[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Time management strategies for business owners and entrepreneurs
As a business owner or entrepreneur, you know very well how crazy things can get. The to-do list seems to be never-ending. New tasks are added to it faster than old ones get ticked off. That‘s why, for us, time management is of utmost importance.
Here are some of the time management strategies that I use to keep myself ahead of the game and functioning at maximum productivity.
The challenges
Time management is especially a challenge, or should we say opportunity, for business owners. Our to do lists are generally endless and it seems impossible for a business owner to ever get everything done.
Think about it: what would you do if you somehow did get everything on that to-do list ticked off? You‘d be looking at what‘s next, of course! Developing a new product, opening a new store, expanding to a new location, starting a new business…
As a business owner or entrepreneur, our possibilities are infinite. No matter how much we do, there is always something more we could be doing.
This means that organisation, effectiveness, and time management are especially important for us.
We recently did a survey asking business owners about their biggest challenges when it comes to effective time management and here is what I‘ve identified as the core issues:
Procrastination
Business owners often procrastinate on major projects. They can just seem too big to tackle. It‘s often easier to focus on smaller, less impactful tasks – just to feel like you are getting something done. However, this can skew where you efforts go in a way that is damaging to your business, because you invest time in what is easier rather than what is important. So projects that may be much more meaningful and rewarding for your company down the road don‘t get dealt with.
Distractions
I‘m sure everyone can relate to this one! There are so many distractions – emails, social media, instant messages – that keep you from focussing on the really important things.
No systems
If you‘ve ever worked for a large company, you‘ll know what I‘m talking about here. Big companies are really good at using organisational systems to make best use of their employees‘ time.
Systems are also really helpful for standardising things – for example, if you hire an assistant to take over some of your daily tasks, or if you have several different employees who perform the same tasks.
Creating systems that are customised to your business (and then using them!) will save you time. Here are some examples of systems we use at our businesses.
A little note of warning, make sure you don‘t over-systemise. I‘ve worked in advertising organisations where systems were almost a killer to creativity and productivity.
Overwhelm
According to our survey, overwhelm was the biggest conductor to feeling stuck and unhappy.
As I was just saying, no matter how much you do, as the owner of a business your tasks will never be done: there‘s always something more. This affects that never-ending to-do list, but it also affects taking time off: the ability to enjoy some down-time, without feeling guilty about what you could be accomplishing instead.
Fortunately, as you become better at time management and increase your productivity, you will reduce your feelings of being overwhelmed and you‘ll also get better at allowing yourself some time off! Why not book that weekend getaway or holiday right now.
Eleven kick-butt tips to double your productivity
Christo and I run four businesses (oh, and we also play in a band and find time to catch waves most days). There is absolutely no way we would be able to keep everything together if we didn‘t manage our time well. Here are some of my favourite productivity strategies:
1. Prioritise prioritising
Prioritising your priorities should be your number one priority. (Try saying that five times fast!).
OK, seriously. You might think that prioritising is a waste of time, and just want to get on with doing things. But prioritising is the key to becoming more productive – in other words, to getting those things done. But you gotta be smart about this.
Make your priority list. First, once a day, either the night before or first thing in the morning, select five tasks from your “master to-do list” (which I assume you have – if it‘s only in your head, then write it down!) to work on that day. Those five tasks could include:
- urgent tasks
- at least one task that will benefit the growth of your business (that‘s part of some bigger strategy, so you don‘t just continue to run in “survival mode”)
- and one task that you have been procrastinating on (e.g. an administrative or financial task, or invoicing)
Now, prioritise those tasks. There are two different ways you can do this:
- prioritise by importance (do the most important things first)
- prioritise by difficulty (do the toughest things first, to get them out of the way).
Your choice!
2. Break down bigger tasks
It often becomes a challenge when a task feels like it is too big to handle. It keeps getting put off for “some day when I have more time.” To avoid this problem, when making your priority list, try to think in “time chunks.”
For me, I find that it works if I think in 25-minute blocks of time (more on this below). So if I have a task that seems too big for today‘s list, I break it up – for example into three 25-minute time chunks. You don‘t have to do the whole task in one day: just get one time-chunk done, to take a bite out of the project.
