because I figured it was likely an emergency. It is a difficult thing to juggle it all! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cblevins Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 I manage my time so poorly.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quilting Heidi Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 I manage my time so poorly.... Cheri you made me laugh! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Enchanted Quilting Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 Linda has laid it out perfectly. As you get into it more, you will have a better feel for how long what quilt size and treatment will take. A calendar with stickies on it is how I estimate customer time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bekah Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 Unfortunately I am right with you Cheri. I always start my day with a plan and hours set aside for quilting and I have yet to have a day end up like I planned I am now playing catch up again because I was down with a virus for 11 days and that definitely was not in my plan. Thank you Linda for the advice above. I am going to see if I can make that work for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Busy Quilting Posted May 13, 2014 Report Share Posted May 13, 2014 I plan that I will only quilt three days per week. My body says I can only quilt for about 6 hours on those three days. I spend my weekends with my husband. The other two days are for my Quilting group responsibilities days, teaching, catch up etc. I also take four days of travel with days in between to visit my mum and then the grandchildren on the way back, every two months. So I know I only have about ten days to be able to book in quilting per month. If I want to quilt my own then it becomes a weekend task while my husband is playing sport or watching sport on TV, or I book it into my customer schedule and it is the one that gets bumped for emergencies. I am now using the Calendar in Microsoft Outlook so it syncs to my phone and am filling my customer time slots as they contact me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lesliescott06 Posted May 14, 2014 Report Share Posted May 14, 2014 I prefer using the cloud based hours tracking tool from Replicon ( http://www.replicon.com/olp/hours-tracking-software.aspx ) as the tool which I have been using to keep track of my time and manage the same. The hassle free tool featured with the user friendly and calendar based interface makes it an intuitive tool to have the time managed in a streamlined manner and getting the things done up with accuracy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kueser Posted May 14, 2014 Report Share Posted May 14, 2014 I don't, that's why I'm sitting here reading this thread But seriously, I'm as busy as I want to be. If I push myself my work reflects it and I would rather put out beautiful quilting vs. a lot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maggienoella Posted May 14, 2014 Report Share Posted May 14, 2014 I find it very difficult. Right now I'm in the stressful mode of 'putting out fires' and I hate that. I suppose you could call it Extreme Priority. I'm working at getting better but I'm sure it will always be a bit of a struggle. Like many, I tend to think that I can get more done than I can. Then throw life in and voila! Good luck, Joan Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.