Small Business (Time) Management

by Michael Barry

There is a theory glazed over in every freshman economics course on the way to supply side economics and demand side – I’ve already lost you. Economics might not be your cup of tea, but the theory is worth a listen. It goes a little something like this: Should Tiger Woods mow his own lawn? That’s it. The answer is an easy one. No. He has people for that. He should be golfing. The term for that is called opportunity cost. Why is there even a theory about that? Time management is why.

Investopedia defines opportunity cost as:

The cost of an alternative that must be forgone in order to pursue a certain action. Put another way, the benefits you could have received by taking an alternative action.

In terms of your small business, opportunity cost refers directly to the actions you perform every day that take away from what you do best – managing your business. Here are a couple quick tips to manage your time so you can get back to work.

How Do You Spend Your Time

Time is money. Wasting time is wasting money. Plain and simple. The killers of time are well known too. Whether it’s fantasy football, Facebook, or searching for that new diet, all the time you click off the clock is time you’ll wish you had later. Future you will work hard, but she’d rather it wasn’t because past you had no discipline.

Track Everything

Make a budget of the time you spend each day, each week. Keep a list, a spreadsheet, write it in the margins of last months expense report. I don’t care where you write it, but get it down on paper. The same way money disappears at Target when you go in to buy “just one thing”, time disappears when you take “just one minute” to check Twitter. By writing down what time you spend doing what tasks each day you’ll be able to see where time is going. Making the change in how you spend that time is the difficult task.

You Have a Staff – Let Them Earn Their Pay

Maybe you read that last paragraph and said “I don’t waste time on social media” but time still escapes you. I have one question for you. How much time do you spend answering phones and replying to email? These mundane tasks are productivity arsenic. Your receptionist is there for a reason. She knows the phones and your day-to-day business like the back of both hands. You are the boss man, the oracle. Be there for the big things and swing in for handshakes and phone calls when needed. You don’t see restaurant managers waiting tables. They check in and move on, confident their staff is top notch. You have more important tasks to be doing. When you consistently spend time doing mundane tasks it become second nature to start there. The same goes for the converse. Your opportunity costs are clear. Be an innovator. The big picture awaits you.

http://www.bizoffice.com/small-business-time-management/#more-1322

Time management: Tips to reduce stress and improve productivity

Effective time management is a primary means to a less stressful life. These practices can help you reduce your stress and reclaim your personal life.

By Mayo Clinic staff

Do you find yourself overwhelmed by the number and complexity of projects that need to be completed at work each day? As the day flies by, do you often feel as if you haven't paid enough attention to each task because other tasks keep landing on your desk, co-workers interrupt you with questions or you can't get it all organized? 

You probably know that managing your time effectively will help you get more done each day. But it has important health benefits, too. By managing your time more wisely, you can minimize stress and improve your quality of life. 

But how do you get back on track when organizational skills don't come naturally? To get started, choose one of these strategies, try it for two to four weeks and see if it helps. If it does, consider adding another one. If not, try a different one.

• Plan each day. Planning your day can help you accomplish more and feel more in control of your life. Write a to-do list, putting the most important tasks at the top. Keep a schedule of your daily activities to minimize conflicts and last-minute rushes.
• Prioritize your tasks. Time-consuming but relatively unimportant tasks can consume a lot of your day. Prioritizing tasks will ensure that you spend your time and energy on those that are truly important to you.
• Say no to nonessential tasks. Consider your goals and schedule before agreeing to take on additional work.
• Delegate. Take a look at your to-do list and consider what you can pass on to someone else.
• Take the time you need to do a quality job. Doing work right the first time may take more time upfront, but errors usually result in time spent making corrections, which takes more time overall.
• Break large, time-consuming tasks into smaller tasks. Work on them a few minutes at a time until you get them all done.
• Practice the 10-minute rule. Work on a dreaded task for 10 minutes each day. Once you get started, you may find you can finish it.
• Evaluate how you're spending your time. Keep a diary of everything you do for three days to determine how you're spending your time. Look for time that can be used more wisely. For example, could you take a bus or train to work and use the commute to catch up on reading? If so, you could free up some time to exercise or spend with family or friends.
• Limit distractions. Block out time on your calendar for big projects. During that time, close your door and turn off your phone, pager and email.
• Get plenty of sleep, eat a healthy diet and exercise regularly. A healthy lifestyle can improve your focus and concentration, which will help improve your efficiency so that you can complete your work in less time.
• Take a time management course. If your employer offers continuing education, take a time management class. If your workplace doesn't have one, find out if a local community college, university or community education program does.
• Take a break when needed. Too much stress can derail your attempts at getting organized. When you need a break, take one. Take a walk. Do some quick stretches at your workstation. Take a day of vacation to rest and re-energize.
• Original Article:  http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/time-management/WL00048

Don't Forget These Year-End Tasks

by Michael Alter

Before you ring in 2013, you'll want to get a head start on taxes, insurance, suppliers, among other things.

For many people, the end of the year means shopping for last-minute gifts, going to holiday parties, and maybe working in a few final days of paid time off. For small business owners it's often a little more intense. You're not just winding down 2012, you're gearing up for 2013.
That's why along with your shopping list and New Year's plans, you should also be making a year-end check list—and checking it twice.

Here are five things I think should be at the top of your list. 

