After 25+ years of entrepreneurship, I’ve learned a few lessons along the way on how to get through the day, the week, the month and the year without the feel of drowning from my to-do list, endless emails, voicemails and meetings, and client requests coming in so fast, you feel as if you’ll never catch up. Your day becomes easier when you are organized and prepared. I’m not just talking about entering every detail of your life’s activities into a day planner, or setting up a color-coded filing system. While those are great ideas, it’s more about balance, mental organization, mindfulness and humility. Find balance in what you can do, schedule time for rest and appointment free days. Don’t overschedule and don’t fret if things go awry and an emergency scraps your day’s plan. Just adjust and revise for the days ahead. It’s about letting go of perfectionism, and humbly realizing as well as you plan you cannot control all the obstacles that may come your way. Here are a few tips I have discovered along the way to allow me to find ways to enjoy what I do without all the noise and chaos (internally and externally).
Mindfulness of Work & Life Balance
Long before I heard of the benefits of mindfulness, which I wholeheartedly subscribe to, I called it compartmentalization and in fact wrote a blog about it in 2020. (Read Compartmentalization) To me, it was the way I handled each task or issue at hand, focusing all my attention on it and mindfully blocking out the other noise. Essentially I compared it to a house, when you are in the kitchen, you do not know what’s going on in the living room or an upstairs bedroom, until you leave the kitchen and enter that room. So when I am at work in my office, my focus is purely on work and nothing else exists in that moment. And when I was at home, I was living my life, focused on family, friends and my household. In those moments, I was not an entrepreneur but a wife, mother, daughter, sister, friend. My work and my life do not intertwine, comingle or at most times affect the other. In fact, its one reason I do not talk about work when I’m with friends and family, because in that moment, I’ve put a mental ‘CLOSED’ sign up and the business will not reopen until Monday at 8:00am.
*If a nagging thought are interfering with your ability to focus on work or life, then always have a journal or planner around to jot it down and forget it until you can address it. Put it out of your mind and into your planner instead.
Learn to Delegate
When you accept the fact that ‘You Cannot Do it All,’ whether because of exponential business growth, high demand or your inability to keep up, then it’s time to learn the art and the gift of delegation. When you do so with planning and consideration, you’ll find you are more productive and less stressed.
“Handing off tasks to others is not easy for me. I am a great idea person, as I think most entrepreneurs are. However, I am not a natural delegator. This is true for a number of reasons: I want to be very hands-on with all aspects of my business. I often think I’m the only one who can do certain tasks because of my attention to detail and quality. And I want everything done now. However, when I realized I was working way too many hours and needed better work-life balance, I knew delegating more would be key to making that happen.”
Nate Huskins, founder and president of Marshal Group LLC
The Five (5) Principles of Delegation.
- Right Task.
- Right Circumstances.
- Right Person.
- Right Direction/Communication.
- Right Supervision/Evaluation.
Finding responsible people that are diligent, consistent and hard-working and ongoing challenge, made harder since the pandemic. When it comes to marketing, it’s essential to think like your customer. So when hiring and delegating, think like an employee or subcontractor. What work conditions would you like? What type of flexibility and schedule would you like? How would you like to be treated, spoken to or given direction? Would you like training and guidance along the way, when needed and when asked? How would you feel if all you heard was criticism, correction but never praise? Would you like to be treated as part of a team or an insubordinate? While many of these questions seem obvious, I’m often shocked at the way employees and team members are often treated, and yet those same employers complain they cannot keep their staff for more than a few months or even weeks. The Golden Rule of Business is to treat others as you want to be treated, and that not only applies to customers but to your team as well.
Once you build a team that you trust and feel comfortable with, then don’t be afraid to delegate … test out their skillsets, teach and guide them so they understand not only the task but the process and why it’s done a certain way, and be patient. Mistakes are going to happen, mishaps are learning lessons along the way. Don’t overreact, don’t lose your cool, just advise and revise. As you delegate tasks to your various team members, you will begin to see strengths and weaknesses, so you can better choose which task to delegate to which employee. Finding each person’s comfort zone will improve their job satisfaction and improve workflow and productivity.
Celebrate your successes.
The life of an entrepreneur is one big rollercoaster, and the downward slopes can be seriously low. So, it’s so important to celebrate the successes that you get, no matter how small they are. This fuels motivation and boosts self-confidence, making it easier to deal with the difficult times that will inevitably come. You can record your goals achieved, your successes large and small and positive client feedback in a Gratitude journal so that when you do have a tough time, you can look back and remember the highlights! Think how far you’ve come and how much you’ve grown. Your success has been hard earned and you deserve to celebrate them.
Focusing on the positives, the successes, will keep your state-of-mind healthier and happier. But don’t ignore the failures either, instead consider them as learning lessons, not regrets. Analyze the cause of the mistake: what went wrong, what changes could have been made, and how can you improve processes in the future to avoid that pitfall again? Once you have discovered the reason for the failure, make needed changes and then forget it. Keep on keeping on, as they say.
Reflect and adjust.
One of the most powerful things you can do to improve yourself is to learn the power of self-assessment. I recommend regularly setting aside time to reflect on your goals, accomplishments and challenges for your personal and professional growth. It’s a great way to notice trends in your successes, allowing you to identify areas of opportunity as well as areas of improvement. Also, it allows you to discover things you may not have realized about yourself that can help you achieve your goals.
