My 4 Hour Workweek

This is something I struggle with on an annual basis (during tax season).  I have a real job – one that exists very far away from my internet projects.  I have no problem meeting the obligations of that job, even if it’s stressful at times.

Sometimes, however, the real stress isn’t about what I’m doing at my job – it’s what I’m not doing outside my job because “I’m too busy.”  I have projects that I’d like to be working on, but at the same time, I also want to enjoy what little free time I have outside of work (which tends to happen when you’re working 60+ hours a week).

So how do you fight this urge to simply say, “I’m too busy”?  How do you maintain productivity with your side projects when your “real” life is consuming most of your time? This post will be short and sweet, but hopefully it’ll generate some good discussion.

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At the end of every year I like to write about my goals for the upcoming year.  I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not great about revisiting my goals throughout the year to make sure I’m on track, but I still think it’s better than not setting goals in the first place.

While you obviously want to fully accomplish your goals, I also like to create goals as a way to motivate myself in the new year.  As I’ve said before, even if I don’t reach any of my goals (at 100%), I often find that the simple act of setting goals gets me to do much more than not setting goals.

Without further ado, let’s get to the 2013 goals!

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I’ve spent the better part of the past two and a half years trying to build a business online while holding down a full-time, 9 to 5 job (and during parts of the year, working much more than 40 hours a week).  This blog, My 4-Hour Workweek, was born like many others – following the reading of The 4-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss.

Since that time, I’ve had a strong desire to build an online passive income business, and those of you who have been reading this blog for the past couple of years have seen my many ups and downs.  Recently though, I’ve called into question my own motivation: Am I really trying to succeed? Or has the once lit fire finally died out?

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Happy New Year! For the past week or so (and probably for the next week or two to come), you’ve been beaten over the head with everyone else’s goals.  Now it’s my turn!

There’s nothing wrong with the overwhelming amount of “goals” posts out there – I love reading others’ goals and resolutions, even if we all know that 25-50% or more of these goals won’t be achieved throughout the year (as much as we’d like to believe that isn’t true).  To me, having goals is more about the journey and the path – even if you never arrive at your destination.  No one likes to fail, but I think the value of goals is that they help keep you on track.  Even if you don’t fully accomplish a goal, you can still be successful.

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Occasionally, I find that my motivation falls asleep or disappears, and sometimes needs a little spark to get going.  There’s only so much I can do to internally motivate myself – sometimes I need to read about someone else’s success or action to get myself pumped up.

It’s been awhile since I’ve done any kind of  compilation post, but here’s a collection of some things I’ve read lately that I found to be really motivating…Enjoy.

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Note from Eric: This is a guest post by Sunil, an internet entrepreneur who has seen a variety of successes online, including several website sales for five and six figure amounts.  Sunil and I initially connected because we share similar professional backgrounds (we’re both CPAs and previously worked in public accounting) – he has since become a full-time internet entrepreneur and has been making money online for the past 9 years (longer than many of the so-called “gurus” out there), so I respect his advice and was happy to publish his guest post here today.  You can read more about him and his blog at the end of this post.

When I started my ecommerce business online, my motivation was pure profits. Years after selling that business for a six figure sale price, I found myself online with a portfolio of several profitable niche websites and now a successful blog.  However, my underlying motivations today seem to have evolved.  Am I alone in this boat?

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