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Tuesday, November 28, 2006

The Value of Time

Russell Brunson is one of my favorite people to learn from when
it comes to online marketing. He has advanced very quickly in a
very short period of time starting out with affiliate marketing
as his base.

His story shows that we all can do this with the right mindset
and determination. You can discover more about Russell on his
blog where this excellent post originated. Just follow the link
directly below.

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The Value Of Time
Posted by Russell Brunson on November 27, 2006
Author Message
Russell Brunson

The value of time.
I'm not sure when you are reading this, but I'm writing it
the day after Thanksgiving. I saw a lot of stuff happen this
weekend that made me think about the value of time.

If you are living in the US, the day after Thanksgiving is
called "black Friday" because all the stores have huge sales
to get them back into the black.

Now, Friday afternoon I was playing w/ my twin boys, but when
my family got back from shopping, I heard stories about saving
$20-$30 on some stuff... but having to wait in line for 2-3
hours to buy the product.

That doesn't even count the time it takes to drive to the store,
find parking and then fight your way through all the people.

This made me think...

If someone spent 4 hours saving $20.... how much did they
actually save?

I'm not sure about you, but I value my time very highly.
It's the only thing in the world that I don't get more of.

So, what do you value your time at? If you are working for
a job, getting paid $8 an hour... then your time is valued
at $8 an hour.

So, if you were shopping this weekend, and you spent 4 hours
- it cost you $32 (if you are charging $8 an hour). If you
value your time at higher - then it could have cost you a
fortune.

Well, I personally value my time around $1k an hour. The
reason...? If I spend a focused hour on a project, it will
always turn into at least $1k (usually more).

So, when people call and want me to consult them on a project,
I charge between $600 - $1,000 an hour depending on the client
and the situation.

That is why I believe so strongly in outsourcing - because
it's usually a lot cheaper to hire someone to do a task - then
to personally do it myself.

Last weekend we paid 2 people $650 to clean up my yard for the
winter. It took them 7 hours each to get the job done.

So, If I would have done the work myself, it would have cost me
$14,000 to do it (7 hours X 2 people X $1k an hour).

In that case - $650 is a no brainier.

Now, with that said... I want to show you some ways to free up
some more personal time for yourself to get done the stuff that
YOU have to get done.

1st - learn to cluster your time. One of the things that
kills the productivity of online business owners is instant
communication.

People want to answer their emails or phone calls the second
they come in. I can tell you from experience that this will
kill your productivity.

Every time you start into a project, you are interrupted by
email, phone calls, instant messages....

Learn to cluster your time - take 60 minutes at the end of
your work day when you are less productive... and then (and
only then) answer your emails - and make phone calls back.

You need large clusters of time that you can focus 100% on a
project so you can get more done faster.

2nd - Kill your email addresses. Have you ever tried to email
me? If so you've probably got a response saying that you have
to submit a ticket to my help desk.

The reason?

First - so I can cluster my time
Second - because I've outsourced my customer support

I think email is the biggest killer of productivity in the
world. I've turned off all but one of my email addresses -
and if more then 10 people find that one out - then I kill
it and start over. Beware of email.

So, what help desk software do I recommend? There are a lot
out there - currently we are using www.kayako.com and it's
been great.

3rd - Charge for your time. You should not be giving away
your most valuable asset for free. Every second that I am
spending with a client, I am not able to spend with my wife
or the twins.

We talked earlier about the value of your time... how much
is your time worth? As you grow in your niche, people will
start trying to get your time for free.

Beware of this - because it will quickly kill your
productivity and your business.

Have you ever tried to call me? I've set it up where it's
impossible for anyone besides my wife to call me and get
through. My assistant tells anyone calling requesting my
time to visit www.JVWithRussell.com.

I have my call times clustered, and charge $300 for every
30 minutes that someone wants to talk on the phone.

I use a company called "Ether" (see the pic above) that
charges the person and then lets them ring through to my
line. www.Ether.com

The service is free to use - they just take a % of what
your client is paying you to talk. You can bill people by
the minute, hour, per call. It's awesome way to make sure
you are charging for your time.

4th - Replace yourself. Your goal as an entrepreneur isn't
to work forever - it's to create a business that will
generate the money you need to live the life you want.

So, from day #1, you need to be thinking about HOW to replace
yourself.
The first thing you need to replace is your customer support.
Do this as fast as you can. Then follow it with website design,
writing, link trading, research... anything and everything else
you can until your business can run without you.

That should be the end goal of your business. That is the dream
that you, me and everyone is looking for online.

Replace your self by either outsourcing the tasks you currently
do - or hire employees.

NOTE: When hiring employees - be sure to read "The E-Myth"
by Michael Gerber and save yourself a few of the headaches
I had before I read his book. You can get it on Amazon for
about $12.

I hope that this newsletter has been beneficial. As your
business grows, you are going to find yourself with less
time every day. If you're not careful, it will consume you.

What you started so you could have more time - will be taking
every last second you have. Remember the value of your time
because every second it precious.

I hope this helps.

Thanks
Russell Brunson

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