Unlock the Secret to Success: 15 Time Management Tips for Small Business Owners

Small business owners wear multiple hats and often juggle various daily tasks. Running a business can be overwhelming and time-consuming, from managing employees to tracking finances. In today's competitive business landscape, time management and productivity have become critical factors for the success of any business. This blog post will discuss practical tips to help small business owners manage their time effectively and increase productivity.

For best results, implement one tip per week, and within a few months, you will be as productive as a successful multi-million dollar business owner.

1. Prioritize Your Tasks 

As a small business owner, it's essential to prioritize your tasks based on their importance and urgency. Start your day by listing all the tasks you need to complete and then categorize them as 'high priority', 'medium priority', and 'low priority.' 

Focus on completing the high-priority tasks first, as they have the most significant impact on your business. This approach ensures that you are using your time efficiently and productively.

2. Use A Planner

A planner or calendar can help you stay organized and manage your time effectively. Create a schedule and allocate time for each task on your to-do list. 

Include buffer time between tasks to handle unexpected events or interruptions. 

A planner also helps you plan and prepare for upcoming deadlines and meetings.

3. Eliminate Distractions 

Distractions can significantly impact productivity and prevent you from completing tasks on time. For example, social media notifications, emails, and phone calls are common distractions that can waste time. 

To avoid distractions, turn off notifications and allocate specific times to check your emails and social media accounts. You can also use productivity tools to block websites that are not work-related.

4. Outsource non-core tasks 

As a small business owner, you may handle tasks not part of your core business operations, such as accounting or social media management.

Outsourcing these tasks to a professional can help you save time and focus on growing your business. Consider hiring a virtual assistant or outsourcing tasks to a freelancer to free up your time.

5. Set Realistic Goals 

Setting realistic goals can help you stay motivated and on track. 

Ensure your goals are specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). Then, break down your goals into smaller, actionable steps and celebrate each milestone you achieve. 

This approach helps you stay focused and motivated, leading to increased productivity.

6. Take Breaks 

Regular breaks throughout the day help you stay focused and avoid burnout. However, working long hours without breaks can decrease productivity and increase stress levels. Instead, take short breaks to stretch, walk around, or have a snack. 

You can also try the Pomodoro technique, where you work for 25 minutes and take a five-minute break.

7. Seek Business Coaching 

Business coaching can help you identify your strengths and weaknesses, set achievable goals, and create an action plan to increase productivity.

In addition, a business coach can provide valuable insights and guidance to help you overcome obstacles and achieve your business goals.

INTERMISSION:

By prioritizing tasks, using a planner, eliminating distractions, outsourcing non-core tasks, setting realistic goals, taking breaks, and seeking business coaching, you can increase productivity and achieve your business objectives. 

Remember, small changes in your daily routine can significantly improve your overall productivity and business success.

Let's keep going!

8. Use Productivity Tools 

There are many productivity tools available that can help small business owners streamline their work processes and increase their efficiency. 

For example, project management tools like Trello and Asana can help you track and manage tasks, while time-tracking apps like RescueTime and Toggl can help you monitor how you're spending your time. 

You can also use automation tools like Zapier or IFTTT to automate repetitive tasks and save time.

9. Delegate Tasks 

Delegating tasks to your employees can help you free up your time and focus on the most critical aspects of your business. Identify the tasks that your team members can do and delegate them accordingly. 

Delegation helps you save time, empowers your employees, and fosters a culture of trust and collaboration within your organization.

10. Invest In Training And Development 

Investing in training and development for yourself and your employees can help you stay up-to-date with industry trends, acquire new skills, and improve productivity. 

Attend workshops and conferences, enroll in online courses, or offer training programs for your team members. 

This investment can lead to improved job satisfaction, higher employee retention rates, and increased productivity and profitability for your business.

11. Practice Self-Care 

Taking care of yourself is critical to maintaining your productivity and well-being. Make sure to get enough sleep, exercise regularly, eat a healthy diet, and take breaks to recharge. 

