Getting Out of the Office

Last week I wrote about the Four Hour Workweek and stated my intention to spend less time on my contracting business in 2009. As I work through this process I will share how I address the issues that arise, the tools I use to do so, and some of the procedures and processes I develop. While my goal may be different from yours, the same principles apply to Getting out of the Bucket as to Getting out of the Office.

My wife works with me in the office, so Getting out of the Office applies to both of us. Doing so will require some changes in our business, such as communications with customers, accessing information, scheduling, etc. Addressing these issues, and developing procedures is our primary goal for the next several months.

We have several motivations for Getting out of the Office. The most important is that we would like to spend more time pursuing other interests. It is difficult to do this when tethered to an office.

We have considered selling the business but see no real reason to do so. We make a pretty decent income while working part-time. Maintaining a business that generates semi-passive income simply makes the most financial sense at this point.

As I mentioned, the principles involved in this are essentially the same as Getting out of the Bucket. In both situations there is a need to maintain operations while the owner is not omnipresent. This presents numerous challenges, and while the details of those challenges differ, the same basic approach applies-- develop systems and procedures.

Our first step in this process is identifying our end goal, that is, what we want to accomplish and what we want our business to look like in the end. In other words, we first need to know where we are going before we can decide how to get there.