1. Reserve cash for taxes. It’s important to remember that even if you've had a good year, cash is not the same as profit. You don't want to get hit with a big tax bill on April 15 that's going to deplete your cash reserves. The end of the year is an excellent time to shore up your balance sheet. 
2. Be ready to file. Along with the cash supply, you want to have all the right documents in place for filing taxes. Remember, if you terminated an employee back in March, you still need to file his W-2. Also, incorrect Social Security or name information on a W-2 could lead to penalties, you have to account for 1099 employees, and the list goes on. Don’t wait until the last minute to put everything together.
3. Eliminate insurance headaches. Give your agent or payroll provider a call and make sure you're covered and up-to-date. A great example is workers' comp insurance. The old way of doing it was to pay a big premium based on your number of employees and risks associated with your business (you’ll pay more if you're selling knives), and then face the possibility of an audit at the end of the year that could mean another big check. With pay-as-you-go, offered in partnership with payroll companies, it's a bimonthly payment and both parties know the risks, so there are no billing surprises.
4. Review your suppliers. You may be paying more than you have to for various suppliers. In today's market, cloud computing and software can you save a lot. Online tools to help you manage customer relationships, content, and expenses are all typically less expensive than traditional software. 
5. Build your road map. Don't forget about the big picture while you're taking care of the nitty gritty. You need to have a vision for the future. Where is your company going in 2013? What are your goals? How will you grow from what you've learned so far?

http://www.inc.com/michael-alter/dont-forget-these-year-end-tasks.html

A Small Business Year-End Web Site Checklist

By Matt McGee

The time of year when we make resolutions is fast approaching. I’m not much of a resolution-maker myself, but I’m going to suggest that small business owners make one. Namely, it’s a suggestion that you resolve to fix up your web site and pay attention to things you might’ve ignored for too long. I know you’re busy and time is at a premium, so chances are good that you’ve missed a few minor issues that are making your web site look old and outdated.

Think about this way: Your car needs a tune-up every 15,000 miles or so to keep it running at its best. Your teeth need a checkup at least once or twice a year. I bet your doctor would also like to see you regularly, too. Well, a regular checkup will also keep your web site running in peak condition.

With that in mind, here’s a small business web site checkup that you should tackle at least once a year.

1. Review your company information
If you have a staff listing or directory, is it up-to-date with correct names, titles, and other contact information? If you have an “About Us” page or something similar that discusses company history, make sure it’s updated—especially references such as “We’ve been in business for eight years.”

2. Review your contact information
Are the phone and fax numbers, mailing and email addresses listed on your site all current? You’re obviously losing customers if the phone number has changed.

3. Review your email routing
If you list help@yourdomain.com as the main contact address on your site, is it being routed to the correct person? If your shopping cart sends order information to orders@yourdomain.com, is that going where it needs to go? Make sure your email routing reflects any organizational changes you’ve had.

4. Review and test your contact forms
If you have contact forms on your site, review them to make sure they work, they’re easy to use, and to see if they need to be updated. You might want to start asking people how they found your site or something else that your contact form doesn’t ask now. Also, be sure to “break” the form—submit it without the required information and see how understandable the resulting error message is.

5. Review your automated outgoing messages
Do you send an automated confirmation message or receipt after someone orders a product or uses your contact form? If so, review that outgoing automated message to make sure it says what you want it to say, and that it has the right contact information, etc.

6. Update your copyright and/or privacy policy statements
If you have a copyright notice on your site, make sure it’s not outdated. If you have a privacy policy, review it to make sure it accurately describes your current policy toward handling your customers’ personal information.

7. Test all outgoing links on your web site
Outdated or broken links make your site look stale. It’s also a source of frustration for your customers who click on links that don’t work. Check all links on your site to make they’re accurate and up-to-date. The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) offers an online link checker that makes this easy to do.

8. Review the hidden sections of your web site
If you have any password-protected areas, do the passwords need to be changed? If you had staff changes during the year, this might be a good idea. It might be a good idea even if you didn’t!

9. Review your domain record
Make sure your domain registrar has current contact information for you. If they don’t, you might miss renewal notices and other important announcements about your domain. You might also want to read How to Protect Your Domain, which has some additional things to look for on your domain record.

10. Do an overall review of your web site
This is something you should really be thinking about on a regular basis, but web sites often get ignored in the daily grind of running a small business. Ask yourself: How fresh is the content on my site? Do any pages need to be updated? How does my site look? Is it time for a more professional or modern design? Does my site offer the kind of features or tools that let my customers get what they want when they visit?

Some of these suggestions will only take minutes to complete, while others will be more time-consuming. But no matter how busy you are, checking your web site at least once a year is a resolution worth making … and keeping.

http://searchengineland.com/a-small-business-year-end-web-site-checklist-12915

10 Leadership Practices to Stop Today

by Paul Spiegelman

If you want to be the best in your industry, you have to get rid of your outdated management style.

You might not feel it day-to-day, but business management is in a major transition.  The old days of command-and-control leadership are fading in favor of what might be better termed a trust-and-track method, in which people are not just told what to do, but why they are doing it.  More formally, we're moving from what was called "transactional" leadership to "transformative" leadership. And there's no turning back.

Business owners certainly have a long way to go, especially in more established companies where old practices die hard.  But you can see increasing evidence that by creating a company with a clear purpose and values, you'll find your employees connect themselves to something bigger, and that increases productivity.  In other words, a culture of engagement leads to greater customer loyalty, and better financial success.

Here's my list of "old school" practices you ought to chuck, and "new school" practices to champion instead:

1. Out: Micro-management, or the need to control every aspect of your company. In: Empowerment, the ability to give your people some rope--even rope to make mistakes without blame.

2. Out: Management by walking around the office; it is no longer enough to be visible. In: Leadership by watching and listening, engaging in conversation, implementing the ideas presented to you, and distributing the results.

3. Out: Pretending you know everything. You don't have all the answers, so why try to make people think you do?  In: Knowing your leadership team members and trusting them. Choose great people who have the right skills and fit the culture.  And get out of the way.