Here‘s an example. Let‘s say your task is to do an email campaign. If that‘s too much to get done in a day, you could complete it this week by thinking in time-chunks, and getting one or two of them done each day, e.g.:
- prepare email list
- write copy
- source images
- prepare email in system
- proof-read
- hit send
- track analytics
This system keeps you from procrastinating on the big tasks by making them manageable. Mapping out the steps helps you build the momentum: suddenly a big project that‘s been hanging over your shoulders becomes doable – and, before you know it, it‘s done!
3. Delegate and outsource
You don‘t have to do everything yourself! Actually, you absolutely shouldn‘t do everything yourself.
Sometimes it may feel hard to let go of certain tasks. You might feel that you are the only one you trust to do things to your standards.
But that‘s why you build a trusted team, whether they are employees or consultants or partners. And once you have that trusted team – well, trust them! Keep for yourself the tasks that really and truly only you can get done the way you want them. Then, delegate all other tasks to your team members.
I find it useful to classify tasks under one of these three headings:
| You HAVE to do this | Someone else COULD do this | You MUST outsource these |
| Building a team | Sales calls | Cleaning |
| Finding strategic partners | Implementing marketing strategies | Bookkeeping |
| Planning & strategies | Website updates | |
| Design work |
This helps you prioritise: there are some tasks that you must do. There are others that you would like to maintain control of, but it wouldn‘t be the end of the world if you got someone else to do them if you don‘t have time. And then there are the tasks that you absolutely must outsource: they are simply a waste of your time when there are so many other specialised things that only you can take care of.
4. Work with your body clock
I‘m sure you‘ve heard of the theory of night owls versus morning larks. And you probably already know which one you are, too!
Well use that knowledge to your advantage!
Some people work more effectively in the mornings, while others are more productive later in the day, or even at night. Use your most productive time to focus on your top priorities.
For example, I am a morning person. This means that I generally try not to plan any meetings (unless they are strategy sessions) for the mornings. Instead, I use my productive time to focus on the bigger tasks that require more energy and concentration.
5. Batch your tasks
Organise your tasks into batches. Rather than juggling a pile of unrelated things at once all day long, allocate one hour to do all your phone calls, one hour for emails, one hour for interviews, etc.
You can also batch your tasks by blocking time in your work diary or calendar. For example, I make sure to block out time in my schedule for tasks such as content creation and writing. Otherwise, it‘s easy to get booked up – and then I never get around to these important, yet easy-to-put-off tasks.
6. Manage your inbox – don‘t let it manage you
Is your inbox out of control? It‘s pretty easy for that never-ending stream of incoming messages to contribute to that feeling of being overwhelmed. Mine gets pretty full if I leave it unattended for twenty-four hours and I had to learn the hard way how to not let my inbox dictate my day.
You‘d be surprised how much time people waste reading over the subject lines in their inbox over and over again! Don‘t use your inbox as a to-do list.
Aim to clean out your inbox every day or at least at the end of every week. I have a reminder in my diary on Sunday night to clean out my inbox.
To do this create a system of folders, and file emails away once they have been acted upon (in other words, the email has either been answered or been added as a task on your to-do list).
Your goal is to touch each email only once. If the matter is quick to deal with, solve it and answer it right away. If you need more time, add the task to your master to-do list and file the email. The task can then be added to your priority list for the next day.
The folders I use to file my emails are:
- Action Needed
- Waiting
- Archived
7. Turn off notifications
This is such a biggie – and we all know it! – yet most people have notifications popping up all over the place, and distracting them all day. Facebook messages, emails, texts, calendar reminders…. the list goes on.
Turn them all off! Every time you get off track, you lose your focus on what you were doing. Once you‘ve been distracted from the task at hand, it can take fifteen minutes or longer to regain that focus depending on what you are working on. Multiply that by however many notifications you get each day – and the result is a lot of lost productivity.
So just turn off those notifications. Schedule time for the specific tasks of checking messages.
