Simon Barker, founder and owner of Electrician’s Business Machine, looks at why all hope is not lost if you’re struggling to find a sensible work/life balance.
For the last 30 years I’ve worked in some of the biggest high-tech industries, as well as small domestic electrical businesses. I’ve seen winners and losers at each level and lots of different methods of running a business – from Japanese Kaizen to local innovation.
You may have read about the launch of my new business – Electrician’s Business Machine – in April’s issue of PE, and essentially my role in the organisation is to test and evolve our seven-step model to reflect the best practises that I’ve seen, as well as the new lessons that I’ve learned.
As I’m also a qualified and experienced software developer, I’ve witnessed the change over the years from expensive solutions on complex server hardware to more recent free or inexpensive apps.
So where did it all start?
Around eight years ago I was that busy fool who worked all hours of the day and had no time to socialise and not enough money to take home either. But my past experiences kept reminding me that running a business means that jobs and tasks must be simplified and fast flowing from start to finish. Applying these rules is the key starting point towards fixing your work/life balance and, what’s more, you can start today.
I’ve been talking to other electricians and finding a surprisingly high amount are still suffering with work-life balance issues, despite the wide range of solutions on offer to help with that.
We’ve actually never had it better. A decade ago the only systems available would be set up by specialists and you’d be charged to develop and install, then again every time you wanted to make a change. Nowadays there are so many apps and cloud-based solutions out there that are free or inexpensive to use.
However the problem is that suddenly there is an overwhelming amount of choice and it’s difficult to know what to do for the best. You have to learn to use these tools on their own, as well as how to integrate them with the other tools you use. And each of them comes with pros and cons!
The information is everywhere, but such widely available information lacks the structure and clarity that helps you to make sense of it all and then take action. Without a clear plan nothing will be properly implemented. Time will be wasted and you’ll be no further forward.
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So come on electricians of the world, if you’re struggling to find a balance then now is the time to get stuck in and learn these amazing solutions, as well as understanding what you should be doing from a theoretical viewpoint, so that implementation becomes easier. It takes work, but as with any goal in life the short term pain results in a long term gain.
Electrician’s Business Machine will soon be launching a brand new membership site, which will not only guide you through the best options available but will contain videos of exactly how to set up your electrical business so that you get your evenings and weekends back while making more profit.
You can join the free community and also view the Electrician’s Business Machine guide and four-part video series by visiting: www.electriciansbusinessmachine.com