4. Out: No mistakes, or a "no tolerance policy" some still think works. In: Learning from mistakes, or being the first to admit an error.

5. Out: The balance sheet drives the business, and informs all other decisions. In: People drive the business, boosting customer loyalty, and profit.

6. Out: Job competency is sufficient. Do the job asked, and you'll survive. In: Recruit "A" players who will go the extra mile. They're out there.

7. Out: Invest in technology to increase productivity. In: Invest in people.

8. Out: Demand change; be very specific about what you want and when. In: Nurture change; your people can come up with the best ideas and you can give them credit for it.

9. Out: Fried food in the cafeteria. In: Wellness in the workplace.

10. Out: Incentives; pay employees more money and they'll do more. In: Rewards; being valued matters more than money.

So ask yourself which of these out-of-date practices you're still using. There's no time like now to try something new.
http://www.inc.com/paul-spiegelman/leadership-practices-to-stop-today.html?nav=pop

5 Things That Really Smart People Do

by Kevin Daum

Don't get in the way of your own learning. Here are five ways to step aside and continue to increase your smarts.

Most people don't really think much about how they learn. Generally you assume learning comes naturally. You listen to someone speak either in conversation or in a lecture and you simply absorb what they are saying, right? Not really. In fact, I find as I get older that real learning takes more work. The more I fill my brain with facts, figures, and experience, the less room I have for new ideas and new thoughts. Plus, now I have all sorts of opinions that may refute the ideas being pushed at me. Like many people I consider myself a lifelong learner, but more and more I have to work hard to stay open minded.

But the need for learning never ends, so your desire to do so should always outweigh your desire to be right. The world is changing and new ideas pop up everyday; incorporating them into your life will keep you engaged and relevant. The following are the methods I use to stay open and impressionable. They'll work for you too. No matter how old you get.

1. Quiet Your Inner Voice

You know the one I am talking about. It's the little voice that offers a running commentary when you are listening to someone. It's the voice that brings up your own opinion about the information being provided. It is too easy to pay more attention to the inner voice than the actual speaker. That voice often keeps you from listening openly for good information and can often make you shut down before you have heard the entire premise. Focus less on what your brain has to say and more on the speaker. You may be surprised at what you hear.

2. Argue With Yourself

If you can't quiet the inner voice, then at least use it to your advantage. Every time you hear yourself contradicting the speaker, stop and take the other point of view. Suggest to your brain all the reasons why the speaker may be correct and you may be wrong. In the best case you may open yourself to the information being provided. Failing that, you will at least strengthen your own argument.

3. Act Like You Are Curious

Some people are naturally curious and others are not. No matter which category you are in you can benefit from behaving like a curious person. Next time you are listening to information, make up and write down three to five relevant questions. If you are in a lecture, Google them after for answers. If you are in a conversation you can ask the other person. Either way you'll likely learn more, and the action of thinking up questions will help encode the concepts in your brain. As long as you're not a cat you should benefit from these actions of curiosity.

4. Find the Kernel of Truth

No concept or theory comes out of thin air. Somewhere in the elaborate concept that sounds like complete malarkey there is some aspect that is based upon fact. Even if you don't buy into the idea, you should at least identify the little bit of truth from whence it came. Play like a detective and build your own extrapolation. You'll enhance your skills of deduction and may even improve the concept beyond the speaker's original idea.

5. Focus on the Message Not the Messenger

Often people shut out learning due to the person delivering the material. Whether it's a boring lecturer, someone physically unappealing, or a member of the opposite political party, the communicator can impact your learning. Even friends can disrupt the learning process since there may be too much history and familiarity to see them as an authority on a topic. Separate the material from the provider. Pretend you don't know the person or their beliefs so you can hear the information objectively. As for the boring person, focus on tip two, three, or four as if it were a game, thereby creating your own entertainment.

http://www.inc.com/kevin-daum/5-things-that-really-smart-people-do.html?nav=pop

Stop Procrastinating & Plan for 2013

By Kevin Duan

If you're not planning for the coming year then you better believe that your competitors are. Here are three solutions to get you going before it's too late.

Hooray! The election season is finally done. The holidays are close behind, and 2013 is just around the corner. And yet a good many companies still don't have a formal strategic plan on the books. Many don't even have a meeting scheduled before the end of the year to create a strategic plan and align their team. Often executives will manage for the current quarter with little consideration for three to five year objectives or even a one year plan.  Sadly, as the executives of these companies try to navigate uncertain times, they will wonder the following:

• Why aren't we hitting our goals?
• Why aren't we all on the same page?
• Why can't our people execute without having to ask questions at every turn?
• Why aren't we more prepared?

The answer is simple... procrastination. That sounds harsh but those of you regularly reading this magazine and website have seen plenty of material about the value of long term strategy. You have heard experts such as Collins and Peters, tout the benefits of long term strategic planning and alignment. Many of you know other successful companies who plan and execute consistently. So there is little question that you are just putting off what you know must be done. But perhaps there are solid reasons for your procrastination. Allow me to identify and resolve some of them for you.

1. Complacency

Maybe things are going well for you. Or at least they seem good enough. I am sure that's exactly what your competitors are thinking too and none of them are developing strategy  on how to steal your customers and gain market share. Keep telling yourself that and soon you'll find out the hard way that your business is always vulnerable to others who strategically plan and can out-execute you. This why many businesses fall into what Jim Collins calls the "Doom Loop" as outlined in his book Good to Great. Why be lazy? Taking a long-view approach in your business will insure you are ready for the next disruptor in your industry and can remain competitive.

