The Headless Chicken — What to do With "Down Time"

When you come from a rural based family like I do, you can't help but soak up the lingo. My families had sayings that were not only funny to me when I was small, but even funnier to my friends in the city who never heard such odd expressions.

"We're beating a dead horse here!" was a favourite, particularly of my calculus teacher when trying to solve problems. Another was "That stinks to high heaven." And "He's as useless as..." — wait. Can't use that one. Sorry guys, family publication.

But my favourite was always: “He's running around like a chicken with his head cut off.” Slightly morbid, no doubt. But it conjures up the appropriate images, doesn't it? The sense of directionless-ness, confusion, and, worse yet, imminent death. Information marketing will hopefully never lead you to the latter experience, but you'd be less than human if you never experienced the first two. That's alright, as being your own boss can feel like that. You're taking risks that you're friends punching the clock cannot even conceive of. Naturally, you are going to have days where there is little activity and this can be potentially stressful if you don't know what to do with your time.

Here are some thoughts on what to do during your “down time”:

--Get creative: You are a creative person because you are an information marketer, right? Why not take a break to get more ideas? Get out some pens and paper or a notebook and start randomly jotting down ideas for the future. This might sound trivial, it can be great in the end. Ask any musician. If they even get four bars of a melody in their head, they will write it down, record it on a boombox, or, as I heard Louise Post from the band Veruca Salt once doing, phoning her answering machine to record it over the phone. A stock pile of ideas for the future is always an asset.

--Re-organize: You've likely been busy working at your business and your office is now a mess. Down time should be used efficiently to get re-organized. Throw out trash that you don't need, get your financial records in order, and make a list of what items you will need for the future. Thinking about tomorrow today is, again, only an asset.

--Network: Check out your leads and customer list. See who you have come into contact with since the inception of your business or search the websites for potential allies who have a product similar to your own. If you come across someone who might be able to help your business, come up with a pitch for them, and give them a call. Try not to make things too social and stay on task with trying to make your business grow. Sometimes during downtime, you have to be the one to stir the pot a bit, but this can generate new ideas and associations, so don't be afraid to do it.

--Step Outside: If you are in any kind of rut in life, the best thing is to get out of it. Sounds too simple right? Well, it is and it is necessary. No one is superhuman and your mind is going to need a rest sometime. Spend time with family, take a holiday, or pursue an outside interest. I mentioned the beating of a dead horse earlier...you do not want to be the person being that beater as it will not amount to anything.

The other prominent old saying from my childhood was the clerically derived “Idle hands make the devil's work.” It can be true as if you have nothing to do, you might face going down a path of instability and potential tragedy. But if you have gotten thus far in your information marketing career, you shouldn't worry. You will be creative enough to ward off any of the devil's temptations. Or wind up like a chicken sans tété...

Good luck and have a good weekend,

J.

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