Read this issue of the Inspiri Craft Business Magazine online.

Each month Inspiri Craft Business Magazine brings you current and in-depth information and resources to help you build and grow your own home craft business. If you have a friend who would enjoy this newsletter, please feel free to forward it to them.

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Newest Articles at Inspiri

Tips on Time Management
These tips on time management will help you to work more effectively and efficiently.

Customer Tips For Selling Crafts
Have you ever wished you could get good feedback from customers on how to sell your crafts? I've asked customers who like to buy handmade items to provide feedback for professional crafters. Here's what they have to say.

New Articles on the Inspiri Blog

Your Contributions

If you have a great craft business article (400 words or more) and you'd like a link back to your own craft related site, find out how to share a full article here: Share a Craft Business Article.

If you have a quick tip you want to share but don't have a full article, you can add your tips here: Quick Craft Business Tips

Please keep in mind, backlinks are not included on the quick tip forms, so if you'd like to receive a backlink to promote your craft business site, you'll need to use the full article submission option.

Your Contributions

Craft Blogs Help You Sell Art Online

Easy Craft Ideas
Curled/Twisted Walking Stick
The Challenge of Counted Cross Stitch

Book and Magazine Reviews
Scrapbooks Etc.
Scrapbook Fundamentals

Craft Shows and Home Parties
Here's How I Keep my Home Parties Full!
How to Increase Sales at Craft Parties

Craft Display Booth Tips
Trade Show Insider Secrets
Sell Your Crafts - Know You Target Audience
Display Tips

How to Work Effectively from Home
Tips for Working from Home
More Tips for Working from Home
Setting Boundaries

Feature Article

12 Reasons Why Things Don't Get Done

The following 12 reasons why things don't get done can really cut into your productivity when you are building your business. See if you recognize yourself in any of these time busting traps, and perhaps you can make a plan to change some of these habits.

1. No clear goals
Without clear goals, you have no direction. Your goals help you to determine your day to day activities. If you are not working toward anything specific, nothing gets accomplished.

2. No priorities
Priorities come out of your goals in that priorities are the most important things that must be accomplished in a given time frame in order to make progress toward your goals. If you have a list of ten things to do, and you know you can't accomplish all of them in the time available, how will you choose which tasks must be completed unless you have an effective way to prioritize your work?

3. No daily plan
A daily plan that is built around your priorities and your goals is an effective plan. Determine the things that you must accomplish each day by asking yourself whether each task helps you to achieve a goal and where each task falls in terms of priority. Not only will a daily plan help you to accomplish more, it will also tell you when you are finished working and can focus your attention on other interests.

4. Trying to do too much
Carefully estimate how long it will take to complete each task in your daily plan. If you are uncertain, about the amount of time it will take or if the task is new, allocate more time than you believe is necessary. If you are consistently trying to do to much, you may have to revisit your priorities and differentiate must complete tasks from nice to do tasks.

5. Perfectionism
Do you feel compelled to complete every single task to a high level of excellence? That kind of perfectionism may, in fact, be holding back the growth of your business. If you can't order supplies until your find the perfect suppliers, or submit an application unless it is the perfect application, you may be missing deadlines, opportunities and time to work on additional projects that will grow your business. Sometimes good enough is better than perfect because good enough allows you to move on to tackle other priorities.

6. Disorganization
A disorganized office or studio space will steal your time. It may happen in tiny increments that you won't immediately notice, but all of the time spent searching for tools, materials or documents is time that nothing productive is being accomplished. Depending upon the current state of your work space, you may need to commit a few days to organizing your office or craft room, but you will be paid back in time saved when you are able to work in an organized space.

7. Poor decision making
Ineffective decisions lead to lack of productivity. When you choose to follow "opportunities" that turn out to be inappropriate for your business, potential for progress and growth is lost. While developing a new business usually requires a bit of trial and error, keeping your eye on your ultimate goals and priorities will help you to minimize poor decisions. Each time a new opportunity or decision presents itself, go back to your primary goals and priorities for your business and ask yourself whether that opportunity would likely lead to toward your goals; the answer to that question will help you to choose opportunities that are most appropriate for your craft business.

8. Crisis management
If you are always busy putting out fires, you won't be able to focus on your real goals. Most strategies for good time management require some initial commitment of time to put those strategies in place. When you're already pressed for time, it may feel as though you are not able to take time away from your "real" work to develop a plan to use your time more effectively. However, when you're in that situation, that is exactly when you need to carve out some time to reassess and plan the best use of your time and energy.

9. Ineffective delegation
Ineffective delegation can take several forms. It may mean you're not delegating at all and taking on tasks that are well outside of your skills and knowledge base, or you're working on tasks that would be better handled by someone else. Ineffective delegation may also mean that, although you have delegated a task, you haven't given the person who is doing the work enough instruction or autonomy to make decisions and finish the work in a way that truly frees up your time. Both of these traps can lead to lost productivity.

10. Interruptions
Are you constantly interrupted when you are working? Consider setting boundaries around when you will and will not answer phone calls and emails. A closed office or studio door or other visual sign that you are working and not to be interrupted can also help. Working from home poses challenges because some people just don't respect your work time. Carve out specific times of day that is your work time, and protect that time from the demands of others.

11. Meetings
Meetings with suppliers or retailers who sell your work are important, but be sure that they are conducted in the most efficient way possible. Don't sacrifice relationship building with these individuals for the sake of a little bit of added efficiency, buy do be sure that the time spent meeting with business associates is productive.

Any system you put in place to improve your own efficiency while working with associates can always be presented as a way to benefit your customers. For example, if you find you are spending an excessive amount of time working with a retailer who sells your items on consignment, and you develop a simple inventory tracking system to make your meetings more efficient, rather than presenting the new system as something that will save you time, you can present it as something that will make your meetings more efficient and, therefore, save the retailer time.

12. Procrastination
whether you are procrastinating due to a fear or failure, or you dislike the task at hand, procrastination can be a real source of self-sabotage and lost productivity. If you find you are procrastinating work on a task, ask yourself how this task leads to your larger goals. When you connect the small picture task at hand to your big picture goals, you may be less inclined to put it off.

It is also helpful to complete the largest or most difficult part of a project first. That way you'll create a sense of accomplishment, the most daunting part will be out of your way and the rest of the task will appear more manageable.

Thanks for reading the Inspiri Craft Business Magazine.
I welcome your comments and questions.