So you work for yourself. You’re either a director or you’re self employed – it doesn’t really matter which. You work 40+ hours a week and you rarely make it home by 6pm. But you wish you could. You wish you didn’t have to work so much and you realise something needs to change.

This is something which is felt by so many business owners. You leave your secure job in search of freedom, more money, more time and the ability to create your own path (just some of the reasons atleast), but more often of not business owners gravitate towards the hamster wheel, racing from one job to the next with little thought about why you went into business in the first place.

The clock doesn’t stop. You can’t magic more time out of thin air, but what you can do is master yourself through managing your tasks, your goals and your productivity in order to create more time to do the most important tasks to drive your business forward and achieve the results you want to see. The results you always thought you would achieve, but you’ve never ‘got around’ to working on.

Here are our top 6 ways on how to make sure you’re back for dinner:

1. Start at the end and work backwards – How many hours a day do you want invest in your business and at what points during the day do you want to invest them? Do you work best at particular times in the day or do you want to be the one to pick your children up from school? Through working out what the end game is you can then work towards that and create plans in order to achieve your goals.
2. Think about your lunch break. Hands up if you’re a ‘grab and go’ type. Sandwich at the desk whilst replying to emails with one hand kinda business owner? We’ve all done it. However, through taking time out at lunch time and enjoying your 30minutes-hour off you come back sharp and motivated, which lasts through the afternoon. It was well reported earlier in the year that Boris Johnson takes a short post-lunch nap, and whilst this was firmly rebutted by Downing Street it sparked a debate about the health benefits of napping. According to NASA and a study from Harvard Medical School napping can help with information processing, aid memory formation, regulate emotions, support the immune system and increase alertness. Not bad. It is also widely reported that napping is not for everyone and that some may find it counterproductive. If napping works for you then this may be something to consider in order to keep as focused and productive during your working hours.
3. Work out what your top time wasters are. Are they your staff? Is it notifications on your phone? Once you know where you are most unproductive it’s time to tackle those areas. Social media and notifications can be easier to handle, however if you have staff who come to your regularly with issues or questions then this is something which you can manage more effectively. Could your staff need more autonomy and confidence to make decisions for themselves? Or perhaps they need some more in-depth training and support to get comfortable with their role? Through increasing their confidence you will automatically find that they come to you less and you therefore have more time to do the important jobs.
4. Make a list of routine tasks – hourly, daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly. Then prioritise these tasks. Once you know what needs to be done and in what order, you can create a default diary for each week so you know how to spend your time each day. This will sharpen up your focus and enable to you work towards your goals more effectively. A great idea is to then give your default diary to someone else – perhaps your PA. This will hold you accountable and breed productivity.
5. Outsource or delegate. Once you have created your default diary you may like to work out where the majority of your business comes from and the work you need to do to attract it. Can you easily increase sales through being more productive in this area? If so then it may make sense to outsource or delegate jobs which you are doing that others can take charge of. This will free your time up to focus on the really important areas. As long as the cost of delegation doesn’t outweigh the new opportunities then it’s a no brainer.
6. Providing employees with the right tools and equipment is important so they can perform their duties efficiently and on time. There’s nothing more counterproductive than spending time waiting for paperwork to print because you haven’t got a fast printing device. High-quality, modern programs and equipment make a massive difference, not only to the workforce but also to how your company is perceived.

Being proactive rather than reactive in business is vital for increased productivity. Goals, focus, managing staff effectively, ensuring the correct procedures and equipment are in place and knowing when to delegate are all key elements in ensuring you can make the best use of your time in order to stop working 40 hour weeks and to make it home in time for tea!

Good luck! If you need any help with how to implement any of the above into your business then I’m always here to chat.

To find out more about how I may be able to help your Norfolk business thrive then please don’t hesitate to get in touch on 01603 559590 or email markwilliams@actioncoach.com – you can also get in touch through my contact form here. If you’d like to know a little more about my experience, expertise and accolades then click here.