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“I have too much time on my hands and don’t know how to fill it all,” said no business owner ever.
It may seem like there aren’t enough hours in a day, especially during peak seasons in your industry or during certain times of the year when you have countless personal obligations competing with your professional responsibilities. You don’t have to alter the space-time continuum in order to get more done, however. Incorporate these strategies into your daily routine to use your time more efficiently in any work environment.
Whether you work from a home office, use a co-working space, have a private practice, or spend most of your time in the field, the environment should be dedicated to business activities and should facilitate successful use of your time. Your work atmosphere isn’t just the physical space you occupy, however, it is the entirety of that space and includes habits and distractions, as well as personal and virtual interactions.
Pixie’s Lost & Found Survey reports that the average American wastes 2.5 days per year looking for items they’ve misplaced. It doesn’t matter if you’re searching for your cell phone, keys, glasses, or important documents, that’s a tremendous time drain. Looking for lost items can also make you late for customer appointments, which erodes your credibility with them.
Think about the business necessities you frequently find yourself searching for and areas where you could be better organized. It might be something as simple as designating a spot to keep display cabinet keys in a retail business or a more complex solution like implementing an electronic document management system that construction workers can access from the office, a job site, or any other location. At the end of every day, tidy up your space so you can dive right into work the next day.
Balancing the form and function of your work environment with its comfort is essential to time management and productivity. If your back aches from standing at a register for a short period of time or you get headaches from looking at your computer monitor, you’re more likely to become distracted and find an excuse to move around and do something else. These time-draining discomforts can usually be remedied with a mini makeover of your work environment, including:
Your mind should be as comfortable as your body. Personalizing your workspace is the first step. The second step is incorporating subconscious cues that trigger productivity. You might want to listen to soft music or ambient sounds. The Journal of Consumer Research reports that working with background noise at levels between 50 and 70 decibels enhances performance on creative tasks.
A change in scenery can also stimulate different parts of the brain when you find yourself lacking motivation and wasting time. Consider creating a small nook filled with greenery and pillows where you can get away from your desk for a portion of the workday, placing a picnic table outside that can double as a desk on pleasant afternoons, or installing a laptop ledge at standing height next to a window.
Every workplace has distractions. A few each day are good and prevent burnout, but too many distractions thwart productivity and negatively impact your mood. A study from UC Irvine found that people work faster to compensate for interruptions, which increases stress, frustration, and time pressure. Anticipating and eliminating distractions make it possible to get more done in less time and be happier overall. Productivity can be increased by:
Making others aware of your plan to eliminate distractions can also be beneficial. They will be more respectful of your time, limiting unnecessary interruptions throughout the day. If you’re combatting self-distraction, ask a peer to check in with you on a regular basis to increase your accountability.
You’ve probably heard of the Pareto Principle in reference to business or economics. Also known as the 80/20 Rule, this cause-and-effect theory essentially states that 20 percent of activities account for 80 percent of results. This concept also applies to scheduling your time.
There are a few hours each day that people are most productive and creative. Focusing your energy during this “prime time” yields the most results. It’s important to note that different people have different biological prime times, and you should tailor your schedule according to your internal clock rather than someone else’s. That time might be at 5 a.m. before anyone else in your home is awake, or it might be at 10 a.m. after you’ve been to the gym and had a cup of coffee.
Whether you use an app, a handwritten list, or another method for scheduling, enter creative, complex, or analytical tasks in your prime time slot first. Reducing distractions is especially important during this time.
Next, slot in meetings, appointments, or other tasks with set times. If any of these things conflict with your prime time, try to reschedule them.
Schedule the one task or activity you most dread before anything else. Otherwise, you’re more likely to procrastinate and become distracted. Once it’s out of the way, you’ll find it faster and easier to check off other items on your to-do list.
Group related activities together. Jack Dorsey, a co-founder of Twitter and CEO of Square, refers to these as “themed days.” For example, Monday is designated for management activities; Tuesday for product development; Wednesday for marketing. Why? Different tasks demand different types of thinking. By batching related tasks together, your brain isn’t constantly reorienting and you save time.
This monotasking principle also applies to administrative tasks. Don’t answer your emails and phone calls throughout the day. Instead, block out specific times to do this. By monotasking, you may also discover ways to automate processes and be more organized using Outlook’s Quick Steps or Gmail’s time-saving functionalities.
Once you’ve created a schedule, try it out for a couple of weeks and make adjustments as necessary. Proactively focus on the things you can change rather than the things you can’t. Your attitude, emotions, and judgments have a tremendous impact on your productivity.
Delegate tasks you really don’t enjoy. This not only frees up your time for more important things but also makes the delegatee feel valued and contributes to their career growth. If you don’t have an employee you feel comfortable delegating to, outsourcing can accomplish the same results.
Finally, don’t feel like you have to do it all. Warren Buffett—business magnate, investor, and philanthropist—says, “The difference between successful people and really successful people is that really successful people say no to almost everything.”
Managing your time effectively is an ongoing process, but taking the time to create a productive atmosphere and make a schedule is always time well spent. Organize your days in a way that makes sense for your business. Even if you already have a schedule, take a look it with fresh eyes and improve on it using these best practices.
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