2. Confusion

Perhaps you would like to execute a strategic plan for the company, but can't focus because you aren't really clear about where you personally want to be in life. Perhaps you spend too much time thinking about what you want to DO in your life, and not enough about who you want to BE. In fact many companies miss their mark because their management team doesn't focus enough on individual objectives beyond the company's goals. If your people are not clear on who they want to be and what motivates them to contribute, the results will suffer and you will likely wander off course. But this is resolvable. Ask everyone "Who are we as a company and where do you see your role in five years?" See if his or her answers align with your perceptions. Taking time to consider your own future might be a good start and better prepare you to lead strategic talks for your executives and your company.

3. Priority

So many executives are constantly battling with competing priorities. As my father always says: "When you are up to your rear end in alligators it's hard to remember that your primary directive is to drain the swamp." It's very difficult to make the transition from working IN the business to working ON the business. But one thing is for sure. If you don't start prioritizing strategic planning you will forever be letting the business run you. The sooner you make your strategy and alignment a priority, the sooner you'll achieve goals effectively and create efficiencies that will free up time and resources in your company. You don't have to be the CEO of a company to raise the priority of strategic planning. Any individual can drive the process and show their value to the company at the same time. Here are the first three steps.

1. Set a date for a 2-day planning retreat before the end of the year. If you don't do it now, you'll forget. Once the date is set you can figure out all the other details.
2. Hire a facilitator or a coach. For a successful retreat, you need methodology and objectivity. A good facilitator can provide both of these things and is well worth the money.
3. Engage your team. Email them this column right now. That way you'll demonstrate your commitment to strategic planning as a priority and get the conversation started. Share the pressure of accountability and you are assured of getting a long term strategic plan in place before year end.

Execute on these actions and you'll surely surpass your procrastinating competitors.

http://www.inc.com/kevin-daum/stop-procrastinating-plan-for-2013.html?nav=next

The Top-Ten List of What’s Keeping You From Your Goals

1. No planning, bad planning, or too much planning.
Oh, the power of the plan. “Plans are useless,” said Dwight D. Eisenhower, “but planning is indispensable.” The act of planning helps you to figure out where you want to go (the goal) and how you’re going to get there (the next action you need to take). The best plans cover just that much information and, really, not much more.

No planning can leave you wandering. You aren’t committed to one goal or course of action, so you waver and accomplish nothing.

Bad planning can leave you overwhelmed by details, a rigid schedule, or a totally unrealistic view of the daily distractions and obstacles you will encounter. A good plan allows you to be flexible, deal with the details as they arise, and keep moving forward even when things go wrong.

Too much planning is just you wallowing around in your planner and task list instead of taking that next action you need to take. Trust me, you won’t make much progress that way.

2. Too many goals.
You only have so much time, energy, and availability. If you spread yourself too thin by pursuing too many goals at the same time, you’ll make minimal or no progress in each. That’s just plain discouraging.

Instead, focus on one to three “big” goals, and keep the rest of your life in maintenance mode. Once you make significant progress, or reach a goal, you can tackle another. Success breeds success, so you’ll build on your momentum as you complete one goal and go for the next.

3. Goals you don’t care about.
Your mom, your spouse, your brother, and your ten best friends may all think it’s a great idea for you to start a business or lose weight. But if you don’t really care, there’s no point in setting that goal. You’re the one who has to work for the goal, so you’re the one who needs to want to get to it.

4. Organizing in lieu of doing.
Reaching goals requires that you take action, not spend time eternally preparing to take action. Orderliness is great, yes, and serves its purpose; but your ability to take action does not depend on how organized your stuff, space, or schedule is.

Give yourself a limit on organizing and prep work; when you reach the limit, it’s time to start moving forward, even if things aren’t as neat as you’d like them.

5. Too detailed or ritualistic.
Writers fall prey to this one all the time. You can read dozens of biographies of writers known for their various rituals and tics, from only writing while laying down in bed to using a particular type of pencil to having the right odor in the room.

While those rituals are interesting to read, in real life all they do is slow you down. When you commit yourself to a ritual, you handicap yourself psychologically. “I can’t work unless _____________.” But that’s not true, is it? You can work, as long as you possess the physical and mental ability to do the work itself. Even if that means you have to skip your ritual, or work in a space that doesn’t look, feel, or smell right.

6. Lack of supplies.
So simple, I hate to mention it, but if you’re going to do something requiring special supplies, go get your supplies. Now. Set them up. Now. Then you can actually do the work: whether that’s pen and paper, a laptop, running shoes and a water bottle, paints and brushes, or a piano.
If you set a goal but refuse to arm yourself with the supplies you need to reach it, you’re not really serious about the goal. Either switch to a goal you are serious about, or set yourself up for this one.

7. Tracking results instead of progress.
When you’re working toward a long-term or “big” goal, like, say, writing a novel, it’s easy to get discouraged. In my case, the result – a finished novel – was far-off in the distance when I first started writing. So instead of measuring my success by a result, which was still in the distance, I learned to measure by the progress I made.

For example, I would track word counts or minutes spent writing. Sometimes I would push myself to complete 1000 words a day, every day, for a week or a month. Other times, when life got busier, I would just focus on putting in 20 minutes a day.

Tracking progress allows you to see that you are moving forward, even if slowly, and that knowledge helps you to keep pushing through.


8. No milestones.
Larger or long-term goals need milestones along the way. Training for a marathon is a big undertaking, but if you break it down into certain training milestones, you can keep your focus.
Your first milestone could be running two consecutive miles; your next could be running three; and so on, until you reach your goal. Starting a business, another big, unwieldy goal, works well with milestones. First milestone: setting up an LLC. Second milestone: setting a budget for your business. Third milestone: launching your first product. And so on. Tweak as needed for your big goal.

