If productivity is something you are struggling with, look at this challenge as an opportunity to prioritize everything that your business needs PLUS your wishes as a business owner, and the direction you want your business to be headed.
Productivity aligns with how you prioritize your time and your goals. Here are tips that we apply at Web Marketing Therapy to prioritize business and work:
- Make time to work IN and ON your business. These are two separate items with different goals.
- Working IN your business means completing work or projects, doing the day-to-day
- Working ON your business means taking time to visit and redevelop processes and procedures that will elevate your brand, business and client offerings (products or services)
- There are three entities of your business that need to be in motion all the time:
- Marketing: simply put – building and cultivating meaningful relationships (ahem, marketing does not buying ads, that is only one option under the glamorous marketing umbrella)
- Operations: the act of doing the work, running the business
- Admin: managing the glue that holds your business together! Bill collection, contracts, and bookkeeping all need to be consistently attended to
There’s no on-and-off switch for marketing in the digital age.
- Define your priorities and make space for them:
- Cut / Edit: Figure out what you are great at and find others to help you do the rest. Tony Gaskins said it best, “Evaluate the people in your life; then promote, demote or terminate. You’re the CEO of your life.
- Track Your Time: Identifying how you want to spend your time versus how you need to spend your time can be an informative exercise. Using a tool like QuickBooks to keep track of time on each work project will help you account for unproductive space in your day. Time tracking is SO eye-opening to see how you really spend your time.
- Delegate: Don’t be afraid to say, “That does not work for me” to work projects, clients, or requests from family and friends. Invite people or vendors into your team who will propel your business into the future.
Do what you do best, have others do the rest
- Set and follow a simple routine that allows for flexibility, meals, fitness, and mental health. Set reasonable hours that will not disrupt family or lifestyle goals.
- Make a “Tomorrow Action Plan” at the end of your workday. End your day with a bulleted plan that outlines how you will attack the next day. Think about which tasks will be most important to accomplish and develop your daily business goals around those needs.