How to Launch Your Business in a Time of UncertaintyThis episode is in response to a very good question from one of my psychology business school students. She hit on a problem faced by many of us when we start our businesses. There is usually a lot we don't know. We may have caring responsibilities that vary. We may have children with unpredictable needs. We may have patchy child care. We may have to move house or have some kind of location instability. As a forces spouse I have faced most of these hurdles and although they have often felt overwhelming, even impossible, with the help of business coaches and some wise colleagues I have found a way to make things work. In this episode I am going to share the key things you need to consider if you are launching in a time of uncertainty.
 
Why are you doing this now? There are lots of reasons you might have decided to launch at a time most people would see as difficult. Commonly these could include financial reasons or sometimes it is about personal fulfillment, a need for community or to have a creative outlet. For me it was all of the above! It is important to be clear here and write it down. In the beginning you will have very limited time so you will need to prioritise the tasks you "could" be doing in order to focus solely on those that bring you closer to your main priorities. Eg. If you need to earn X a month your first focus needs to be on activities that make that a reality.
 
Plan your week around your hours. You need to start with a realistic appreciation of the hours you have available. On a bad week, how many how do you have available to work? How many do you want to work? Set your expectations and goals accordingly. You can't really earn a full time salary in 2 days per week. If that is your goal then I know it is possible and people achieve that but it is not going to happen without years of fulltime graft leading you to it. Sometimes we, and our families, need a reality check on that.
 
Take as much off your plate as you canGet as much childcare, other care support, domestic support, ironing, cleaning. Whatever you can afford, get it. If you have family or friends who can help you don't be afraid to ask. Building a business takes time and trying to do it all when you should be sleeping is a recipe for burnout, reduced productivity, and ultimately, bad work.
I often meet parents who are caught in the "childcare trap". You feel that you "can't afford" the child care you know you need to get your business started. I was in this position too and it was awful. These are the steps I took to get out of it and I recommend this way of working if you don’t have a cushion of “start up” money underneath you. 
Focus on networking/high touch marketing to secure enough paying clients to cover the childcare you need. https://psychologybusinessschool.com/the-business-of-psychology/get-money-in-to-your-psychology-private-practice-business-planning-part-3 (Read/listen to the strategy here.)
As soon as you have those clients get enough childcare to cover those clients plus and one additional day per week for business development.
Set your fees high enough to make that work! If you need a reminder of how to make sure your fees won’t push you into an unsustainable pattern of work then check out https://psychologybusinessschool.com/the-business-of-psychology/how-to-set-your-fees-in-your-psychology-private (our episode and blog post with Sally Farrant for her formula. )

Remember you can't do it all and you should never expect yourself to do something you would advise your best friend against. There will be time for everything but not all at once.
Look at your year and plan out when things you would like to work on are most likely to fit. Have a best case and a bare minimum plan that just covers your needs.
 
Contingency planning to protect your psychology/therapy private practiceWe should probably all have contingency plans...