9. No accountability.
I am, by nature, a private person. And writing is a private endeavor. Talking about my novel made me feel like it was silly to attempt it, so for a long time I avoided letting anyone but my husband know what I was up to, hunched over my keyboard in the corner.
That was my mistake, as it turns out: my husband is not a private person. Pretty soon he was casually mentioning to anyone within earshot that his wife was working on a novel, at which point I would stammer out some sort of acknowledgement while silently vowing to kill him as soon as we got home.

But a funny thing happened… First, I learned how to own what I was doing. Was I a real writer or not? Did it matter? I was writing, so I might as own it, and stick with it.

Second, I learned that people are intrigued when you set big goals. They want to know why, and how, and what motivates you. They start getting inspired. They start sharing their own big goals. Pretty soon, you’re checking up on and encouraging each other.

Before long, I was sharing daily word counts on my Facebook wall. The accountability and encouragement I got, first from my husband and then from many friends, helped me to stick with it on many days when punching out a few more paragraphs was the last thing I wanted to do.

10. No rewards/acknowledgement.
You know the great thing about having accountability? Once you reach a goal, accountability shifts to acknowledgement.

When I finished my novel, I got to brag about it, on Facebook and to anyone who would listen. Public acknowledgement is a powerful motivator, but that’s not the only kind of reward out there. For bigger goals, promise yourself a reward for every milestone. Make it something fitting with the goal so you stay focused.

The Path to Progress
The path to progress is not going to be an easy walk. You know that, right? When you set big goals, you set yourself up for an uphill climb. You’ll be working against a culture that encourages mediocrity as well as your own tendencies to procrastinate, be lazy, and question yourself.
But you can still reach your goals. Focus. Work on one or two big goals at time. Act instead of planning or organizing. Don’t over-complicate things. Get what you need to get the job done. Track your progress along the way, celebrate each milestone with rewards, and share what you’re doing along the way. The path to progress isn’t easy, but it’s fulfilling, invigorating, and the views are a heck of a lot better than anything on YouTube.

http://www.youngentrepreneur.com/blog/10-reasons-youre-not-reaching-your-goals-or-what-i-learned-from-writing-a-really-crappy-novel/

9 Routine Task You Should Eliminate from your Workday

By Jane Porter  

Rachel Weeks couldn't get through the workday without constant interruptions. Employees at her Durham, N.C., apparel company, School House, would ask her to sign checks, approve designs and field questions whenever they wanted. Realizing that routine tasks were taking over her day, she started signing checks once a week, sending out packages at a set time each day, and addressing staff questions at weekly meetings.

Those changes have helped Weeks grow the business by developing a new e-commerce site and partnering with a big-box retailer. So far this year, revenue has risen 20 percent, compared with the same period in 2011. "In a small company, there's this tendency to think … if anybody needs something, they can come and find me," she says. "You really have to carve out those hours of uninterrupted work time."

But that means something's got to give. Here are nine daily tasks you probably can eliminate from your workday to help you stay focused and be more productive.

1. Stop overloading your to-do list. You might feel the need to write down everything you need to accomplish each day, but resist making an impossible list of daily tasks, says Peter Turla, a time-management consultant in Dallas. Compiling a lengthy list of things you need to accomplish might seem productive, but you could be doing more harm than good. "It results in too many items at the end of the day that are not completed," says Turla. "That will make you feel stressed out, inadequate and unfocused." Instead, create a manageable list of essential tasks that should be finished on a given day--and save the rest for later.

2. Stop having open-ended meetings. Figure out your priorities before you call a meeting and make them clear to all the attendees, says Doug Sundheim, a New York consultant and executive coach. Too many small-business owners waste half the meeting just getting to what they really want to talk about. Sundheim suggests putting three priority topics at the top of your agenda to avoid getting sidetracked by other issues.

3. Stop answering repetitive questions. If you find yourself answering the same question from clients or employees frequently, you're wasting time, says Peggy Duncan, a personal productivity trainer in Atlanta. Instead, put together an FAQ on your website or create instructional videos that people can access via links at the bottom of your emails. "Figure out better ways to answer [questions] without your having to be involved," she says.

4. Stop taking the same follow-up approach if people ignore you. If you've sent someone an email and the recipient hasn't responded, don't keep firing off more emails. Try communicating in another way--calling, sending a text or visiting in person if it's appropriate, says Jan Yager, author of Work Less, Do More (Sterling, 2008). Too many business owners get bogged down communicating with people inefficiently, she says.

5. Stop eating lunch at your desk. Tempting as it might be to scarf down a sandwich between emails at your computer, don't make it a daily routine. A short break will help you make clearer decisions, Sundheim says. "You get your best ideas when you get up and walk away from your desk."

6. Stop making regular visits to the post office. Instead of going to the post office, schedule mail pickups from your business or home office, Duncan says. You also can buy envelopes with pre-paid postage or invest in an inexpensive scale and postage printer.

7. Stop making piles. Eliminating clutter can boost efficiency, Duncan says. Rather than organize papers in piles whose logic is known only to you, stick to a systematic filing system and eliminate any pieces of paper you no longer need.

8. Stop scheduling appointments by phone or email. You can waste a lot of time just trying to find a time that works for a meeting. Instead, use an automated system that does the work for you, Duncan says. She suggests using software, such as Schedulicity or Appointment Quest to let people schedule appointments with you online.

