Written By: Cheryl Ellemberg, www.abdpromotions.com, www.ABDwebsiteDesign.com

As a small business owner, working from home can be a delicate balancing act.  It’s not really a 9 to 5 job.  In order to achieve your business goals and still be truly ‘present’ for your family, it really is about daily tasks that help meet your overall goals.

Here are some questions for you and some tips that help to ensure that you are meeting your personal and professional goals:

1) What are you doing each day?  Having a calendar helps to organize your activities, tasks and events.  Some business owners have two separate calendars; some have one.  Whatever works best for you is the right answer.Are you plugging in events as you go along?  Having a calendar alone doesn’t work.  You have to be diligent and organized about writing what you need to get done and actually completing your daily tasks.

2) What tasks are you completing each day?   Are you populating and feeding your blog everyday with content rich information that is useful to your audience?  Regardless of which platforms you use: Twitter , Linked In , YouTube, Facebook ABD , Facebook GPP, Foursquare, Google+?, are you sharing your expertise, influence and knowledge with an audience who has similar interests.  For business and personal, are you organizing your income and expenses so you are indeed balanced and hopefully, in the black (making profit) as opposed to being in the red (in debt, piled up with bills).

3) Are you doing what makes you happy?  You will not work a day in your life if you enjoy what you are doing.  Your passion shows when you work or when you are at home.  If you love being with your family, it shows.  If you love your line of work, it shows.  Your actions speak loudly.

We write for the small business owner because this is a growing segment of our economy that is sometimes forgotten.  The challenges to make a small business successful can be overwhelming.  On the other side, the successes that a small business owner can achieve are great also.

I’ll leave you with a quote from Steve Jobs, as he was a visionary who changed many lives and the way we work and play.  These are words that can inspire any small business owner.

“Here’s to the crazy ones, the misfits, the rebels, the troublemakers, the round pegs in the square holes… the ones who see things differently — they’re not fond of rules… You can quote them, disagree with them, glorify or vilify them, but the only thing you can’t do is ignore them because they change things… they push the human race forward, and while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius, because the ones who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the ones who do.” – Steve Jobs

Another favorite quote I have:

“Hold up the chance to live a meaningful life through one’s business” ~New School Network marketing through Kim Klave

Having your own business puts you in control of your own successes or failures.