Money Saving Mom®

Guest post from Carrie of Natural Mom Talk Radio

Every work-at-home-mom wants to maximize her time online. Whether you are a blogger, virtual assistant, writer, or crafter, here are six tips that will help you get more done in less time when you boot up your computer:

1. Define Your Purpose

Before you even open your computer, know exactly what you’re going to accomplish and get right down to business.

I’m reminded of those movie scenes of medieval times when a traveler arrives at the gates of the city. Before he is allowed in, he must state his business. Doing so will help you avoid aimlessly checking email, social media accounts, and the like (who, me!?). Personally, I find it imperative to have a to-do list at my side so I don’t get sidetracked.

2. Analyze

What are the steps you regularly take in your business? Are they paying off for you? Are your marketing efforts producing measurable results?

It’s important to track these things so you don’t waste time in unprofitable activities. For example, getting to know your website stats so you can see where your traffic is coming from is vital.

Another area to analyze is your own energy and productivity levels. In her book, 2K to 10K: Writing Faster, Writing Better, and Writing More of What You Love, author Rachel Aaron said that she created a spreadsheet to track how much she wrote at various times of the day. She was shocked to discover that simply by changing her writing schedule a bit, she could produce far more words in the same amount of time.

3. Think Like Henry Ford

Henry Ford didn’t invent the car. He invented the assembly line, which made cars affordable, and that changed everything.

Mass production saves time, money and energy. How can you use the assembly line approach in your work? By batching similar activities together.

If you have a time slot to write an article and get on a roll, write two articles. Don’t check your email all day. Check it once or twice a day, when you’re actually at a computer and can answer emails.

Need to make some changes to your site? Wait until you have several tweaks, and do them all at once.

Brain researchers have told us that each time we have to switch gears mentally, we lose time and focus. So stay in flow. Multitasking doesn’t really work.

4. Automate

Tools like autoresponders, vacation response settings in email, signature lines, e-courses, FAQ pages on your website, scheduling posts in your blog, etc. are all wonderful pieces of technology that allow you to do something once and benefit from it over and over.

For instance, if you are a virtual assistant, you probably find that clients ask you the same questions over and over again. Copy and paste those into an FAQ page on your website to save yourself time. If you’re in direct sales and have a downline, train them all at once using Google Hangout, webinars, teleseminars and such.

5. Identify Your Shiny Objects

In some way, we’re like that dog in the movie Up. (Squirrel! ) We get distracted by shiny objects online. Maybe it’s email, Twitter, visiting message forums, reading too many blogs, Facebook or Pinterest — oh, don’t get me started on Pinterest!

You might just have to eliminate some of your social media accounts if they aren’t anything more than a distraction. Consider using some of the free software available to help you block these, because here’s the honest truth: Anything that doesn’t directly earn you income needs to be done in your free time, after money-making activities.

6. Use a Timer

If you have young kids, you probably know the power of the timer. The timer keeps your preschooler in time out. The timer tells your impatient child “how much longer?!” until something happens. Etc. Why not utilize the mysterious power of the timer on yourself?

If it currently takes you 45 minutes to write a blog post (which you should know from the “analyze” portion), challenge yourself. Set the timer for 35 minutes then hit publish. If you have only an hour to work while hubby plays with the baby, set a timer for 45 minutes and work quickly, then check email and Twitter.

These are a few of the tips that have helped me to stay focused and get more done online… do you have anything else to add to my list?

Carrie, a wife and mom to seven lively kids, writes about homeschooling, practical frugality and natural parenting at Natural Mom Talk Radio. She is the author of the ebook, Slash Your Grocery Budget *and* Eat a Whole Foods Diet with ALDI.

Guest post from Crystal of Serving Joyfully. 

One of my favorite ways to acquire books is through PaperBack Swap. Like the name suggests, it’s a site for trading books. You give away a book you don’t need and pay about $2.50 (the cost of postage) for a new-to-you one.

Since postage alone on sites like Amazon.com is $3.99, you can see that $2.50 for a needed book is a great deal! But, as a former couponer and current deal-seeker (and as a homeschooling mom in need of lots of books!), I wanted to do better.

I’ve been diligently searching this summer, and was able to get a bunch of great books for an average of $0.40 each! And that includes Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons, which I intended to purchase from Amazon for around $20!

If you’d love to get your hands on some frugal used books, here are some tips to get the most out of PaperBack Swap:

1. Sign up!

Going for the obvious here. When you first sign up for PaperBack Swap and list 10 books to your shelf, you’ll get 2 free credits right away.

2. Refer your friends.

After you’ve signed up, be sure to spread the word. If a friend uses your referral link and becomes an active member, you get a free credit.

(Full disclosure: That’s my referral link above. Crystal gave me permission to use it in this post. If you’d rather not sign up through my link, you can go directly to PaperBackSwap.com)

3. List great books.

More high-quality books equals more requests, and more requests equals more credits for you.

4. Purchase credits at a discount.

Sometimes I give away books we no longer need and sometimes I’m a tiny bit of a book hoarder. In this case, credits can be purchased directly from PBS for $3.79-$3.95. However, PBS also allows members to sell up to 50 credits per month, so you can purchase credits from other members, usually for a discounted rate.

Please note — this is done at your own risk. You’ll want to make sure that you are dealing with someone who has a strong reputation on the site. I’ve done this in the past to purchase credits for as low as $2 each.

5. Become a Boxer.

Since the only monetary cost associated with the site is your shipping, reducing the cost of shipping per book reduces your overall cost. One way to do this is to trade boxes of books with other members rather than single books. There is a monthly fee for this service, but the benefits can outweigh the cost if you’re looking to trade a large amount of books.

6. Network.

In the community area, there is a forum called the Book Bazaar. In that forum, members frequently request or offer “deals,” especially if you are looking to make a bulk (multi-credit) purchase.

Through this, I was able to find people willing to offer some great deals, including 25 books for 5 credits. You can also take note of, and friend, those members who tend to have books in the genres you’re interested in, and build relationships with them for future deals.

7. Ask.

When you request a book, PBS will give you the option to request more from the same member. If there are other books that interest you, ask if the member would be willing to make a deal. Even a member who doesn’t have a running deal is usually willing to throw in an extra book or two if you are requesting several.

8. Offer a Deal Yourself.

When I purchased 25 books for 5 credits, the sender spent $5.77 for shipping, but she got 5 credits. If she had sent out 5 books separately, those same 5 credits would have cost her around $12.50 in shipping.

If you have the extra books, this is a great option to get the most out of shipping and bless another member at the same time. You can do this on the forums, or right from your bookshelf.

9. Be Patient.

Patience is a virtue here. If you are able to be patient, sometimes you can wait for a deal to come available and save yourself some money. Similarly, if a book you want isn’t currently available, you can add it to your wishlist and wait for it to come available rather than purchasing it somewhere else.

It may not come available, but it’s worth waiting a while to find out. This is exactly how I was able to acquire the Teach Your Child to Read in 100 Easy Lessons book for such a great deal. Another member saw it on my wishlist, and offered to make it a part of a bigger deal.

Are you a member of PaperBack Swap? What has been your experience with it?

Crystal Brothers is a daughter of the one, true King, wife to a forest ranger, and full-time mommy to two rambunctious little boys. She blogs at Serving Joyfully — a blog dedicated to encouraging and equipping women to serve God and their families.