Back to School for Creative Entrepreneurs

Though many of us dread the end of summer / back to school period, there is an upside to this time of year: Structure.

Structure, planning and time-management are key to success in education and in business, particularly for those who want to be their own boss. Even if we're no longer students, the start of the new school year is a great time to refresh goals and action plans.

Here are 5 ways to structure your efforts for a more successful creative business.

1. Time for a new schedule. It's great that you're using a blog to boost your creative business. But rather than blogging randomly, take the time to create an editorial calendar. It's simply a list of blog post ideas that are assigned to dates. No more writer's block. Once you've got a list of ideas in front of you, all you have to do is sit down and write!

2. Get your homework done. Then play. Rather than getting sucked into TV every night, think about using that time to get homework done for your creative business, whether it's social media strategy or creating new business cards. Decide on one or two shows you really want to watch, but get your homework done in time to watch them.

3. Learn something new. As kids, we learn new skills and delve into different topics each year of school, but as adults, we often narrow our horizons. If there's something you want to learn or accomplish, decide to make it a project with a start and end date, and schedule time to spend on it weekly.

4. Set deadlines. You don't need a teacher for this – if you are your own boss, it's all up to you. Having self-imposed deadlines will help keep momentum up and get you to the next level.

5. Plan to ace big tests. Look forward to the big annual "events" for your business, like major craft fairs, holiday sales or new product launches. Think about how best to schedule your time to ace them and be the best in your class!

Can you share any tips on how you structure your work for success?

Photo courtesy of Pink Sherbet Photography.