Time is precious, particularly when it comes to running a small business. Yet, there are never more than 24 hours in a day. Some entrepreneurs respond to this fact of life with focus and purpose while others freak out. But, since we all get the same 24 hours, why is it that some people achieve so much more with their time than others? The answer lies in good time management.
Time management is a set of principles, practices, skills, tools and systems that help one use time to accomplish their goals. It refers to the techniques and strategies that individuals use to maximize the work that they do.
Time, once gone, never comes back. As an entrepreneur, your time is your most valuable asset. This is why it is critical to maximize your time management. Here are five tips for effective time management:
- Complete your most important tasks first - This is the golden role of time management. Each day, identify the two or three tasks that are the most crucial to complete and do these first. Once you are done, the day has already been a success. Now you can move on to other things or you can let them wait until tomorrow - because you’ve finished the most essential.
- Create organizing systems - Being organized saves tons of time, and you don't have to be the most ultra-organized person in the world to take advantage of them. Systems aren't complicated to implement. For example, create a filing system for documents, make sure all items have a place to be stored in your dwelling. Unsubscribe from from email lists if you don't want to receive their content. Find ways for you to streamline your day-to-day tasks.
- Eliminate the unnecessary - This becomes more and more true everyday. Whether professionally or personally, eliminating the ‘unnecessary’ in life goes a long way in making you more productive. What should you consider unnecessary? Strictly speaking, it would be anything that prevents you from reaching a particular goal. If your goal is to clean out your email inbox, then don't spend forty-five minutes on Facebook. If you have a deadline to make at work, don't spend twenty-five minutes fielding unnecessary phone calls. You need to draw a firm line between the ‘necessary’ and ‘unnecessary’ in your life.
- Outsource routine/administrative tasks - There are always repetitive or administrative tasks to be done around any office or business. These may include: filing papers, running errands, calendar management or invoicing. Whether you do it yourself or have someone else do it, you will be paying for the result - the only difference is whether you pay in money or time. Time is a more valuable resource, so consider paying in cash. When you hire out this type of work, you can dedicate your time to income-producing activities such as business development and sales.
- Use an app like ToDoist or Trello to help with planning - There are number of useful apps that can be help improve your productivity and time management. ToDoist, as its name suggests helps you create and manage your to-do lists. It lets you begin by typing in any project you have to do. You can divide your projects into specific tasks or action items. From there, you set a deadline for each task (which can be recurring) and you assign priority levels. It is easy to move tasks around and create the perfect to-do list to match your schedule and available time. Trello functions similarly and is great for visualizing projects and particularly useful for teams.
What do you do to manage your time more efficiently?