9. Stop signing every check. Designate a specific day and time for certain tasks, such as signing checks, rather than allow them to randomly interrupt your workflow. Better yet, you can have your signature printed on checks to avoid signing each one. Programs like QuickBooks let you use preprinted checks and keep track of transactions, Duncan says.

 http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/224063

7 Ways You’re Wasting Time and Don’t Even Know it

By Jane Porter 

Fourteen months after starting her own insurance agency, Dawn Berry found herself surrounded by stacks of paper. Her inbox was brimming with more than 500 emails that needed to be answered or trashed. And just finding a pen on her cluttered desk became a challenge.

Berry realized she needed to get smarter about managing time and making Provident Insurance Agency in Florissant, Mo., run more smoothly. She hired a productivity coach and saw immediate results. She began completing tasks that would take less than two minutes right away and delegated routine work to her assistant so she could focus on selling. Now, at the end of each day, she has fewer than 50 emails waiting in her inbox. In 2011, by better managing her time, Berry grew her business to a point where she could hire her first full-time employee, making her all the more able to focus on the important aspects of the company. "I have a do-it-now mentality," she says.
If you feel as overwhelmed as Berry did, you may need to rethink how you use your time. Here are seven ways you may be wasting time without even realizing it.

1. You overload on administrative work. If you've spent three hours reconciling a bank statement, you're making poor use of your time. Too often, small-business owners waste time on tasks they don't like or aren't even good at. What's more, they often expend energy avoiding such tasks and then spend more time than necessary doing them, says Cathy Sexton, the St. Louis, Mo., productivity coach who helped Berry. "If we just hired it out, it would be less expensive," Sexton says of tasks like bookkeeping and website maintenance. "It's looking at your time and putting a value on it."

2. You put off quick tasks. If you can pay a bill or schedule an appointment in a couple of minutes, do it immediately. Putting chores aside for later—no matter how mundane—is a common way small-business owners waste time, says David Allen, author of the runaway bestseller Getting Things Done (Viking 2001). People often set emails aside for later, for example, and then have to search for them and reread them. "It will take you more time to remember it later than just doing it now," Allen says.

3. You micromanage employees. Too many employees need their hand held throughout the day, says Jason Jennings, author of The Reinventors - How Extraordinary Companies Pursue Radical Continuous Change (Portfolio, 2012). As a result, small-business owners often waste precious time micromanaging such workers just to make sure they do their jobs properly. If you have to guide an employee through every aspect of the job and he isn't making progress toward working independently, Jennings advises that you let him go. Harsh as it may seem, firing people who are slowing you down may be the best solution for your business.

4. You let daily developments drive you. Putting out tiny fires throughout the day is a big misuse of time, Allen says. Rather than thinking about strategies to expand your business, you're bogged down dealing with every issue that comes your way minute-by-minute. "That's not making good priority decisions about things." To stay focused on what really matters, try to block out time each day for your strategic priorities.

5. You don't have a clear social-media strategy. Limiting the amount of time you spend on social media sites will certainly help your productivity. But even if you devote only one hour each day to social media activity, you will still be wasting time if you don't have a game plan, Sexton says. "Social media is part of your marketing plan. You really need to understand what your desired results are."

6. You try to reinvent the wheel. Hanging onto projects or products that no longer look promising is a big time-suck, Jennings says. "The reason people are stymied and can't get stuff done is because they are constantly reinventing the wheel. They can't let go." Stop and ask yourself, "How promising does this endeavor look?" Be honest with yourself and decide if it's time to drop it and move on.

7. You repeat the same things over and over. Customer communication is important, but if you always have to answer the same questions from different customers, you're wasting time, says Chris Guillebeau, author of The $100 Startup: Reinvent the Way You Make a Living, Do What You Love, and Create a New Future (Crown Business, 2012). Rather than starting from scratch each time, Sexton recommends creating a template for such routine tasks as email responses to common queries, invoices, client letters and meeting agendas.
 http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/224090

11 Tips to Time Management

by: Susan Ward

Do you feel the need to be more organized and/or more productive? Do you spend your day in a frenzy of activity and then wonder why you haven't accomplished much?

Time management skills are especially important for small business people, who often find themselves performing many different jobs during the course of a single day. These time management tips will help you increase your productivity and stay cool and collected.

Time Management Tips

1) Realize that time management is a myth.

No matter how organized we are, there are always only 24 hours in a day. Time doesn't change. All we can actually manage is ourselves and what we do with the time that we have.

2) Find out where you're wasting time.

Many of us are prey to time-wasters that steal time we could be using much more productively. What are your time-bandits? Do you spend too much time 'Net surfing, reading email, or making personal calls? Tracking Daily Activities explains how to track your activities so you can form a accurate picture of what you actually do, the first step to effective time management.

3) Create time management goals.

Remember, the focus of time management is actually changing your behaviors, not changing time. A good place to start is by eliminating your personal time-wasters. For one week, for example, set a goal that you're not going to take personal phone calls while you're working. For a fun look at behaviors that can interfere with successful time management.

4) Implement a time management plan.

Think of this as an extension of time management tip # 3. The objective is to change your behaviors over time to achieve whatever general goal you've set for yourself, such as increasing your productivity or decreasing your stress. So you need to not only set your specific goals, but track them over time to see whether or not you're accomplishing them.

5) Use time management tools.

Whether it's a Day-Timer or a software program, the first step to physically managing your time is to know where it's going now and planning how you're going to spend your time in the future. A software program such as Outlook, for instance, lets you schedule events easily and can be set to remind you of events in advance, making your time management easier.

6) Prioritize ruthlessly.

You should start each day with a time management session prioritizing the tasks for that day and setting your performance benchmark. If you have 20 tasks for a given day, how many of them do you truly need to accomplish? For more on daily planning and prioritizing daily tasks, see Start The Day Right With Daily Planning.