Consider practicing mindfulness or meditation to reduce stress and improve your focus. Remember, caring for yourself is not selfish; you must be your best self for your business and loved ones.

12. Review And Optimize Your Processes 

Regularly reviewing and optimizing your small business systems and processes can help you identify inefficiencies and areas for improvement.

Analyze your workflows, track your results, and ask for feedback from your team members and customers. 

Use this information to refine your processes and make them more efficient and effective. This continuous improvement approach can help you stay ahead of the competition and achieve long-term success.

13. Stay Organized 

Staying organized can significantly impact your productivity and reduce stress levels. Keep your workspace clean and clutter-free, and use tools like file cabinets, shelves, and storage containers to organize your documents and materials. 

Use digital tools like cloud storage and note-taking apps to organize your digital files and notes.

14. Learn To Say 'No' 

As a small business owner, you may find yourself saying 'yes' to every opportunity that comes your way. 

While it's essential to be open-minded and seize opportunities, learning to say 'no' when necessary is crucial. 

Saying 'no' to non-essential tasks or projects can help you focus on the most critical aspects of your business and avoid over-committing.

15. Celebrate Your Successes 

Finally, remember to celebrate your successes, no matter how small they may seem. 

Celebrating your achievements can help you stay motivated and cheerful and create a culture of gratitude and appreciation within your organization. 

Recognize your team members' contributions and celebrate your milestones with them. This approach can help you build a more engaged and motivated team and achieve tremendous success in the long run.

In conclusion:

In conclusion, time management and productivity are critical factors for small business owners' success. By using productivity tools, delegating tasks, investing in training and development, practicing self-care, reviewing and optimizing your processes, staying organized, learning to say 'no,' and celebrating your successes, you can increase your productivity, achieve your business goals, and lead a fulfilling and successful life as a small business owner. Remember, productivity is not just about doing more; it's about doing the right things, in the right way, at the right time.

ARE YOU READY TO MAKE CHANGES IN YOUR SMALL BUSINESS?

Contact us today at 405-919-9990 or schedule a free consultation by clicking here!

Why Understanding Your Core Values Is A Game-Changer In Business And Life

Have you ever been hesitant to make a decision because something doesn't feel right?

Have you ever made a decision and then immediately regretted it because you feel uncomfortable? 

Have you ever made a decision that you feel good about, but your partner or friend feels uneasy about it? 

The reason for those uneasy feelings? It's typically your gut feeling telling you something does not align with your guiding principles.

Your guiding principles are also why you might feel good about a situation, and those around you may not feel the same. Your guiding principles do not align.

So what are your guiding principles? Guiding principles are your core values.

Core values are defined as: a person's principles or standards of behavior; one's judgment of what is important in life. 

(Value definition provided by Google. Google’s English dictionary is provided by Oxford Languages.)

Your values are emotional driving blocks that lead you to build a better life. Understanding your core values can be a game-changer for your success in business and life. 

Here are a few areas in business and life that you can benefit from by understanding your top three core values. Following is a values assessment where you can quickly discover your top three core values.

CORE VALUES DRIVE YOUR SUCCESS

With the hustle and bustle in business and life, it is easy to lose sight of your initial objectives.

Often we forget to spend time on the things that matter most. 

Understanding your core values assist you in defining what is important to you and what areas of business and life you need to be focused on. 

We succeed when we keep a clear eye upon the prize.

For example, if one of your core values is personal freedom: your overall goal should be to know when to say yes or when to say no to opportunities that may cut into your schedule of commitments that affect your objectives.

When you understand your core values, you will pause and ask yourself if this will be the best use of your time to contribute to your success.

CORE VALUES HELP YOU MAKE BETTER DECISIONS

When you are the boss of your time, you can take the day off and go play golf whenever you want! You can revel in your success and take a break anytime.

