Being your own boss and a small business owner, quite often you find yourself out of time. There simply isn’t enough time in the day to achieve your daily tasks which can further impair your focus and ability to manage your time effectively and advantageously. Focusing on how you spend your time, in the beginning, will better help you in the future. Let’s explore some Time Management for the Small Business Owner.
Log your time
You cannot effectively manage your time if you first don’t learn how you use your time and where it actually goes. What you think is only taking you 20 minutes is in actuality taking you closer to an hour. It goes without saying, time flies when fully engaged.
Using a logging app such as Rescuetime will send you weekly reports that will show you exactly what your productivity is and exactly what’s eating up all your extra time. Apps like this are meant to show you exactly what you are doing in a day, where your time is most productive and where you are wasting your already valuable time. Apps like this are used on your pc, phone, and tablet and are usually automated and run in the background. Simple and oh so effective.
Delegation
As your business grows and your time gets even more limited, you have now likely gained some valued and trusted employees. This is your time to delegate some of your tasks to your employees to further free up your time helping you to focus on more pressing and pertinent issues at hand. The stress relief of delegating tasks to your employees will help you regain some balance in your day and most certainly increase your productivity. A win-win all around.
Make a To Do list
Be sure to leave no task undone though while you make your to-do list. Start your day every day by taking a moment, in the beginning, to categorize, prioritize and delegate your tasks specific to your day at hand. You may find it easier to set a time limit in which to accomplish your specific task which only furthers your efficiency and productivity at the end of the day and week. If you do happen to leave tasks undone, as with anything else, they will compound and you will find yourself right back where you started. Be diligent and reasonable with setting your goals and tasks for the day.
Get rid of Distractions
Outside interference and distractions are a major contributor to inefficient time management and whether you are a home-based business or anywhere else, having peace of mind and a quiet work environment is vital. Once your distractions are gone, you will regain your focus and be able to more fully concentrate on your daily tasks and goals.
Self Care
Remember that without you, there is no business. No matter what, YOU are priority number 1. If you are not getting enough rest, not taking the time to defuse and decompress from your stressful workday, you will begin to wear yourself out. A proper diet and an exercise routine are also extremely beneficial in your own self-care routine. A happy, healthy and well-balanced business owner is much more prone to have a very productive and effective time managed day.
Manage your Most Important tasks
Managing and tackling your most important tasks at the onset of your day really sets a standard for your day and ensures that your top priorities are taken care of first thing. There is nothing like having to scramble to get one of your most important tasks of the day done when in all rights, should have been done right away. The margin of error is small for a Small Business Owner so getting things done right away the first time will provide an enjoyable day and make your tasks much more pleasant.
Now that you’ve used the steps and have found out where all that time is really going, remember that these are not just Time Management steps for the beginner business owner but for any business owner and for anybody in general. Being able to maximize the hours of your day will give you that extra bit of freedom, space, last push you need and deserve. Do you have your own steps for Time Management for Small Business Owners?
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Looking for more bookkeeping information or tips? Check out our post on 5 Common Bookkeeping Pitfalls – and How to Avoid Them