Regularly throughout the year, take time to consider your weekly schedule. How do you schedule time for answering emails, voicemails, scheduling and replying to social media content, marketing, website updates, managing your team, meetings with clients and partners, networking, financial reporting, invoicing clients, paying bills and getting the work done needed to pay those bills? Parsing out your schedule so there is organization and blocks of time for each task will reduce stress and reduce the chances of burnout. Don’t forget to take time away from the office for exercise, to take a walk, to play with your dogs, little breaks through the day that help refresh you to keep going. If your current schedule is not working for you or you don’t have a current schedule, reflect and readjust. Need help? Call Startup Production to either manage or create a marketing schedule for you.
Prioritize Time Management
Time is a valuable commodity for entrepreneurs. Use tools such as calendars, time blocking, and to-do lists to organize your schedule effectively. Prioritize tasks based on their importance and impact on your business. As they say, “Failing to Plan is Planning to Fail”. Plan your day before you start it. Ask yourself, what is a priority today? What three items must I get done today? Be realistic, if you start your day with a list of more than dozen items, its very unlikely you’ll get them all completed – much less started, and you’ll start your day feeling overwhelmed. When you’re trying to rush through a crowded to-do list, you’ll feel less creative and your end-product will suffer.
Increase Productivity by Decreasing Time-Wasters
Before we begin our time management workout routine, let’s begin by seeing where we are spending our time. Create a list of your typical day … from the time you get up to the time you get up. Time is money, as they say, so where are you spending your valued time? Just like creating a budget, you have to track what you’re actually spending your time on to reveal any areas or habits that are blocking you from reaching your goals.
Use a time-tracking tool for a few days (Clockify, RescueTime, Monday.com, MyHours) to see how you are using your time, when you’re most productive and when you’re more likely to fall into time-wasters (like social media, internet surfing, online shopping, mindless TV watching). In conclusion, effective time management is a key factor in achieving success in both business and life. By prioritizing your time and putting value on each hour of your day will make you realize the potential for success is there as long as you are driven and self-disciplined enough to commit to it.
Plan out your Day with a daily planner.
“The most efficient way to live reasonably is every morning to make a plan of one’s day and every night to examine the results obtained.”
– Alexis Carrel
- Each morning, review your day’s tasks and make a schedule on how you will accomplish those tasks: starting with the most urgent, most important and then moving on to the less urgent tasks, but still important for your success: answering emails, scheduling meetings, paying bills, marketing your business, and providing your products/services to your clients.
- Check off each task as you complete your day’s list, there is no greater satisfaction than checking that box, crossing it off and removing it off your to-do list.
- Leave time in your day for unexpected and unplanned interruptions and emergencies.
- At the end of the day, review what is still pending, what new tasks have come in and what deadlines you are facing for the following day. Write those task items on your schedule for the following workday or days. Don’t put too much on one day as you’re setting yourself up for failure.
- Take a moment to celebrate all the items you crossed off your list today and pat yourself on the back! It’s an accomplishment when you stay focused, manage your time and put effort and mindfulness into your work.
- Shut down your PC and shut down that nagging to-do list from your mind. It’s time to relax, unwind and reboot for the next day and be present for your loved ones. You’ve written out your to-do list already, so now let it go for the next 12-14 hours. If you think of something else that night, write it down and forget it until tomorrow or Monday.
- Start back at number one!
Batch Process your Daily/Weekly Tasks
Batching, or batch processing, means grouping similar tasks so you can work on them together. Group them by objective or function. For example: Monday morning: Review emails received over weekend or holiday. Tuesday and Thursdays: Schedule Meetings on Zoom/Phone or In Person First & Third Wednesday of the month: Schedule Social Media for the next two weeks. Last 30 Minutes of workday: Go over tomorrow’s schedule and write out pending tasks. Having a routine will help you schedule wisely, plot out your day and week, increase productivity and reduce stress.
Avoiding burning is imperative for a business owner, whether large or small business. So have a set schedule and knowing what is coming has made all the difference for me. Write out a sample weekly schedule, then apply it to your calendar, and don’t forget to mark out time for your tasks as you would do for an appointment with a client or colleague. When you block out time, schedule ahead, you’re less likely to allow the day run away from you, unsure of where the day went and getting little done on your list. Instead of feeling productive and stressed, take control of your time and your schedule.
Organize your office and your digital files.
“For every minute spent organizing, an hour is earned.”
– Benjamin Franklin
How much time do you spend looking for lost items? Where is my pens? Where did I save that document on my PC? Where is that Powerpoint presentation they sent me? Where is that email that had the agenda attached? A clean and organized office, desk, workspace, email inbox, digital files, cloud files, supplies and file folders, will save you so much time in the long run.
Spend a day going through your file cabinets, your supply closet, your PC file folders and your office => clean out, discard what’s not needed, and make piles according to categories. Reorganize so it makes sense for your business, your typical day, your presentations, and even when you’re on the road. Buy the organization materials to make it easier, storage boxes, color-coded file folders, and purchase/install online apps to organize your cloud and digital files, calendar of events, and communication channels. When you can locate what you need quickly and easily, you reduce your stress, increase productivity and save yourself ALOT of time.
Take Time to Rest
“Take rest. A field that has rested gives a bountiful crop.”
– Ovid
It may seem contradictory to say resting and relaxing can actually help you be more productive, but it’s proven to be true. Studies show rest (even a 20-minute nap) can boost productivity in the areas of focus and decision-making. A well-rested brain is better equipped to concentrate on tasks, process information, and make rational choices.
“Sleep is believed to help with memory and cognitive thinking. Brain plasticity theory, a major theory on why humans sleep, posits that sleep is necessary so the brain can grow, reorganize, restructure, and make new neural connections.”
– SleepFoundation.org
Get some sleep! And Goodnight!
