In my last post I asked you “are you wasting time or investing time?”, and the resounding feedback from people was the very realisation that they are in fact wasting time. Time is such a valuable resource. It is added to our invisible bank account every day, and yet if we don’t use it all up it disappears at the end of the day. Now I bet if instead of time being deposited in the imaginary bank account everyday it was cash, and you were told to use up all the cash every day or else it would be taken away. Then come hell or high water you would find a way to use up all that cash
No matter how much you may believe in abundance, time is the one resource that is non-renewable. Every moment is precious and once it’s gone, it’s gone for good. Which is why the biggest shift you can make to grow your business is to get a handle on how you spend your time.
Most entrepreneurs waste tons of time on tasks that don’t add to their bottom line and only serve to deplete their energy.
Why? Fear of:
- creating boundaries
- someone feeling uncomfortable
- saying no
- being visible
- failing (or succeeding!)
- not being good enough
- being too busy
- what others will say
The bottom line is, these are all excuses or distractions to keep you from taking a powerful leap forward.
So let me share with you my personal favorite time secrets with you. By implementing even just a few of these strategies you’ll see a remarkable up-leveling in your energy, your sense of freedom and in how much you easily get accomplished every day.
- Hire someone to run errands, clean your house and do your laundry.
Even if you feel a little guilty at first, I know I did, you’ll thank me once you’re freed up from routine tasks that are so easy to have someone else take care of for you. - Delegate email to an assistant.
This was the first task I hired a virtual assistant to do and it saved me hours every week. Remember, you can’t be both the assistant to your business and its leader! - Schedule specific times each day to respond to email.
Allocate 15 minutes in the morning and another 30 in the afternoon. As a result you can keep your inbox to less than 30 items - Give up your to-do list. Seriously!
Schedule all of your projects and activities into your calendar, just like appointments. This one action helps get me ahead on my projects. - Use time-blocking to free up your time and give you focus.
Schedule regular tasks such as writing your ezine, serving clients, giving Discovery sessions, paying bills, etc. for the same days of the week, from week to week. Just watch out for any “I can’t because…” excuses, as they are a clear indicator of where you need clearer boundaries. - Create a weekly marketing action list so you know your priorities.
Deciding in advance how many contacts you’ll make and how often will keep you from procrastinating on the tasks that will ultimately add the most cash flow to your business. - Turn your mobile phone and email notifications off during focused time.
Trust me, the world WILL continue to run even though you may be offline for an hour or two. And you’ll be happily surprised at the peace of mind and freedom you gain from this one simple action. - Designate your mornings for marketing.
Investing just 60 minutes each morning creates the momentum you need to increase your income. Time spent reaching out to one new potential joint venture partner, writing a thank you note to someone you just met, writing a promotional email, placing a call requesting a speaking opportunity … and more … is a great investment in your business. - Get accountable to a coach or a colleague who won’t let you slide.
Imagine telling someone every day what you’re going to accomplish and by when. Enough said. - Be aware of when others’ priorities are colliding with yours.
Whether you need to create a “do not disturb” sign for your door or get a sitter for your kids during work hours, what’s critical is to realize that growing your business serves your family and serves the people you’re meant to help.
So what strategies are you going to start implementing right now? Just starting with one strategy will free up your time and give you more focus as you start investing your time in growing your business. And the more time your invest, the better your results will be and so it becomes a self-fulfilling circle.
Julia Felton (aka The Business Wrangler) is the founder of Business HorsePower. Business leaders, entrepreneurs and executives hire her to accelerate their business performance by harnessing the energy of their people to work more collaboratively together. By aligning purpose with actions the team achieves exponential results as everyone starts pulling in the same direction.
Julia believes that business is a force for good and through designing purpose-driven businesses that leverage the laws of nature, and the herd, you can create businesses founded on the principles of connection, collaboration and community that make a significant impact in the world.
