Being an entrepreneur means wearing many different hats, often all at once – you’re CEO, marketer, customer service rep, and you’re probably the one tidying up the office and making sure there’s enough tea and coffee in the kitchen as well. With so much on your plate, it’s easy to feel as though there just aren’t enough hours in the day, but you can do something about it. Mastering time management isn’t about cramming more into your schedule (even if that’s what it might seem like at first), but instead it’s about working smarter, not harder.
So what does that really mean? Don’t worry – keep reading and you’ll soon see how to make the most of the time and resources you have with these handy time management tips for busy entrepreneurs.
Prioritize Tasks
Although it might feel as though every single task you have to do is just as important and urgent as the next, when you look at them more closely and with a more objective eye, you’ll see that’s not the case at all – some are important and urgent, but some definitely aren’t, and once you’re able to tell the difference, time management becomes a lot easier.
Start each day by looking at your to-do list and working out which tasks are the most important – pick three. These should be the jobs that are going to boost your business the most, so pick wisely because those are the tasks you’re going to focus on first, and once they’re done you can move onto other, smaller, less urgent tasks, knowing that even if you don’t get everything done, you’ve pushed your business at least a few steps further.
Learn To Say No
As an entrepreneur, every opportunity can feel like you’ve got to do it or you’ll be putting your business in danger and customers won’t be impressed. However, the truth is that you just can’t do it all, no matter how much you might want to, and saying yes to everything means spreading yourself too thin, which hurts your business and productivity (not to mention your physical and mental health).
So when you’re asked to do something, take a little time to really evaluate the request and don’t be afraid to say no if you don’t have the time or the experience to do the job to the best standard possible (or even if you just don’t want to do it – remember, you’ve got to be happy in your work as well!). When you say yes to something you’ll have to say no to something else which is why it’s so important to say yes to the right things.
Delegate And Outsource
If you’re doing everything yourself, you’re not managing time – you’re just surviving. Delegation is the key to fixing all of that and becoming a much more successful entrepreneur in the process, so make sure you hand tasks off to other people when you need to as long as they can do the job just as well (or even better) as you can.
Hiring a virtual assistant is another great way to lighten your load and give you some time back because they’ll do all the admin tasks that are essential but repetitive and time-consuming. Then, with the time you’ve freed up, you can focus on growing your business and helping your customers, and that’s how you’ll find success.
