Certainly, time is money. This is what every successful business owner and professional knows and practices to make the most of their time. For start-up entrepreneurs, “Time Management” is the way you choose to use your time to maximize your productivity in achieving your specific business start-up goals.
Just as bookkeeping is mandatory in making and maintaining financial records, effective time management is also crucial for entrepreneurs to achieve their business goals. They are ultimately responsible for each aspect of their company. To keep their organization running smoothly, they have to allocate the right amount of time to the right business tasks. Here are fifteen great time management tips for start-up entrepreneurs.
Set goals the right way
Begin with verifying your start-up goals and setting them the right way. Setting your goals in the right way will help you stay focused on them and eliminate hindrances as much as possible. On the contrary, goal setting in the wrong way will lack the proper targets, eventually forcing you to fall off the track. Make the most of the SMART goal-setting method. SMART is an acronym for S-Specific, M-Measurable, A-Attainable, R-Relevant, T-Time Bound. Make sure your goals are powerful and meaningful enough to push you to achieve them.
Prioritize and delegate
Prioritizing your personal and professional goals and delegating your routine activities to a reliable and capable person is among the most important of all time management tips. This also ensures reduced stress and great productivity.
Find a great time management system
Depending on your choice, organizational culture, and start-up goals, find a sound time management system to accomplish most effectively. Many entrepreneurial enthusiasts find that Covey’s quadrant time-management system is one of the most suitable and effective ones. This identifies your goals into urgent, non-urgent, important, and not important categories.
Audit your time for a week straight
Spend an entire week consistently straight to assess how you use the time that you have right now. Monitor your activities, record them in a journal or on your cellphone app, split up the activities’ duration into blocks of one or half an hour, and analyze how you worked, used your time, and wasted some of the time. At the end of your seventh day, tally up all the numbers. Thereby, you will know areas for improvement.
Work on MITs in the morning
Always focus on your start-up goals and begin your day by working on your most important tasks (MITs) of the day. Achieving them will render you the biggest motivation and momentum to stick with your work.
Follow the 80-20 rule
The 80-20 rule is another one of the most important time management tips that states that 80% of your efforts come from 20% of your results. When working on your sales start-up goals, it means that 80% of your sales come from 20% of your clients. Consequently, identifying that 20 % of your efforts will generate 80% of the results. With meticulous tracking and analysis, you can scale that out to work smartly.
Adopt good habits
All good habits, such as self-discipline, self-initiative, efficiency, accuracy, teamwork, and office etiquette, serve as great time management tips to manifest your start-up goals. Thus, practice them and constantly improve on your areas of weakness.
Eliminate bad habits
Our bad habits are our biggest timewasters. They can include procrastination, lying, negativity, tardiness, poor communication, social media addiction, bad body language, inattentiveness, inefficiency, and temper tantrums. Thus, try eliminating them as much as you can.
Take frequent breaks
Breaks are essential to relax your body and recharge your mind. Keeping your physical, mental, and emotional state at peak levels by taking at least 10 minutes of a break in an hour is one of the most essential time management tips.
Exercise and meditate
Daily meditation and physical exercise are great ways to maintain the physical and mental balance that render efficient performance. Thus, practice them in the morning or evening at your convenience.
Make to-do lists
Making a to-do list every evening for the next day is a good way to stay effective and efficient throughout the day. In addition, it helps you stay consistent and closer to your start-up goal realization.
Seek mentorship for guidance
Find a mentor who has great expertise in time management tips, has been through a similar wringer you are in and can help you fulfill your start-up goals. Good mentorship enables you to stay on track with your time and goals.
Cut down on distractions
Clutter and disorder in your office or workplace will distract you, making you lose your time by focusing on unproductive activities. Thus, reduce such distractions by making things neat, clean, and organized. In addition, avoid checking your social media accounts during the workday. That can wait.
Turn off unimportant alerts
Promotional emails, subscription updates, and app alerts simply distract you. Therefore, turn off social media app alerts and hire an assistant, if you can, to manage your emails and other less important tasks. They can also update you about important emails that come through while you are working.
Trust yourself
By the day’s end, time management tips are not things that will be mastered overnight. You have to persevere. In addition, be confident about yourself. With consistent practice and patience, you will learn how to manage your time effectively and achieve your start-up goals.
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