“If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up someplace else.”
Yogi Berra
Have you ever ended the day and wondered what you actually accomplished? Have you ever started the day already feeling overwhelmed not know what needed to be done? Do you spend time reacting to things all day rather than proactively pursuing a goal?
If you answered “yes”, then you probably didn’t have a clear plan for your day or week. We can’t really manage time, we all have the same hours in the day, however, we can intentionally choose HOW we use that time so that it works for us.
Plan Ahead
Know what you are going to do and when you are going to do it. Set a time to plan your week as well as each day. Get comfortable using a calendar. Whether it is Google calendar, the calendar on your phone or a daily planner; schedule every meeting, event and task to be done each and every day. If you don’t know how long a task is going to take, estimate it and then note how long it actually takes for next time.
When one activity is done, refer to the calendar to see what is next. This helps avoid distractions, wasted minutes as well as potential for forgetting an important task or meeting.
Set Boundaries
YOU run your business, don’t let others dictate your priorities. Set boundaries around your schedule. If you need one day a week to work on your business, do not accept any meetings or event invites on that designated day. It is OK to say no to non-urgent requests.
Schedule Downtime
Don’t schedule every minute of your day. You will hate your life. Be sure to build in breaks and a clear stopping point. I love what I do and can keep working well past 6pm. I have found that to have balance in my life, I need to stop working at a certain time to give myself space to breathe before thinking about evening plans.
Once you get in a solid routine of scheduling your week and being productive, not simply busy, you may be able to identify regular daily, weekly or monthly tasks, how long they take and whether or not they are all the best use your time. This would also be a good time to consider outsourcing work that you don’t enjoy doing, is below your pay rate or stealing time away from income generating activities.
Do you know what you are doing today?
What I Can’t Stop Talking About
My second monitor
I often have many programs open at one time and need to refer to one while working on another. I find it difficult to do that on just one screen. The solution to getting my work done efficiently is having a second monitor so I can view multiple programs at once. I have an HP 24 inch screen which is connected to my laptop via an HDMI cord. There are many brands on the market for around $100. It was an invaluable investment for my business.
Gina Havranek, of Elevate Virtual Solutions, is a virtual assistant helping solo professionals reclaim valuable time by handling time consuming administrative tasks such database management, email marketing and social media scheduling creating peace of mind, freedom and less stress.
Schedule a free 30 minute consultation with me to talk about your business.
