Friend and colleague Leanne Chesser contributes today’s guest post on how to improve time management. Enjoy and Share!
It can be tough when you leave your corporate job and start your own business!
When you worked your job, your daily tasks were pretty much decided for you.
You were working for the vision and purpose of the company.
You were accomplishing the company’s goals.
You went to work each day knowing what you had to accomplish, or you were given instructions when you arrived.
And your time was set out for you:
- when you could take a coffee break
- when you could eat lunch
- when you could leave for the day
Now you’ve got all kinds of freedom . . . and even though you probably wanted that freedom, you’re not sure where to start.
You might be feeling:
- distracted by a ton of things that call for your attention during the day
- overwhelmed with all there is to do
- disorganized
- out of balance with the other important areas of your life
- or like a workaholic with no off switch
It’s great to have the freedom.
It’s amazing to be building a business based on your passions and dreams.
It’s awesome to be out of the box of your job.
But you’re not really getting anything done . . . or you’re focusing so much on your business that the rest of your life feels neglected.
What can you do?
Here are 7 tips that will help you improve your time management in your business:
1. Develop X-Ray Superhero Vision
a) Create and write a vision for your business. It keeps you on track.
b) Set goals for the year to get you to your vision. Break your goals into quarterly, monthly and weekly goals. Write them down.
c) Set out your daily tasks based on your weekly goals. This way, everything you do in a day will get you to your vision. Write them down.
d) Record all the ideas that come to you in a notebook. Revisit your notes each year or each quarter as you do your planning. If they fit with where you’re going, add them to your plans. If they don’t, leave them in the notebook for now.
2. Respect Your Time & Space
a) Work for 15 minutes at a time. Focus completely on your task and don’t stop to do anything else. You could also set a timer.
b) Set office hours and have an actual office space where you can work.
3. Get ‘Er Done!
a) Take breaks. I know that sounds backwards . . . but it works. You need to take care of yourself.
b) Work at your most productive or creative times as much as possible.
c) Plan 1-3 activities that will move your business forward each day. Do these first before you do anything else.
d) Stay on top of things and don’t let stuff pile up . . . like emails and stacks of paper . . . or dishes and laundry.
e) Use plans, templates and systems to leverage your time, especially for things you repeatedly do. For example, create a blogging calendar.
4. Escape the Social Media Time Suck
a) Choose 3 social media sites to focus on. Choose the ones where your market hangs out. You don’t need to be everywhere! Narrow it down.
b) Automate as much of your social media activity as you can by using a service like Hootsuite. Further automate your social media activity by setting up your blog posts to automatically post to sites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
c) Pre-write a series of social media posts. For example, create 30 tips in your area of expertise and schedule one to go out each day for a month.
d) Plan activities that are business related, intentional and purposeful. Do only those things and then get off social media.
e) Turn off notifications, chats and un-follow posts that you’ve commented on in groups.
5. Get Rid of Beeps, Rings, Dings & Other Interruptions
a) Unsubscribe from all but the most essential and useful newsletters, courses and information – - the things that are really going to help you move forward in your business.
b) Stop checking your email constantly! Set 3 times for checking email each day and stick to it. Close your email program except at those times. When you check your email, delete the crap, deal with what you need to deal with and file or delegate the rest.
c) Let your voicemail or assistant answer your phone (unless it’s planned sales conversations or coaching calls). Set it to silent if you’re letting your voicemail handle it. Set 1-3 times each day for checking messages and returning calls.
6. Deal With the “Do I Have To?” Tasks
a) Start and end your day with essential tasks and tasks you love. Do the hated “have-to” stuff in between or at your less productive times of the day.
b) Outsource or delegate. You don’t have to do it all alone.
c) If you choose to keep doing the hated tasks, make it more enjoyable to do the stuff you don’t want to do. Change your attitude about it or reward yourself for doing it.
7. Put on a Balancing Act
a) Stay balanced in all life areas. If you’re off balance, your work time will be affected, you’ll do the guilt thing ’cause you’ll feel you should be doing something else, and your mind will be focused on other things.
b) Exercise. It boosts your energy and mood.
c) Get enough sleep!
d) Schedule in some spiritual time, however that looks for you.
e) Eat well to nourish your body and mind.
Which tip do you think will help you the most to improve your time management?
Leanne Chesser works with women online entrepreneurs to discover and eliminate the real reasons for their time, balance and productivity challenges. She then helps them create a plan and a system that actually works for them because it’s based on their own personal style. And she provides lots of tips and strategies for creating more time, achieving more balance and getting more done. She is the creator of Juggle It All and the author of, “How to Improve Your Self Esteem” and “How Your Self Talk Can Change Your Life.” You can find her at http://www.juggleitall.com.
blank).
Part 1 of a 2 part interview with Christine Gallagher about creating and growing an email list for your business
by Lynn A. Robinson