Top 5 Tips for Time Management

If you are in the process of starting your own business, you may feel as if there was not enough time in the day to do everything. To complicate matters, a small business owner, every minute that ticks of the clock represent dollars - earned or wasted.

How extreme? Consider this: In a study conducted by Microsoft, the researchers found that workers used only about 60% of their working time available. This means that on a week of work for five days, they were productive only three of those days. Now apply it to your own business. If time were money, so how would you feel to make money on only 60% of the time you spend at work?

Now, can I have your attention? The reality is that time is easy to lose, and if you have a pre-set idea of ​​how you're going to pass, it will pass before you even know it. But do not worry - here are six tips that every small business owner can use to make the best use of their time.

1) Ignore Your Email

This probably sounds a lot easier than it is not that most people tend to check their every 5-10 minutes. But, if you add up all the minutes it takes to keep checking your inbox and then respond, it's easy to see why it is such a waste of time.

Instead of being a slave to your email, be subject to your time limitations. Allocate two time periods within the day to check and reply to all your messages. This will demand some serious enthusiasm and discipline, but it will make you be able to allocate more time and attention to other tasks that might otherwise be constantly interrupted by the electronic control.

If you're worried that people will be offended by how long it takes to respond, set up an auto- responder that lets people know that you take 10-12 hours to respond, or even 24 hours if it is acceptable for your type of business

2) Do not multi-task

Based in the News and Review, the experts found that only 2.5% of people are able to effectively multi-task and still do well in each activity. In addition, the Institute of Psychiatry, University of London shows that the IQ of a person falls 10 points when they are over-stimulated by e-mails, texts and phone calls.

On the other hand, time management experts believe that focusing on one thing at a time will double the productivity, labor efficiency, and performance. Convince yourself to do one thing at a time by setting a clock or timer for a certain amount of time, and then focus on a task until it is complete.

3) Set milestones by step

It's one thing to set a goal, and another to set a goal where detailed steps and samples needed for the work are described in advance. Many people set common goals and never follow through with them. For instance, think about the millions of New Year's resolutions that are set each year. The problem with these types of lenses is that even if they are good ideas, people do not know how to implement them.

To make the best use of your time in your business, your day should consist of a series of goals that have specific milestones. For example, if your goal is to get five new customers, you should think through and write down all the steps you will take to accomplish it. By breaking larger goals into small steps, you'll be able to accomplish your goals more effectively since you know exactly what steps needs to be done along the way. Plus, who does not love a bit of positive reinforcement? Knowing that you have completed certain steps to conquer your goal can be extremely motivating.

You must set goals before lunch and after lunch, and make sure that the most important are planned before lunch. If you know that you can not leave to eat until your goals are met, you will be more likely to focus on getting tasks done and not get distracted.

4) Organize your time and workspace

It is difficult to work in an organized, when everything around you is in chaos. A study by Esselte shows that 43% of Americans consider themselves to be non-unionized, and the lack of organization for them to stay late at the office at least two nights a week. It does not have to be that way.

Organization experts agree that the first step to increase productivity is to erase and organize your space. Remove anything that is not necessary, and create a system for the things that are. For example, using a color-coded file folder for items that are urgent, to do that day, and another for things that can wait until tomorrow.

It will be necessary to organize not only your space, but also, your time. Most of the people use a time-dividing method where they allow a certain amount of time to do things on their list of things to do. With excellent free tools such as a timer, a gadget that works like an hourglass line, you can set the time and then be alerted when it is in place.

Today, advances in technology have given companies workflow automation tools to increase operational efficiencies. Software management tool such as Mosspaper allows small businesses to track all actions and tasks, large and small, completed in a period of time with a centralized management tool. Having efficient processes and workflow will automatically reduce overhead in other areas such as payroll, processing or employee productivity tracking.

Having good software applications to improve business workflow and process allows an employer to easily track the time spent by employees on different projects. It helps to easily track employee time, which in turn allows you to accurately record billable hours and make the necessary workflow for greater productivity.

5) Write

There is something to engage in a written plan that solidifies somehow in your mind. When writing your plan for the day - including your goals and the details of their - you'll be armed with a plan that should carry you throughout the day effectively. You will, of course, still be faced with disruptions, but if you have a lucidperceptive of what you need to complete for the day, you will be more likely to get back to the job at hand, rather than drifting aimlessly to one to the next task.

Some experts believe that you should create the list yesterday. This way you will be able to start the next day quite ready, rather than wasting time deciding how to approach the tasks and understand what you need to do.

The old adage "time is money" is based on a truth that is not likely to ever change. And if you're in your own business independently, the best way to increase your income is to pay attention to how you spend your time and make adjustments to help you spend more.

Source: Top 5 Tips for Time Management

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