Very few, if any, small business owners feel they have enough hours in the day to get things done. It often feels that your day just got started, and then suddenly it’s over. Worse, you’ve spent time putting out little fires and didn’t cross anything off of your to-do list. What most folks need is a game plan to help save time and be more productive. But who has time to come up with one? We’re here to help. Here are some ideas from Alexander Belsey, writing for the website business2community. These five tactics should help you to harness your time.:
Delegate Tasks – Entrepreneurs are well known for their versatility. But just because you can fulfill a lot of roles doesn’t mean you should! Delegate simpler (or indeed, more specialized) tasks to appropriate team members. Such tasks could be time-consuming but non-demanding so that they do not require inside knowledge and could be outsourced if needed. (And of course, VersaTel Solutions should be your go-to for outsourcing!)
Take an honest look at your to-do list — especially the tasks and processes that recur — and assess just how many of them could be delegated to others. You will then have the time and headspace to focus on the tasks that only you could do – including, but not limited to, creative processes, public appearances, and more.
Do ‘Little And Often’ – The ‘little and often’ approach describes attending to issues and tasks regularly, rather than, for example, annually, or only when they become a problem.
This ‘little and often’ method can apply to tasks, business processes, and especially budgets — where regular reviews and check-ups can help to prevent an overwhelming task from developing.
While the ‘little and often’ approach may at first appear to be taking more time out of your day — but the positive effect is cumulative. Overall, you will save yourself more time by preventing small issues and tasks from quietly becoming major problems in the long term.
Automate Processes –
It is remarkable how many entrepreneurs and other busy people still overlook this tip — but automating processes is a major time saver.
Regular tasks such as paying bills, sending invoices, or filing documents can all be automated. Devote the time to set up automations — or at least simplified processes — and enjoy the time and peace of mind this provides!
Batch Similar Tasks Together – Switching between wildly different tasks can lead to greater mental exhaustion and ‘decision fatigue’. Going from an in-person meeting to working through emails and errands, and then making phone calls, for example, would be draining and inefficient.
Instead, batch similar tasks – such as meetings and phone calls – together, then take care of light work such as emails and errands in the same time block, before working on deep, concentrated duties in their own dedicated slot.
This will help to prevent the fatigue that comes from expecting your brain to make a sudden change – thereby helping you improve your time management and overall efficiency!
Hire Experts – Intelligent, confident business owners do not think they know it all. On the contrary, they are the first to admit when someone else knows better — and they want them on their team! Hiring experts to cover areas where you feel weaker, less confident, or uninformed is a great way to save time.
While the initial investment is likely to cost money, the time and peace of mind you will ‘buy back’ will – more often than not – make the expense worthwhile. This is because experts can do things quickly and correctly for you by utilizing specialist knowledge that may take you months or even years to acquire for yourself.
In other words, why take care of your own bookkeeping, HR or, administrative needs when VersaTel Solutions can do them for you? By hiring our experts, you free up much-needed time.