If you consistently keep up with my Instagram stories you already know this, but about two weeks ago I moved into college and into a dorm room! Literally all summer I have been brainstorming and researching ways to maximize every inch of all 180 feet (yes, you read that right) that my dorm room includes. Those of you who know me personally were wondering how I would fit all of my clothes into the small three foot wide closet space, and I was too, but I was mostly concerned about how I was going to fit my entire business into the dorm room with me. I managed to pack everything I needed for my business in as organized of a manner as possible, AND managed to make it all fit under my dorm bed! Since it's now been two weeks of being a small business owner AND a full time college student, I figured I would share some of my tips on how to successfully run a business out of a dorm room:
1. ORGANIZE YOUR WORKSPACE:
If you only read one of these tips, let this be the one. Organization is the only way to run a business out of a dorm room. I invested in multiple storage bins, totes, rolling carts, and more, just to simply organize everything business related. I store my apparel and glassware in large storage containers, all shipping supplies are located on my rolling cart or on a storage shelf, I condensed all of my small-scale products to fit into a compartmentalized storage bin, and I keep ALL of this under my bed. I promise, it will fit if you put the time into organizing!
2. PLAN YOUR TIME
In general, planning your time is essential in order to be successful in college (and just life, honestly), but this is even more important when you're running your business on the side too! I recently started using my iPad to take digital notes for classes, but I decided to convert to using it for to-do lists too. If digital lists aren't your thing, invest in a cute desk planner to keep track of tasks you need to complete! I also invested in a hardback agenda to plan out due dates, launch dates, and anything I have on my schedule. It's only been two weeks, but I can already tell that if I wasn't planning my time and keeping up with my tasks, I wouldn't be able to be a student and business owner simultaneously!
3. TAKE BREAKS
Ah, the timeless piece of advice: take breaks. But seriously, do it! When you feel overwhelmed, nothing will make you feel better than going on a walk for fresh air, grabbing a coffee, reading a book, or relaxing on your bed watching Netflix. Even if you're just feeling burned out or lacking creativity, taking breaks is always the answer. The deadlines will be met, the design ideas will come to you, the orders will get packed, the assignments will get done, but in the mean time, give yourself time to breathe.
Below are links to some of my favorite organizational items that are must-haves for my business (not affiliate links - just helpful for you)!!
I hope these tips were helpful to you! Let me know what content you'd like to see in blog form in the future!
Hayley :)