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How to Manage Your Time Effectively as an Entrepreneur

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Time Management Tips Every Entrepreneur Needs to Know

Effective time management is one of the most important skills an entrepreneur needs to develop. As entrepreneurs and freelancers are ultimately responsible for every aspect of their businesses, prioritising and allocating the right amount of time to the right tasks is crucial for keeping their businesses on track. It is exciting to have lots to do on your plate but it can get overwhelming at some point. It is important to know that you cannot do everything all at once and on your own. We have listed various techniques and tips on how to best manage your time as an entrepreneur:

1- Plan & Schedule Everything

Did you know that 20 per cent of your thoughts, conversations and activities produce 80 per cent of your results? (Scroll down to know more about the Pareto Principle) It is important to use your time wisely so use a Google Calendar or another tool like Asana to plan and schedule every task.

Schedule your morning routine, work commitments, meal preps, workouts and doctor appointments. There will always be interruptions such as conversations, learnings etc. so putting extra time on these will also help you get organised.

2- Prioritise & Delegate

Delegation is your best tool to free yourself up to bring maximum value to the business. Unless you don’t have employees or the budget to delegate your tasks, you should know that you don’t have to do it all by yourself. Learn to let go and don’t be afraid to teach skills to your employees.

Are you on your own? Then use The Pareto Principle. Define your core actions which will take around 20% of your day and adjust them to 25% for a 5% boost in your results.

If you’re looking to delegate your website or digital design work, let’s connect!

3- Conduct a Time Audit

Try this for a week – Use a calendar or a time tracker application to record time spent on conversations, projects and activities (work and non-work related) for a week. At the end of the week, you will see how much time you spend on which activity so you will have the opportunity to plan it better for the following week.

4- Use Technology to Manage Your Time

Technology allows us to do almost everything online. Run your meetings online through Skype or Zoom, use appointment reminder apps not to miss any of your meetings, and use time tracking apps such as Time Doctor to find out which tasks are taking most of your time.

Automate repetitive tasks such as social media posts. Use Facebook Creator Studio or Later to schedule your posts for the whole month and don’t worry about creating and posting for a month or two.

5- Set Personal Boundaries

You are the CEO of your own business, therefore you have a saying in everything that matters your time. If you end up saying yes to every request, you would end up losing yourself so set boundaries and get better at saying no.

For example, you can establish business hours and separate your personal life from work. You can have meetings only on certain days of the week and keep them for only 30-45 minutes. Addicted to checking your emails? Do it only 3-4 times a day and label your incoming emails based on their importance.

When it comes to social media, don’t let it rule your time. Turn off all your notifications to avoid any unwanted distractions. Similarly, when it comes to messages and calls, you don’t need to instantly give people your attention unless it’s absolutely crucial in your business.

6- Hire a Virtual Assistant

Entrepreneurs’ time is more valuable than being spent on setting up meetings, balancing accounting entries or creating social media posts. Hiring a virtual assistant through freelance websites such as Upwork or Fiverr could save you a lot of time.

7- Start The Day Earlier

Start getting up earlier and you will see how even half an hour of early morning time can help you bring your thoughts together. Plus early in the morning is a great time to collect your thoughts with peace of mind with no calls or interruptions.

We know that your time is very valuable and it is linked to your mental health. If you want to build a strong business, make sure you stay on top of how you spend your time.

Social Influence

Damla is the founder of Social Influence. She has spent over a decade working and leading digital marketing positions for some of the world’s most exciting and forward-thinking brands. She writes about digital marketing, websites, entrepreneurship and more.

1 thought on “How to Manage Your Time Effectively as an Entrepreneur”

  1. Great insights as usual! I love waking up earlier and planning my content. However I’ll take your advice and start keeping track of my time and hopefully hire a virtual assistant.

    Thank you for sharing!

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