7) Learn to delegate and/or outsource.

No matter how small your business is, there's no need for you to be a one-person show. For effective time management, you need to let other people carry some of the load. Determining Your Personal ROI explains two ways to pinpoint which tasks you'd be better off delegating or outsourcing, while Decide To Delegate provides tips for actually getting on with the job of delegating.

8) Establish routines and stick to them as much as possible.

While crises will arise, you'll be much more productive if you can follow routines most of the time.

9) Get in the habit of setting time limits for tasks.

For instance, reading and answering email can consume your whole day if you let it. Instead, set a limit of one hour a day for this task and stick to it.

10) Be sure your systems are organized.

Are you wasting a lot of time looking for files on your computer? Take the time to organize a file management system. Is your filing system slowing you down? Redo it, so it's organized to the point that you can quickly lay your hands on what you need.

11) Don't waste time waiting.

From client meetings to dentist appointments, it's impossible to avoid waiting for someone or something. But you don't need to just sit there and twiddle your thumbs. Always take something to do with you, such as a report you need to read, a checkbook that needs to be balanced, or just a blank pad of paper that you can use to plan your next marketing campaign. Technology makes it easy to work wherever you are; your PDA and/or cell phone will help you stay connected.

You can be in control and accomplish what you want to accomplish - once you've come to grips with the time management myth and taken control of your time.

Time Management: Tip to Reduce Stress and Increase Productivity

by Mayo Clinic Staff

Do you find yourself overwhelmed by the number and complexity of projects you have that need to be completed at work each day? Do you often feel the day flies by without your devoting the necessary attention to each assignment because other tasks keep landing on your desk, co-workers interrupt you with questions or you can't get it all organized?

You probably know that effective time management will help you get more done each day. It has important health benefits, too. By managing your time more wisely, you can minimize stress and improve your quality of life.

But how do you get back on track when organizational skills don't come naturally? To get started, choose one of these strategies, try it for two to four weeks and see if it helps. If it does, consider adding another one. If not, try a different one.

• Plan each day. Planning your day can help you accomplish more and feel more in control of your life. Write a to-do list, putting the most important tasks at the top. Keep a schedule of your daily activities to minimize conflicts and last-minute rushes.
• Prioritize your tasks. Time-consuming but relatively unimportant tasks can consume a lot of your day. Prioritizing tasks will ensure that you spend your time and energy on those that are truly important to you.
• Say no to nonessential tasks. Consider your goals and schedule before agreeing to take on additional work.
• Delegate. Take a look at your to-do list and consider what you can pass on to someone else.
• Take the time you need to do a quality job. Doing work right the first time may take more time upfront, but errors usually result in time spent making corrections, which takes more time overall.
• Break large, time-consuming tasks into smaller tasks. Work on them a few minutes at a time until you get them all done.
• Practice the 10-minute rule. Work on a dreaded task for 10 minutes each day. Once you get started, you may find you can finish it.
• Evaluate how you're spending your time. Keep a diary of everything you do for three days to determine how you're spending your time. Look for time that can be used more wisely. For example, could you take a bus or train to work and use the commute to catch up on reading? If so, you could free up some time to exercise or spend with family or friends.
• Limit distractions. Block out time on your calendar for big projects. During that time, close your door and turn off your phone, pager and e-mail.
• Get plenty of sleep, have a healthy diet and exercise regularly. A healthy lifestyle can improve your focus and concentration, which will help improve your efficiency so that you can complete your work in less time.
• Take a time management course. If your employer offers continuing education, take a time management class. If your workplace doesn't have one, find out if a local community college, university or community education program does.
• Take a break when needed. Too much stress can derail your attempts at getting organized. When you need a break, take one. Take a walk. Do some quick stretches at your workstation. Take a day of vacation to rest and re-energize.

Are You Working on Clock Time or Real Time?

by Joe Matthews, Don Debolt & Deb Percival

Chances are good that, at some time in your life, you've taken a time management class, read about it in books, and tried to use an electronic or paper-based day planner to organize, prioritize and schedule your day. "Why, with this knowledge and these gadgets," you may ask, "do I still feel like I can't get everything done I need to?"

The answer is simple. Everything you ever learned about managing time is a complete waste of time because it doesn't work.

Before you can even begin to manage time, you must learn what time is. A dictionary defines time as "the point or period at which things occur." Put simply, time is when stuff happens.

There are two types of time: clock time and real time. In clock time, there are 60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour, 24 hours in a day and 365 days in a year. All time passes equally. When someone turns 50, they are exactly 50 years old, no more or no less.

In real time, all time is relative. Time flies or drags depending on what you're doing. Two hours at the department of motor vehicles can feel like 12 years. And yet our 12-year-old children seem to have grown up in only two hours.

Which time describes the world in which you really live, real time or clock time?

The reason time management gadgets and systems don't work is that these systems are designed to manage clock time. Clock time is irrelevant. You don't live in or even have access to clock time. You live in real time, a world in which all time flies when you are having fun or drags when you are doing your taxes.

The good news is that real time is mental. It exists between your ears. You create it. Anything you create, you can manage. It's time to remove any self-sabotage or self-limitation you have around "not having enough time," or today not being "the right time" to start a business or manage your current business properly.

There are only three ways to spend time: thoughts, conversations and actions. Regardless of the type of business you own, your work will be composed of those three items.

As an entrepreneur, you may be frequently interrupted or pulled in different directions. While you cannot eliminate interruptions, you do get a say on how much time you will spend on them and how much time you will spend on the thoughts, conversations and actions that will lead you to success.

Practice the following techniques to become the master of your own time:

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.
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.
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.
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?
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.
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.

