Time. There never seems to be enough of it yet there is always the same amount available in every day. In business, time is one of the most valuable assets. Now more than ever before, there are distractions available to bombard us from every side. The important part is to steer yourself away from the time wasting distractions and to profit building assets.
1) Avoid your cell phone in the morning.
Temptation is lurking every morning to check your phone for anything you missed while sleeping. However, looking at your phone can set a bad tone for your day. You may think of it as “only five or ten minutes” but that easily can turn into thirty or more minutes of browsing your social media, reading pointless emails, and countless other meaningless tasks. Before you fully realize which, time has left your side and you have yet to even accomplish anything as you are still laying in bed. Instead, dedicate those first five to ten minutes to something productive like meditating, journaling, or another simple productive activity. Changing your routine to be something positive in the morning will give your mind a chance to start the day being positively centered.
2) Long to-do lists are daunting.
Not only are they intimidating to look at for a day, but they also give a sense of defeat when you look at the list at the end of the day to see only a few things accomplished. Follow this rule: list out three to five things that you must absolutely do for the day. This will help to narrow your focus by prioritizing the essentials. If you complete all of them before the day is complete, you can easily add to the list.
3) Long emails fall into a similar category of long to-do lists.
Make it a habit for yourself to keep your emails to less than five sentences; this includes your replies. Keeping to this will make you more efficient and your emails will be easy for other people to respond to as well. The reasoning? Replying to lengthy emails with a lengthy reply is a double time suck. Avoid the over explaining and get to the point, helping all parties involved.
4) Overscheduling your life is a hard thing to avoid.
If you are chronically late, you waste everyone’s time. When you arrive, you will be in a state of rushing still which means it will take you time to compose yourself, thus wasting more time which will make you rush to the next meeting as well; a vicious cycle. Tip? Give yourself at least 10 minutes between meetings and at least 20 minutes if you are in a chaotic/busy setting. It is better to miss a potential opportunity than to risk being considered sloppy by an overbooked schedule.
By adhering to these four tips, you will save yourself time, one of the best assets to running your business and personal life seemingly together.
Kind regards,
Stacia