But, is this the best use of your time?

By understanding your core values, you are better equipped to hold yourself accountable for what matters most. You will find that accountability is an excellent motivator for getting things done, make better decisions, and stay true to your objectives. 

It also helps you judge your actions clearly and honestly. Regular, honest self-assessment can propel you towards more productivity in achieving the goals you want to achieve. 

CORE VALUES AFFECT RELATIONSHIPS

If things of value to you do not match in a relationship or with a business partner, then the best thing to do is move on, or it will most likely fail down the road if there is not a compromise. 

Some things can be worked out and agreed upon, and other things cannot. 

For example, if you are in a personal relationship and are adamant about wanting children and your other half does not at all, then it is best to break it off and continue seeking a partner that does. 

If you were to go ahead and take the plunge with these values misaligned, then your relationship will more than likely come to an end at some point. 

People can change in some areas, but individual values don't. It's just in our DNA.

In business, an example is that you are in a business partnership. You are committed to working "on" the business and not "in" the business, and your partner feels otherwise. It is best not to enter into the business partnership or find a way to end your current partnership amicably. 

If values are not aligned in relationships, there will always be confrontations like who wants this or that, or who works more or less here and there. This will result in communication breakdowns, eventually causing uncomfortable tension in the future.

DISCOVER YOUR TOP THREE CORE VALUES NOW

After years of study, Michael D Morrison Enterprises has created a "Values Assessment" exercise. This exercise will assist you in discovering your core values in a matter of minutes, allowing you to make quicker decisions that drive your success in business and life.

Get your FREE "Values Assessment" by emailing michael@michaeldmorrison.com and putting "Values Assessment" in the subject line.

Are you ready to achieve success quicker by discovering your core values? Book a discovery call with Michael Morrison today.

15 Time Management Strategies and Tips You Need to Know

Managing your time wisely is a must, but let's be honest—it's not a very easy thing to do. 

We all wish there were more hours in the day, but that's not going to happen anytime soon…at least not for a few billion years. Many of us feel like we don't have enough time, but the good news is there's plenty we can do about it. 

Want to know how to manage time? Check out these great time management strategies. 

1. Create a List of Daily Tasks

First, begin each day by jotting down a list of tasks you wish to complete. 

If you want to learn how to manage time better, list-making is right up there at the top. Formulate a picture of what you want to accomplish before the end of the day, and then break that down into realistic milestones. 

Check off each item as you go, and watch the completed tasks pile up. 

2. Learn to Prioritize

Of course, writing a task-list in random order isn't going to cut it. 

This is where prioritization comes in. Emphasize the more important tasks first, and relegate the less important to the back of the list. 

Priority tasks are those that are more difficult to complete or come with a time limit. If necessary, disassemble these big tasks into smaller, incremental steps that are easier to complete. 

3. Set Time Limits

As time management strategies go, this is big. 

Leaving yourself an open-ended time period to complete a task is just asking for procrastination and time-wasting. Don't acquire this bad habit. 

Set firm but realistic goals for each of your tasks. By now, you should know about how long it might take you to perform a specific task. Try to finish your work within the designated timeframe, and keep aiming for faster finish times. 

4. Avoid Distractions

A major part of learning how to be better at time management is avoiding distractions. 

Sometimes, distractions are unavoidable. But let's be honest—you could do a better job eliminating some very avoidable ones. 

So use the "do not disturb" function on your phone or computer, don't go down the rabbit hole of reading junk articles on the internet, and turn off the TV. Distractions are your enemy—vanquish them! 

5. Avoid Multitasking

This is related to the above. Time management at work is difficult, and sometimes it's tempting to try to do several things at once. 

Sometimes, you don't have much of a choice. But try to pare down the multitasking as much as possible. Focus on one thing, do it well, and follow it through to completion. Then move to the next thing. 

Trying to do everything at once will only leave you with nothing accomplished. 

