7 Steps to Working Smarter in Your Business

Organisation, Time management0 comments

I recently read about a survey from Yorkshire Bank that said that small business owners work an average of 15.3 million extra days each year, in comparison to the average UK employee.  They are working long hours and taking few breaks just so they can look after their clients and keep the business going.

However, regularly working such long hours can seriously affect your physical and mental health.   We all need to recognise the importance of working smarter in our business and investing our time in our mental and physical well-being.

So if you’re feeling overwhelmed by your workload and have got to the point where you seriously need to take time out, then here are 7 steps to help you work smarter and have more time for you.

• Have a specific plan which contains clear goals as to where you and your business are going.  Don’t forget to add personal goals on there as well to help maintain your work/life balance.

• Review your plan regularly and see what tasks have not been done.  Ask yourself whether they are important or not.  If they are important then make a decision to do them or delegate them.  If not then ditch them and move on.

• Block time out in your diary.  Don’t accept every meeting request you get as you’ll end up feeling burnt out and overloaded with work.  Set aside at least 1-2 hours a day in your schedule so you can spend time focused on your projects and what you need to do to achieve your goals.

• Don’t automatically say yes.  It’s easy to say yes to every job you get offered, perhaps because you need the work or don’t want to let people down.   However, you could find that you end up doing work that you hate or working with people that you don’t get on with.  This will just leave you feeling stressed and exhausted so judge each request as it comes in.

• Delegate or outsource non-fee earning tasks.  This gives you more free time to focus on what you do best and what’s important for your business.  If you’re on a tight budget then see if you can barter with someone whose services you need.

• Clear the clutter.  If you find that you’re drowning in paperwork and spend too much time hunting around for files and folders, then take a day out to declutter.  If you find this too overwhelming, then just focus on one part of your paperwork and either throw out what you don’t need or put it into a proper filing system that works for you.  If you’re not naturally organised then bring in someone to help you.

• Set strict working hours and stick to them.  It’s easy to keep going when you’re running your own business, especially if you work from home.  But you can easily lose focus and start to feel demotivated if you try to work long hours without a break.  So set a time when you switch off at night and share this publicly with everyone you work with.

These are just a few measures that you can take to help you work smarter.  By investing your time wisely, you will achieve your goals far more quickly, feel energised and motivated and find that you have more time for yourself.
 

If you want to get more tips on how to manage your time and work effectively in your business, then download a copy of our guide “How to organise your workload so there’s more time for you“. This guide is packed full of time management tips as well as 10 online tools to help you work more productively. Click on the link to download the guide >> How to organise your workload
 

How taking time out is good for business

Small business, Time management0 comments

A few of my friends have started talking about what they’re giving up for Lent this year.  I must admit that I don’t usually give up anything myself because I’m not always sure that I’ll stick with it!  If I want the odd glass of wine or bar of chocolate then I don’t see why I shouldn’t have it.  In my opinion, I work hard so I deserve some treats once in a while.

This got me thinking about how easy it is to go through each week without really thinking about ourselves and what we want.  We’re so busy working, looking after clients, trying to keep up with family and friends that we very often don’t think about our own needs.  So it helps to take time out of work and just relax.  Remember that stress is something that can creep up on us, leaving us feeling exhausted and overwhelmed with all that we’re trying to do. We find it a struggle to handle our day to day activities let alone any emergencies.

So the next time you’re feeling tired and run down, book some downtime into your schedule, even if it’s only for a couple of hours. Put your calls through to voicemail or a call handling service; delegate any tasks that you don’t personally need to handle; and switch off the computer and lock the office door behind you. Use your free time to go for a walk in the countryside, have coffee with friends, or book yourself into a spa.  Whatever it is, just enjoy the moment.   You’ll feel refreshed and ready to face the next challenge!