An occasional interruption, the off-day when you just aren’t into it, an award-winning crazy Monday—these things happen no matter where you work, or for whom. However, you must learn to control them and keep them to a minimum if you are to succeed in running your own business. They are like a virus, and will wreck your entire program if you let them!
How can you make sure you don’t succumb to the Tasmanian Devil Syndrome (always moving, never getting anywhere)?
1—Make a To-Do list. If you write out what you need to accomplish, you will get more of it done, plus you free your mind from having to remember it all. Start tomorrow’s list at the end of the workday today. You can refine it the next morning, but while uncompleted projects are still on your mind, write them down. 2—Review and refine your To-Do List each morning. Pick three or four things that are Must-Do’s and start with them. Highlight them. Starting with the most important task, work on these one at a time until they are complete. Then move to the next one. Repeat until you are done.
3—Stop multi-tasking. Just don’t do it. If you are writing a proposal, write the proposal. Don’t stop and check your email, call your buddy, fix a snack or let the dog out. Write the proposal, then take a break and do those other things. If you have to answer the phone, handle the call, make a note of what you need to do, and get back to the proposal. If you stop and mail a brochure, make another phone call, etc., the proposal will not write itself, and you will keep getting side-tracked.
4—Set deadlines and schedules. It’s good to have policies, even if they are just for you. Otherwise work just keeps growing beyond all reason, and you miss many opportunities to make money. Tiny projects can take months if you don’t have a deadline. If you want to put out a weekly email newsletter, then pick a day and send it out that day. You can send it early, but don’t miss the deadline. If you want to send invoices every Monday, then send them every Monday and when Monday comes, send the invoices before you do anything else.
5—Every day when you finish your work, review what you accomplished—actually write it down. This record will reinforce a sense of pride, help you in planning and it can also help with taxes. It is a great way to remember what you did and when you did it. You can also add historical data to your recap—revenue: gross sales for the day, marketing efforts: number of new prospects contacted, ads running in newspapers, etc., weather (if it affects your business), packages or orders shipped, inventory purchased, and so on. Just pick a few items that are vital to your business and keep a daily record, like a business scorecard. A calendar or planner works well for this. You can review year-to-year data to make growth comparisons. These tips will help you stay focused during the day so that your time doesn’t simply evaporate. Good planning of your time, focused work efforts, establishing a system of deadlines and schedules and good evaluation and record-keeping will help you achieve your goals more quickly and easily.
