

Trying to Earn More Money? Stop Wasting Your Time - dangoldin
http://www.freemoneyfinance.com/2009/03/trying-to-earn-more-money-stop-wasting-your-time.html

======
brc
I also went down the business cards and letterhead as procrastination route. I
probably wasted a month all told, dithering about selecting a logo, printing
cards, agonising the details. I now have about a thousand of the things. I've
changed logo, what I do, telephone number - everything. Not one of those
business cards ever lead to anything meaningful. I think I'll use the cards to
light fires in the winter.

Next time I print a business card it will just have my name in a plain black
font in the middle of the card, with my email address and phone number. The
design will take ten minutes.

The authors point is plain and clear : just concentrate on things that bring
in money, or are 1 step removed from bringing in money. This is sound advice.
I wouldn't agree about stopping blog posting though. Just make sure your blog
posts are directly relevant to your business, and try and pick up some related
blogs to cross-post with. Blogging carries a very high ROI if you're good at
writing.

~~~
JacobAldridge
To link this thought to ryanwaggoners - it's not about whether to have a
business card / whatever - it's just when it becomes important.

At the front end of a start-up, I agree it's procrastination, and in the very
early stages of your business (especially if it's driven by your energy)
anything more than the ten minute design is probably wasted.

BUT, eventually some of these things will pay dividends (as Ryan found with
his blogging). My company had basic business cards for six years; then we
decided it was a priority and invested. My business card now has a baby on it,
and doesn't tell you what I do (business coaching).

Those people that get your 'plain black font' and put it in their pocket; they
stop, examine my card, and start asking questions. It prompts a conversation.
They remember who I am, and - now that I'm past start-up and don't need
clients frantically - that's worth it.

------
ryanwaggoner
Cross-posted comment on FMF:

This is really short-sighted advice...Ramit has only explained the first
fraction of the story.

This is great advice, but only for the first few months of freelance work,
when you're trying to get to the point where you're paying your bills. Beyond
that, things like business cards, blogging, and networking events absolutely
do matter. Back when I was freelancing, most of my clients said they hired me
over some other guy because they read my blog and felt like they knew me. I
met many clients and fellow entrepreneurs at those "worthless" networking
events that are still bringing me clients, investors, and other valuable
contacts today. And I still remember feeling embarrassed when people would ask
me for a card and I would explain that I didn't have any on me.

Get out there and start working to make money, but if you actually want to
build a _business_ , you're going to have to spend some time doing stuff like
this.

------
josh_nyc
Wow... really cuts to the heart. I am guilty of some of these "productive
procrastinations" as well (including the beloved HN) and find that when I
close all not-super-necessary tabs (even gmail), I can focus way more on the
famous 20% stuff.

Yes, this 80/20 advice is nothing new, but the "case study" with his actual
protege is a great way to really _see_ it in action.

------
chaosmachine
_"In my experience," I told her, "freelancers try to do 50 things, and they
end up doing a 5% job on each of them."_

That's the kind of math I expect from a site called Free Money Finance.

~~~
randallsquared
Not necessarily concurrently?

~~~
melito
Well maybe if more freelancers used Erlang, this wouldn't be an issue

------
kiba
Even though this article is practically common sense advice, we all need some
slapping every now and then.

------
bemmu
_"Reading blogs: Sure, maybe for fun, but how does this directly contribute to
getting two paying clients?"_

Well, she could have gotten the advice from the blog.

------
redhex
The title should be: Trying to Earn More Money? Stop Wasting Your Time. Write
a Book.

~~~
quizbiz
The fastest way to make [little amounts of] money is perhaps writing about how
to make fast money.

------
Cunard2
I also appreciated the advice, though I got some cold chills reading it. For
example: Today I'm making business cards for a networking event tomorrow.
Oops. But I need exposure! I do...really!

~~~
jodrellblank
Before you go! What are you going to say at the networking event?

[http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2009/03/15-second-
marketing...](http://www.stevepavlina.com/blog/2009/03/15-second-marketing/)

~~~
Cunard2
Sorry, I just got back. Your link is great. I think for me the practice of
standing there having to come out with it was invaluable. Amazing how you have
it all in there, but sometimes it comes out like shit through a goose and
sometimes it just comes out...well. You know. Anyway. I talked and talked,
listened and listened, and learned a lot. Incidentally, there was a company
pitching called eighty/twenty! Not my company, but very cool just the same.

