Everyone has their own personal "secret to success." That action they swore by. Entrepreneurs also experience them. And most likely, each piece of advice is distinct. Eat healthfully, take a day off, get your eight hours of sleep, rise early, etc.
It's difficult to distinguish between them when they're all so different, don't you think? No, actually. The majority of successful entrepreneur behaviors revolve around time management. Take a closer look at the aforementioned "secrets" of healthy eating, taking time off, etc. Time management is a crucial component.
Time management is a skill that all business owners must have in order to run a successful enterprise. Do you feel up to the task?
What's the Point of Time Management?
To meet deadlines, expand your business, and produce high-quality work, you must effectively manage your time as an entrepreneur. Time management, however, is not just for the workplace. Achieving your ideal work-life integration is also important, even though it may appear different for entrepreneurs than for employees.
You may prepare yourself for successful entrepreneurial habits like these through good time management.
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Obtaining the seven to nine hours of necessary sleep.
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Healthy eating and exercise (not just living off quick and easy snacks).
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Taking a vacation to engage in interests.
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Time spent with loved ones.
You can prevent burnout by actively managing your time. A Harvard Business Review study found that entrepreneurs are particularly prone to burnout. Again, maintaining balance is key to being a successful business, and time management may help you do that.
How to Improve your Time Management Skills
Like most things, time management requires effort, commitment, patience, and a few pointers to get started.
You can do the following things to hone your time management abilities:
1. Create a Schedule
What do you do when the day first begins? Grab a coffee, settle in, and start reading. Or do you schedule your day by making a list of the things you want to get done? You might find that creating a daily and weekly calendar will help you get better at managing your time.
You can use the following to make a daily or weekly list of things to do:
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Sticky notes.
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Calendar programs (e.g., Google Calendar).
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Tools for project management (e.g., Trello).
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Planner.
You can write down tasks as they come to you, but make sure to order your list by importance. Some prefer to work in a snowball effect, finishing smaller jobs first before tackling larger, more challenging ones. Others prefer to complete the most challenging jobs first. Check what suits you and your schedule the best, and then go for it.
Making a to-do list might help you stay on task and prioritize work when there is so much going on in a day.
2. Stay Organized
Not remembering a meeting or losing a paper is the single biggest time management hindrance. Maintain organization when it comes to files, meetings, and deadlines to help you make the most of your time.
Here are some concepts for organizing and functional office design:
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Dividing up your workspace.
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Utilizing filing cabinets, desks with drawers, or other organizers.
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Arranging your workstation or desk to remove clutter.
3. Don't Procrastinate
How frequently do you put off getting things done that you need to? You might put it off for a few hours, then a few days, then a few weeks. Suddenly, Task XYZ has a 10-minute deadline. Hence, tension, exhaustion, and a recipe for mistakes.
According to the New York Times, about one in five people consistently put off tasks in their personal, professional, financial, and/or social lives. Additionally, if you fall into at least one of these categories, you might think about intentionally limiting your procrastination.
Many of the time management suggestions in this article can help you quit procrastinating (e.g., staying organized, sticking to a schedule, etc.).
4. Skip the Multitasking
Multitasking isn't as beneficial as it seems. Consider the following multitasking-related facts if you insist on multitasking:
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Only 2.5% of people can multitask successfully.
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You must constantly switch between jobs if you multitask, which might result in errors and wasted time.
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Information overload makes chronic multitasking a stress-causing factor.
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You might want to reevaluate whether you multitask in your free time, your job, or both.
Stress, blunders, and the amount of time you spend on activities all rise when you multitask. And as a result, your time management suffers.
5. Delegate Tasks
Is it true or incorrect that delegating chores can help you save time? True! However, a common defense offered by those who refuse to delegate is that they are simply too busy. Thus, in actuality, you're probably too busy to delegate because you're not.
Your choice in hiring them was intentional. Don't be afraid to provide their duties to free up your time, promote independence, and develop leaders.
You can save time and energy for jobs you can't assign by delegation (e.g., meeting with investors). You can reduce your daily to-do list in this manner and spare yourself unneeded worry.
Yes, it's challenging to let go. After all, your business is your child. However, you can improve your time management abilities and free up more time for important activities by delegating.
6. Automate Manual Tasks
At least 25% of workers' workweeks are taken up by manual, repetitive tasks (Report by McKinsey Global Institute). Do you? And if you do, have you thought about how much time automation could potentially save you?
Among the manual, repetitive jobs you might have the following:
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Data entry.
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Payroll processing.
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Email marketing.
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Invoicing customers.
Use software if you want to simplify these duties and manage your time more effectively (e.g., accounting software, payroll software, email marketing software). For instance, using the appropriate software might cut the time it takes to handle payroll manually down to under three minutes.
In conclusion, effective time management will not only save you time, but money. When you’re more efficient with your time you’re more productive, which helps you as you grow your business.
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