Today’s picture of the day, is also my theme for the coming year: focus
A couple of things some of you may not know about me …
- I just went over 20 year in the Air Force
- My wife Ana and I are having another little girl in May
What do these two things mean?
Well, technically, I’m eligible to “retire” from the Air Force. But, with a still growing family, it doesn’t look to be in the cards just yet. Basically, not only do I have to keep going with my military career, but I also need to make sure my “extra” income streams continue to grow … plus, I really really really need to set aside enough time to enjoy and tend to my family.
Basically, I need to examine my priorities, and come up with a good plan.
One thing I’ve already determined (actually, Ana determined it for me) is that I’m going to have to try to figure out how to grow my business, and do my online fun stuff, squeezed into no more than about an hour a day on the computer.
The first thing to go …
A whole bunch of “niche” websites. (if you are in the business of picking up pre-owned domains, I’m going to be letting some expire over the coming year)
The concept of building 100′s or even 1000s of simple little niche websites that each make a dollar or two a day, sound great in theory. And in practice, it even “works” to some extent. The only problem is, it takes a butt load of time; something that I just don’t have much of to spare right about now. So basically, I’m ditching the “Vic model” of business building, and going back to what I know.
A couple years back, before I learned about the wonderful world of blogging, I used to “work” about 5-10 hours a week building my candle business. I wasn’t getting “rich”, but most months, I was earning way more per hour than I could have with a part-time job.
For the past couple of years, I’ve concentrated much more on “other” endeavors. The home business is still there, and still producing a nice leveraged income … but not near the level that it should/could be had I been more focused.
That’s #1 … concentrate on a business model that I know puts money in my bank account.
Second thing … social networking … what a potential time waster … but also what a potential opportunity to meet new people, and interact with those I already know. I need to pick one area of social networking, and figure out how to use it effectively, within the time constraints that I’ve set for myself. At this point in time, I’m thinking Facebook is where I need to concentrate. Truth be told, I don’t get much enjoyment or usefulness out of Twitter, but I like reading about what people are doing on Facebook, and all-in-all is seems like the best way to potentially “connect” with people I meet out here in cyberspace.
Last but not least, what the heck am I going to do about this blog?
I think/hope that I’ve found a solution with the project 365 idea. I really do enjoy taking pictures. And on the flip side, I really do despise trying to come up with topics to write about on my blogs. If I can keep up with this project (and for those who know me, that could be a big IF) it might just kill two birds with one stone …
Rather than just post a random picture here everyday, I’d like to use the image I choose as inspiration to actually write a couple hundred (hopefully interesting and useful) words at the same time.
Ok, so that’s my plan. Here’s where you can expect to find Todd during his 1 hour a day online in 2010:
- Working my Candle Business
- Figuring out how get the most out of Facebook, without letting it become a time drain
- Taking lots of pictures, and using them as inspiration for new blog posts
And with all the extra time I’m not online … doing the really important stuff … spending quality time with Ana and the Kids.
Priorities.
Focus.
