Have you ever felt like you just don’t have enough time to get everything done you have to get done? Being in business for yourself can take a lot of juggling. From paying bills, to making sales, to networking, to working on improving your business, to managing employees…the list goes on and on and on. And if you add in the fact that you have to try to live a normal life — taking care of the family, cooking dinners, exercising — doesn’t it just seem impossible to get everything done? Time management can sometimes seem like a pipe dream.
Here are some things to help you become more efficient with your time.
1) Time block. We all have things we absolutely have to get done. The reason it takes so long, many times, is because we are unfocused as we do them. Don’t move back and forth from one task to the other. This includes not looking at your email every time a notification pops up. Close the email program while you are working on your task. Just focus on the task at hand and you can get it done significantly faster.
2) Accept no incoming calls. Imagine you are a surgeon. Would you take an incoming phone call? Absolutely not. The task at hand should be first and foremost. So make sure you cut out all of the possible distractions.
If you don't set your agenda, someone else will.
3) Schedule your times to fix fires. Everyone has problems, fires, and things that have to be fixed. How many of them seriously have to be fixed this very minute? Very few of them. You need to set aside time. Schedule times to fix the mistakes and problems that will crop up.
You need to prioritize what these issues are. Just like the military has a threat level, you need to have that in your business. Not every problem should be “drop everything immediately.”
4) Close your email. According to a study done by Gartner, Inc., 53% of corporate users check their email six or more times a day for an average of 49 minutes a day. Just like with phone calls you need to schedule specific times to handle email. I’ve heard people say that if they don’t check their email right away then they get backed up. You need to fix that. If it is your employees THEY work for you, right? Train them better.
Finally, remember these 2 important phrases:
-”If you don’t set your agenda, someone else will!”
-”The tyranny of the urgent does not replace the tyranny of the important.” Paraphrased
To your success,
Your ODC Team
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