Time Management Personality Types

by Susan Ward

The key to time management is knowing ourselves, as we can't actually "manage" time; all we can manage is our own behavior.

For many of us this is more than enough of a challenge. While we claim that effective time management is a top priority and that we just have to get more organized, our actions don't match our stated desires. I've invented these time management personality "types" to describe patterns of behavior that sabotage many people's attempts at time management.

Which of the following time management "types" are you? While intended as fun, this time management exercise may provide you with some clues for more effective time management.

The Fireman - For you, every event is a crisis. You're so busy putting out fires that you have no time to deal with anything else - especially the boring, mundane things such as time management. Tasks pile up around you while you rush from fire to fire all day.

Typically seen - Running to car.

The Over-Committer - Your problem is you can't say 'No'. All anyone has to do is ask, and you'll chair another committee, take on another project, or organize yet another community event. You're so busy you don't even have time to write down all the things you do!

Typically seen - Hiding in rest room.

The Aquarian - There is such as thing as being too "laid-back" - especially when it starts interfering with your ability to finish tasks or bother to return phone calls. Getting to things when you get to them isn't time management; it's simple task avoidance.

Typically seen - Hanging out with feet on desk.

The Chatty Kathy - Born to socialize, you have astounding oral communication skills and can't resist exercising them at every opportunity. Every interaction becomes a long drawn out conversation - especially if there's an unpleasant task dawning that you'd like to put off.

Typically seen - Talking on cell phone.

The Perfectionist - You have a compulsion to cross all the "t's" and dot all the "i's", preferably with elaborate whorls and curlicues. Exactitude is your watchword, and you feel that no rushed job can be a good job. Finishing tasks to your satisfaction is such a problem you need more time zones, not just more time.

Typically seen - Hunched over latest project.

Hopefully none of these time management personality profiles is a photograph of you! But perhaps these descriptions will provoke some thought about the different ways we manage or mismanage time, and some clues about how we might change our behaviors to make our time management efforts more successful.

9 New Year's Resolutions for Stressed Out Entrepreneurs

by Kara Ohngren

With 2011 quickly drawing to a close, that dreaded time for New Year’s resolutions is upon us. We know, we know. You already promised you’d join a gym or try to be “greener” next year, but those aren’t the kind of resolutions we’re talking about. We’re talking resolutions for the overworked entrepreneur.

We teamed with Santa Fe, N.M.-based work-life expert Stephanie Marston to assemble a list of life changes to help you balance your business and personal worlds. Marston is the creator of 30 Days To Sanity, an online stress-management course, and she just might help to make 2012 your most relaxed year yet.

1. I will know when to turn off - Every entrepreneur knows it takes seemingly endless hard work to make a new business profitable. But you’re not the Energizer bunny; your batteries need to be recharged. “Set a strict turn-off time,” says Marston. “A specific time every evening when you refuse to even think about work.” Who are we kidding? You’re going to think about it, but don’t act on those urges. Instead, chill with the family or grab a bite with friends. Then wake up the next morning ready to hit the ground twice as hard.

2. I will make my home a tech-free zone - One of the biggest threats to work-life balance is technology. There you are enjoying a nice relaxing evening at home when your iPhone calls out to you. It isn’t even ringing, but you think you probably should give it a quick check. Stop right there. New rule for 2012: One email glance before bed and that’s it.

3. I will take a real break - We see you sitting at your desk eating that cheese sandwich you threw together at the last minute in the company kitchenette. This is no lunch, my friend. “Take a true lunch,” Marston says. Stepping away from your desk can get your abstract thinking juices running wild. That unsolvable problem just might figure itself out over a delicious chicken salad on sourdough.

4. I will not pencil myself in - Sadly, there’s no permanent ink app on your Droid. You pencil in time for yourself, but then an interview comes up or a new order comes in. So you delete that well deserved R&R from your electronic calendar. “You must truly commit to your personal time,” Marston says. “Do not cancel on yourself.” So no more penciling yourself in. In 2012, fun will be scheduled with a pen.

5. I will eat better - Everybody has tried the “I’m going to eat healthier next year” resolution at least once, but for small-business owners, it’s of the utmost importance. We all know you will only get from your company what you put into it. The same is true for your body. Your mind works better when properly fueled with three squares a day of food high in protein and B vitamins. As much as it may hurt to say it, 2012 is going to be a fast food-free year.

6. I will relax - If you’re going to be a more balanced entrepreneur in 2012, you have to learn to unwind. A Thai massage or a day at the spa is a great way to relax, but we all know splurges can be tough right now. So keep it simple. "Curl up with your favorite novel or film," Marston advises. "Clear a block in your schedule for a workout." All the hard work in the world won’t mean much if you don’t leave a little time for pampering.

7. I will deny the big "G" - One of the biggest reasons a business owner overworks is guilt -- The Big G. You feel guilty because you’ve left your work at the office. You believe the extra diligence of taking work home will translate into higher profits. Now we’re not saying hard work doesn’t lead to success, but it has to be hard work within reason. So from now on, no more guilt about leaving your work at work. You’re not a machine.

8. I will say No - You’re probably asking yourself, “How will I ever get my work done if I’m saying no to it?” Well, you don’t have to comply with everything and everyone. Take a good long look at your business priorities and if a potential course of action doesn’t fit with them, simply say “no” to it. Practice this regularly, and you’ll find 2012 brimming with personal time.

9. I will make work play - Finally and maybe most important, enjoy your business. Find the members of your team that you most connect with and schedule a weekly lunch or happy hour. Not only will this make you feel as though you’re working with your friends, but it also will show your employees that you value and respect them on a personal level. That tiny feat will lead to a massive increase in productivity.