6. Time Management Apps Are Your Friend

This age of computers and digital devices comes with innumerable distractions. 

But there are also plenty of newfangled applications to help you focus and manage your time. Organizational apps like Trello and Toggl, and time managers like RescueTime and Remember The Milk help you organize your tasks and boost your productivity. 

7. Set Aside Time for Emails

Look, we all get caught up scrolling through the inbox, checking and responding to emails. Or we instantly respond to emails as they roll in. 

But this is another distraction, and if you can help it, set aside a chunk of time during the day for answering emails. Turning off email notifications would also help out. 

Either way, this is about prioritization (see #2). Designate certain times to check and respond to emails (in the morning, at lunchtime, and late afternoon), and ignore them the rest of the time (if you can). 

8. Perform Weekly Time Audits

Auditing your performance every week will help you track your progress and better understand your time management. 

Keep a record each day of how much time it takes you to complete your tasks. Then, at the end of the week, you can see how you've done. Look for those areas where you performed better than you thought, and find where you need some more work. 

9. Change up Your Schedule

Sometimes you need to shake things up a bit. 

If you find that you're still having trouble organizing your time, despite using various management tricks, you might consider a schedule change. Maybe you need to wake up earlier or focus on certain tasks in the morning and others in the afternoon. 

Change your routine every once in a while, and see if that helps out. After all, everyone gets into a rut sometimes. 

10. Always Have Backup Tasks

It's good to have a little ancillary list of low-priority, but still important tasks always on hand. 

The reason is that sometimes unforeseen circumstances insert a hard break in your main task routine. A computer program stalls, the network is down, or the internet has a meltdown. Could be you're waiting on someone else in order to complete your task, and they're not cooperating with your schedule. 

Whatever it is, it's always a good idea to have a few backup tasks that need to be done and that can fill up your wait-time. 

11. Organize Your Space

Time management strategies are always helped by efficient space management strategies. 

If your workspace is a sloppy mess, get in there and get organized. Put your desk in order, and remove all that clutter and those piles of papers that have been accumulating for at least a decade. 

The same goes for your digital space. Take the time to organize all the files and apps on your computer, and put your inbox in order by using all those handy folders and other organizational features. 

12. Use the Calendar!

A calendar is your friend. And it's also a great way to organize your tasks and manage your time. 

If you prefer the old, physical kind of calendar, then go nuts. Schedule tasks with differently colored pens and markers, fill it with Post-It notes, and do whatever else you need to organize your time. 

If you'd rather use the digital kind, avail yourself of all the many features. Set up reminders, devise schedules, and use alerts to keep you focused and on track. 

13. Don't Try to Be a Perfectionist

Obsessive perfectionism is the nemesis of good time management. 

If you suspect you're a perfectionist, figure out a way to moderate this behavior. If you're always trying to follow your tasks through to an unrealistic standard of perfection, you'll be spending hours on it. 

Oftentimes, what's needed is for the work to be completed, not completed to the point of being a masterwork. Sometimes, good is good enough. Stop trying to be perfect. 

14. Learn to Delegate

It can be a little unnerving to entrust one of your tasks to someone else. But if it's possible to delegate some work to a teammate, then by all means do it. 

If you offload some of your tasks to others, this will lessen your workload and allow you to concentrate on the more important tasks of the day. Start with the less important tasks, and see how the teammate does. If they do a good job, you can begin to share more important tasks. 

15. Nope Out When You Have To

There comes a time when you have to put your foot down and say "no" like you mean it. 

If you're always taking on extra work from co-workers, or fielding their requests, you won't have time to complete your work. And what response will you have when asked why you didn't finish your tasks? 

Create some boundaries, and maintain them. When your work is completed, then you can assist others. You can only do so much, and there are only so many hours in the day. 

Bonus Time Management Strategies

So those are fifteen time management ideas to help you get the job done. 

