How Not to Manage Your Business
No matter the size of your business and no matter what industry you operate in, you didn’t set up your business because you wanted it to fail. Why then do so many of us consistently make the same mistakes when it comes to running a business? As owner of the business, you will have plenty of balls to juggle and that requires excellent time management skills. Avoiding these common mistakes will put you well on the way to making your business a success.
Using ineffective to-do lists or none at all
Have you found yourself thinking about how much you have to do and wondering how you can fit it all in? When creating a to-do list, use a coding system (such as A-E or 1-5) to categorise the tasks you have lined up, then complete the tasks according to importance. Make sure to break tasks down properly; just writing that you need to start your next project isn’t enough, you need to detail each smaller task which is required (easier to delegate too). There are a number of smartphone, tablet and web applications which can help you to build an effective list. The medium you use is important – choose one which suits your personality and the way you prefer to work.
Not differentiating between urgent and important
It can be hard to know how to prioritise tasks, particularly when someone comes to you with what they deem to be an emergency, but it must be done in order to work efficiently. Learn the difference between urgent and important and adopt that thinking into your daily life. Our online course covers this in more detail, explaining how to effectively categorise your planned and unexpected tasks each day.
Procrastinating and becoming distracted
While the internet has made all of our lives a lot easier in many ways, but it also has a lot of answer for. It was much easier to work without distraction in the days before Facebook, Twitter, newsfeeds and online gaming. They aren’t the only distractions we can face: telephone calls, email, instant messaging and colleagues popping by our desk for a chat are all equally detrimental to our productivity. Turn off your IM notifications, forbid yourself from accessing the internet other than for work purposes (use a website blocker if necessary) and don’t be afraid to let people know if they are interrupting you too regularly. Andrea tends to wear headphones when she is particularly busy – she may not actually be listening to anything, but others working in the shared office know it means she is not to be disturbed other than in an emergency.
Taking on far too much
Although we may all like to think we are, none of us are super heroes. We don’t have an infinite number of hours in our day and we can’t always achieve absolutely everything that is asked of us. One of the most important skills in managing your time more effectively is learning how to say no. Whether this involves politely informing someone that you cannot take on another project or learning how to stop micro-managing and start delegating, saying no when required will do a lot for your productivity.
Becoming addicted to looming deadlines
Are you one of those people who claim to work better when you are busy and have the threat of deadlines hanging over you? In reality, meeting your deadlines by minutes, operating a full inbox and working with piles of paper constantly leads to stress not to effective working. Slow down, create an effective schedule and, again, learn to say no. Do you recognise this particular habit in yourself? Learn how to break it.
We understand how difficult it can be not to commit all of these time management crimes when you are trying to make a success of your own business; after all, you have a lot at stake. It will be difficult to re-wire your brain and start to work in a new way but we promise it will pay dividends. You will thank us when you are on holiday next year with all that newly-gained free time and income!
cushion the impact provides award winning personal and virtual assistance and customised lifestyle management for hard working and hard living individuals and small business owners. We know there aren’t enough hours in the day, so let us help you live an organised, efficient, & fulfilling life. Take a deep breath & call us today. Your personal service awaits!!
