Construction Zone Ahead

With four little boys and all their toys, it didn’t take us long to realize that we had outgrown the house we had originally purchased shortly after we got married. The boys were doubled up in bunk beds, and there was no room under them for dust bunnies because that area was used for storage for all their "stuff." There was one closet in the whole house and it was totally full. When the boys were ages 2, 4, 6, and 8, we decided it was time to put on an addition to the house and remodel the original part of it, so we started drawing up house plans. We also knew there was no way we could afford to do what we had planned if we hired it done because of the cost of labor, so we knew it was up to us to make it happen with our own hands. We knew it would take time, as my husband had a full time job to work while doing it. We also did not want to go into debt, so to save money we advertised for used lumber. We ended up tearing down seven buildings on an old farmstead. We traveled about 34 miles round trip almost daily to accomplish the demolition project. We hauled the lumber all home and went through the grueling work of pulling nails out of the boards. Just before winter hit, we accomplished the feat of having it all sorted, stacked, and covered with tarps to protect it through the winter for the beginning of our huge project in the spring.

The hole for the basement was dug in March and then we got spring rains, which slowed down plans. Once we got momentum, we were able to get the 30’ x 40’ two-story addition up and enclosed before winter hit again. This also included getting a new roof put on the old part of the house and tying it in to the new roof over the addition. That was an experience in itself with a month’s work getting the old roof off, new rafters up, sheeting on, and shingled. Luckily, there was only one really bad rainstorm that came through in that month. My husband was in the attic area trying to hold tarps in a way to make a trough or funnel for the water to flow down to keep it out of the house during 50 mph winds. I was inside the house running around with butter dishes, cottage cheese cartons, and ice cream buckets, trying to catch any leaks that were making its way into our living quarters. What a nightmare!

Once the addition was on, we were able to work inside from then on out. We worked on the upper story first to complete it. That was followed by the lower story. Our boys now had their own bedrooms and closets for all their "stuff." We even had one room designated as a playroom where they could drag out their toys to play with and not have them strung throughout the house. Next on the list was remodeling the original structure of the house, which was close to 100 years old. We had to hang tarps or blankets for dust and dirt control at the openings into the addition. Taking down the old lath and plaster from the walls and ceilings was such a disgusting job. There was dirt that had remained from the "Dirty Thirty’s" dust storms in Kansas. We put drywall back up and painted as we worked our way through the house. The kitchen was the last room to be done, as it required the most work with installing new cabinets and countertops. Last on the list was putting down all the flooring in the house. We had not done any of that yet so we didn’t have any of that dirt tracked across it. Then at 3 ½ years from the time the hole was dug for the basement, to the final stroke of the varnish brush on some trim around the doors and the baseboard, we could officially say, "It’s DONE - all 3,760 square feet of it!!!!! We have a new house!"

What an experience it was to help build and remodel our home. Believe it or not, I actually learned to swing a pretty mean hammer with the rest of the crew – which was basically my husband and my father. I even finished shingling three roof slopes out of four by myself while my husband was at work. I did not want to have a "chase the rain" game again. Once of that was enough! I often compare that whole construction experience with that of my online business. Both require planning, setting a goal, lots of work, and continual maintenance. Just as a house will not build itself or be free of the need for personal attention, neither will an online business. It also takes team work in both cases to make it happen, and that is something my business offers with a great mentoring team to help people succeed.

Author: Linda Dougherty
Specializes in working with people to show them how to market effectively to ean money online.

http://www.internettowealth.com/

Procrastination-Why Do We Put Things Off?

Procrastination. The dictionary says this is the act of intentionally or habitually deferring or delaying action. Everyone is guilty of it to some degree unless they have trained themselves to be very disciplined. It’s easy to have the mindset of "I’ll do it tomorrow, next week, next month, etc." This can be anything from daily chores around the house to catching up on paperwork at the office, or anything else we just want to put off doing.

I recently decided to tackle my "To Do" list of things I normally try to do the beginning of every year. This included such things as working on photo albums, putting away newspaper clippings from our local newspapers, cleaning out the filing cabinet, and working on my four boys’ scrapbooks and keepsake boxes. This year, when I decided I had procrastinated long enough, I couldn’t believe my discovery. It had been two years since I had done my yearly "To Do" ritual instead of one! Where had the time gone? What was my excuse? Then I thought back to a year ago. Oh yes, right after the first of the year we had a 50th anniversary celebration for my parents. In the following two months we were busy preparing for mine and my husband’s 25th anniversary celebration. That was soon followed by the birth of our first granddaughter. I guess I just got caught up in the excitement of my life that I totally forgot about that "To Do" list last year. Now I am really paying for it to try and get everything caught up. It seemed like such a big job to tackle once I started through that list, but I am self-disciplined enough to make myself do it even when my rebellious inner thoughts keep screaming, "But I don’t want to!"

This whole procrastination scene can be related to what people go through in starting an online business and doing the things they need to do to keep it going. It’s way too easy to just put things off rather than just setting down and doing it. If a person doesn’t just keep plugging away, time passes and pretty soon you realize your business has stagnated rather than grown. Make it a habit to do something for the good of your business on a daily basis. If you take a day off, at least reaffirm to yourself that day why you are doing the business. This will keep you focused and ready to get back at it the next day.

Procrastination……such a horrible little stumbling block in our lives. Don’t let it win over your determination to stay on track.

Author: Linda Dougherty
Specializes in working with people to show them how to market effectively to earn money online.
http://www.internettowealth.com/