Who couldn’t do with a few more hours in the day? Do you feel like you have been busy but have not really achieved anything at the end of the day? Well, you don’t have to stop the sun in its path to do that. Here are a few tips to loosen and free up the time that is tangled up unproductively.
Plan your day
Spend the first 20 or 30 minutes of your day planning the rest of the day (or the last 20 or 30 minutes of the day planning the next day). While it could seem an unproductive to take time out of your day in order to gain time, you would be amazed how much time you save by plotting out your day before you start. Have a piece of paper (or electronic version) available so you can jot down items for tomorrow.
Recognise “busy work”
Busy work is fluff work (checking emails, organising your files, etc.) that makes you feel like you are doing something productive when in reality you are just trying to make yourself look and feel busy to avoid doing the real work. This real work is probably some task that you have been delaying for a long time. It can be easy to slip into this so try to notice it for what it is and get back to doing something more important. Set a specific time (plan it ahead) for emails – maybe twice a day and do not even open the application. Nothing is that important that it cannot wait 3 more hours.
Remove distractions
Ten minutes of distraction here and there really add up at the end of the day. Social media is the new big culprit here. Scientists are now even saying that social media can actually lead to an “ADHD-type mind”. Messaging applications like email can also be distracting, as well as those stupid (yet hilarious) videos your colleagues and friends like to share around – not to mention a waste and drain of company bandwidth!
This doesn’t mean you can never take a five-minute break, but rather than being at the whim of distractions, limit, and structure those breaks. For example, rather than open each message as soon as it comes, first finish the task at hand, or allocate certain times of the day for looking at and responding to messages.
Do one thing at a time
More and more studies are showing that multi-tasking is the enemy of productivity. By dividing up your attention over different tasks you are in effect using up more time than if you just devote your undivided attention to getting one thing done properly at a time.
Streamline your admin
There is a lot of admin involved in running a business or any job for that matter. There are many online tools you can use to minimise the red tape and hassle. A few examples: debit order systems streamline your invoices and payments, an application like Shoeboxed automates your data entry, and another application called Wasp Barcode manages your inventory for you. Every business has different admin needs and with a little digging you could find something to reduce the hassle in your day. Many of these aids are actually free – SCORE!
Delegate, say no, and don’t micromanage
You don’t need to (and actually cannot) do everything yourself.
Some people struggle to delegate work and end up doing more than they should. Some don’t know how to say no when it comes to others asking them to something. Be careful of people who delegate their own work onto you so they do not have to do it. Others feel the need to micromanage. Once you have given the work to do – let them do it. Looking over their shoulders makes them feel stupid and you are wasting your time that you are trying to free up. If you are victim to any of these issues then you are not using your time as efficiently as you can – let others help you with the load, know that it’s okay to say no and don’t micromanage.
This post was updated on the 31st March 2021
*These are suggestions are BC Accounting is not paid by these companies