8. Get “in the zone”
You know what I mean by this: when suddenly everything is going right, and you are productive or creative or energetic or whatever you need to be so you can be extraordinarily productive. That‘s being “in the zone.”
There is no one-size-fits-all plan here. You need to figure out what works for you: what you need to do to get yourself there. If you‘re not sure, think of the times you‘ve been there, in the zone. Where were you, what led up to that state?
For me, I can get myself into the zone super-quick by working at my standing desk, or by wearing noise-cancelling headphones listening to music (without lyrics – otherwise I will just listen to the songs!). Yoga and meditation also helps me get really focussed, so I usually start my day with a meditation.
Find what works for you!
9. Plan your day
This only takes a moment to do, but it pays off big-time in productivity gains the next day.
At the end of your work day, or first thing in the morning (whichever works better for you), plan your day ahead. Review what you‘re already booked in for, and map out the core tasks you want to accomplish. Depending upon whether you‘re a morning or evening person, this may also be your best time to prioritise your tasks for that day (my first point, above).
10. Tools and apps
There are plenty of productivity tools out there. You can get a idea of what‘s available by searching online – but to help you keep from surfing away searching for hours (while procrastinating on those big tasks), here are some of the essential ones that we at Basic Bananas use every day.
10.1 To-do list tools
Our team uses Trello and Wunderlist . Both of these are available for free as basic versions, with the option to upgrade for a more premium pay-for business version. And both are available as apps for your smartphone. You only need one or the other, Trello or Wunderlist, not both.
Both of these tools help you to organise all of your tasks into projects. It‘s a much better way, rather than just using a paper list, because each project has its own to-do list. Look only at the list you are working on – that way you don‘t get distracted or overwhelmed by your other projects and tasks.
To give you an idea of how they work, take a look at this video of how I use Trello to stay organised, and to plan for the year ahead.
10.2 A timer
A timer? We‘re not boiling eggs, are we?
Nope. But we are treating our time as if it‘s quantifiable, and valuable – because it is!
There is a countless amount of research out there that shows that the human brain can concentrate, and work productively, for only a limited amount of time. The exact amount of time varies from person to person, but a good average is around 25 minutes.
That‘s why I suggested, above, to organise your tasks into 25-minute time chunks. By taking little breaks between the “chunks,” you‘ll be able to focus really well for those time chunks – and you‘ll be amazed by how much your productivity soars. Here are the guidelines for using this method:
- prioritise your tasks (as explained above), dividing them up into parts if necessary, so that each part will take around 25 minutes
- at the end of each 25 minute chunk, take a five minute break. Make a cup of tea, go to the bathroom, have a chat with someone… just give yourself a little break. I sometimes get into a 25 minute chunk early in the morning and then take a surfing or yoga break, then get back into it.
- keep working off your list – and really be disciplined and work hard during your time chunk (after all, it‘s only 25 minutes!) – and you will be amazed by how much you get done!
You may have heard of a time management strategy called the pomodoro technique . What I‘m describing here is pretty much the pomodoro technique. There are apps out there for this, but really, the timer on your phone will work just fine.
10.3 Organise your notes
You are a business owner which means you most likely have thoughts and ideas all day long. Instead of keeping everything in your head and cluttering your mind, write them down! I absolutely love Evernote to organise my notes, keep my thoughts and ideas all in the one place. It‘s an awesome app you can download on all of your devices so you always have an updated version.
Plus it let‘s you save screenshots, audio recordings, website clippings and text.
11. Reward and celebrate
So the week is over, and you didn‘t get everything on your list done. Don‘t beat yourself up! Remember that this is part and parcel of being a small-business owner: you will never get everything done. Never!
But pay attention to what you did get done during the week! The beauty of using these productivity tools is that you will be able to look back and see how much you did accomplish!
So give yourself a pat on the back, and treat yourself to something nice for being a productivity ninja![/vc_column_text][vc_row_inner el_id=”#video”][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″][vc_empty_space][vc_column_text]
Your Turn
- Download the time management worksheet: click here
- Watch this video and fill in the worksheet
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