This week’s question come from Yolanda in Washington, DC. Her service area is: Educational tutor.
She says: “I have a “real” job and a family…how can I find the time to grow my own business?”
Well…Yolanda my answer may not be what you want to hear, but you can’t find time because it’s not lost….it’s just used wisely or not. But time is important to building your business so I have a couple of important thoughts I’d like to share: (these are my thoughts so your agreement is not required).
1.) There are only so many hours in a day. It doesn’t matter if you are a stay at home parent or the executive of a corporation. You can’t find time, but you can find better ways to use the time you have.
2.) No matter how you use your time, the best assurance your family has for generational wealth…is through your ownership of business. Think about it…there is no way your children can inherit your “real job’ unless you own the business, the company or the organization.
Making the most of your time.
Transition from the "real job" you absolutely need today ....to the business you and your family deserve for tomorrow. Resource: …Entrepreneurs.com
1. Carry a schedule and record all your thoughts, conversations and activities for a week? . This will help you understand how much you can get done during the course of a day and where your precious moments are going. You'll see how much time is actually spent producing results and how much time is wasted on unproductive thoughts, conversations and actions. Use a system that allows you to quickly match your clients with your activities.
2. Any activity or conversation that's important to your success should have a time assigned to it. To-do lists get longer and longer to the point where they're unworkable. Appointment books work. Schedule appointments with yourself and create time blocks for high-priority thoughts, conversations, and actions. Schedule when they will begin and end. Have the discipline to keep these appointments and a system to track them.
3. Plan to spend at least 50 percent of your time engaged in the thoughts, activities and conversations that produce most of your results.
4. Schedule time for interruptions. Plan time to be pulled away from what you're doing. Take, for instance, the concept of having "office hours." Isn't "office hours" another way of saying "planned interruptions?"
5. Take the first 30 minutes of every day to plan your day. Don't start your day until you complete your time plan. The most important time of your day is the time you schedule to schedule time. Use a system that helps you plan tasks.
6. Take five minutes before every call and task to decide what result you want to attain. This will help you know what success looks like before you start. And it will also slow time down. Take five minutes after each call and activity to determine whether your desired result was achieved. If not, what was missing? How do you put what's missing in your next call or activity? Use a system to set an agenda for calls and meetings.
7. Put up a "Do not disturb" sign when you absolutely have to get work done.
8. Practice not answering the phone just because it's ringing and e-mails just because they show up. Disconnect instant messaging. Don't instantly give people your attention unless it's absolutely crucial in your business to offer an immediate human response. Instead, schedule a time to answer email and return phone calls.
9. Block out other distractions like Facebook and other forms of social media unless you use these tools to generate business. If you do use social/commerce media to grow your business, then use a system to expedite the activity.
10. Remember that it's impossible to get everything done. Also remember that odds are good that 20 percent of your thoughts, conversations and activities produce 80 percent of your results.
Get an expert to help you get things done.
If you read these actions and say “I can’t do that!!” Remember you don’t need to take all of these actions at once. Which ones apply to you? Connect with me and we’ll find out how to best use your time to reach your true goals. Remember…only YOU know what’s true!