If you focus on them, you'll start to see results in managing your time. But let's look at a few bonus tips to further help you get organized: 

Bonus Tip #1: Do the Most Important Tasks in the Morning

That's right. Get the most serious chores done right away, when you've got the energy and drive to tackle them. Leave the lesser stuff for the afternoon. 

Bonus Tip #2: Don't Wait on Inspiration

Sometimes you're just not feeling it. You haven't got the divine "spark" instilled in your brain by the Nine Muses. Never mind—dive into the work and the motivation and inspiration will follow. 

Bonus Tip #3: Do Less

Understand that you can't always get everything done in a single day. Look at your list of tasks, and decide which ones are really important. Focus on fewer tasks, and do them well. 

Use These Time Management Tips to Meet Your Goals

We hope these time management strategies will help you better organize your time and achieve your daily goals. Remember, all it takes is determination and a little chutzpah. 

Are you ready to explore the many ways you can succeed in life? Go ahead and book a discovery call with Michael Morrison.  

How To Get More Done: 3 Daily Habits To Be More Productive

Stop reading personal development books! 

Most of us know what to do; we do not do them because it is too much effort to take action on the tasks we have learned. Or, what we learned does not seem applicable in our situation. We then pick up another bestseller, hoping there is a more straightforward solution.

Yes, procrastination is also to blame. Most people procrastinate because they are afraid of the possible outcome, failure. Others procrastinate because they don't like change; the task is too hard, confused about how to tackle it, overwhelmed, lacking clarity, or are distracted easily.

If you can identify with any of these, I've got three simple habits I use every day to get me closer to my goals, move the needle, and get more done.

Increase productivity and become highly efficient with these daily habits.

Use A Notepad

You are more likely to get things done when you write things down—personal and business.

Carry your notepad everywhere; in the car, by your nightstand, on your desk, in a meeting. Everywhere!

Ever been driving in the car and remember you need to pick up dry cleaning by five? Write it down when you are stopped. Ever been in a meeting and someone mentions something that reminds you of something you need to do when you get back to the office or home? Write it down. Ever woke up in the middle of the night with a life-changing idea? Write it down.

Ever been daydreaming by the pool, and remember you need to plan that particular party for next week or next month? Write it down.

Our brains are distracted every second, with songs, advertising, social media, conversations. It isn't easy to remember everything we need to do.

Your notepad will be your brain dump so that you can continue to focus on the task at hand but not forget what you need to do later. Use the notepad for business and personal responsibilities. Carry it with you everywhere; you can continuously prioritize what is most important to tackle before days end.

Review your notepad frequently throughout the day, crossing off completed tasks and prioritizing the uncompleted tasks so that you are more productive and get more things done.

Time Block

It takes an average of 20 minutes to focus on the tasks at hand to be productive. Each time a distraction occurs, it takes 20 minutes to re-engage with your productivity. 

The human brain can focus on two-hour durations. 

Block out 60-minute intervals each day with no distractions. Start with one hour, and once you see the benefit of getting more done, add another hour.

Turn off the cell phone, silent email alerts, close the door, turn off social media, and any other possible distraction to be more productive.

Focus On Systems, Not The Goals

"Success is nothing more than a few simple disciplines, practiced every day." - Jim Rhone

Goals are essential for success. But, they should not be the primary focus.

Focus on the day to day tasks that must be executed for the goal.

Focusing on the goal is a distraction. Focusing on the daily disciplines is what accomplishes the objectives.

If your goal is to lose 15 pounds, focus only on the 1,500 calories each day. You will get there with this system.

If your goal is to close $150,000 in sales, determine how many qualified leads need to be reached each day. You will get there with this system.

If your goal is to write a book, determine how many words need to be typed each day. You will get there with this system.

Conclusion: How To Be More Productive

Start with these simple daily habits.

1. Use A notepad

2. Time block

3. Focus on systems, not the goals

Click here if you are ready to "Get Serious" and take your productivity to the next level!