In the fast-paced world of entrepreneurship, time is undoubtedly one of the greatest challenges today’s business owner faces. Business owners are usually the hardest working people in their own businesses and often the day-to-day demands on them have overtaken the dream. They are forced to juggle many tasks and demands, while trying to balance personal and professional life. Life becomes more about survival than being the leader, the Mystra of your own business.

Over the 13 years that actionCOACH iNala has been coaching clients in the Durban area, we have heard the same questions asked over and over again about time.

Specifically:
I have so much to do and so little time, how do I know where to start?
How do I find the time to fix my business?
How do I stop procrastinating?
How do I live a more balanced life?
How can I be more effective with my time?

In what follows we share with you what we have found has worked, offering practical insights and strategies specifically for business owners who are committed to building dynamic and profitable businesses that serve them, their families and communities.

The Action COACH iNala team have written this article to highlight five opportunities for the Business Owner to get more out of their daily allotment of 24 hours.

Question One: I have so much to do and so little time, how do I know where to start? 

The business owners we work with who have struggled with time have done so because of divided attention, just having to many competing demands. When you start out with no clear vision of what you are working towards, you have nothing to weigh your competing demands against. Inevitably your time becomes pulled in every direction except the direction you ultimately want to go.

But when you are clear about where you want to end up, you can identify milestones that need to be reached along the way, which creates a road map to get you from where you are to where you want to be. Crafting this roadmap and learning how to balance your time within the parameters of the map can be complicated. This endeavor becomes more effective when you consider the following three pivotal elements: goals, priorities, and the relationship between the important and the urgent.

Setting Clear Goals for Business Success

Business success begins with a clear vision. A good place to start is with the dream. Ask yourself the following question: In an ideal world what does my business look like once I’ve accomplished what I set out to accomplish? It might help you to write a Business review article, describing your Business and what it has accomplished.

Now you can work backwards towards the present. Setting the goals (milestones) that you need to accomplish to make this dream a reality. The closer you come to the present the more specific and achievable your goals need to be.

The thought process should go something like this: “This is what I am wanting to achieve in five years, to achieve that in 5 years this is what I must achieve in three years. In order to achieve that in three years this what I have to do in one year, if this is what I want to achieve in one year this is what I’ve got to achieve in the next 90 days (quarter). Remember to ensure that these goals are S.M.A.R.T. goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, relevant and Time by which it will be achieved. After this exercise you will have a tangible Goals, which will work as your milestones to keep you moving forward towards making your dream a reality.

The most powerful outcome of setting goals for yourself in this manner is that it creates momentum. But remember that momentum builds overtime, don’t take what needs to be achieved over 5 years and divide by 5. Start slowly, achieving goals builds confidence for both you and the team, it makes the journey more enjoyable and it starts the momentum on which you can build until you are humming along at full speed.

Goal setting is all about clarity, the more vivid the dream, the clearer the goals will be. As life evolves you will need to periodically refine your goals and make course corrections accordingly.

Priorities

A business owner is constantly juggling multiple demands and tasks: from their customers, team, partners and in their personal lives. If you don’t have any goals, then these demands and tasks will all have the same level of priority – and whatever task demands your immediate attention will have it.

To be successful you have to be able to differentiate between the important and the important.

To make matters worse other people demand your time based on their priorities seldom on yours. The end result is that most of a Business Owners time disappears attending to other people’s priorities.

SMART goals give you something to weigh up your competing demands against – does it take you towards your goals or does it take you further away from your goals? Is this you’re priority for the day? You can now organize your day-to-day activities in order of priority against these goals. If this is what you need to achieve this quarter, what needs to be achieved this month, this week, today? With goals in place, you can begin to categorize your activities more strategically.

Here at Action Coach Inala we hold our clients accountable for achieving at least one task a week that is pointed towards the business owner’s long term goals. This is a good rule of thumb.

Distinguishing Between Urgent and Important priorities.  

It’s all well and good to talk about prioritizing tasks that will lead you to your goals, but the fact of the matter is businesses are operating in real time. Business owners are constantly reacting to urgent demands on their time.

Stephen Covey’s time management matrix emphasizes the distinction between urgent and important tasks.

Everyone knows there’s no point in dealing with what is not important. To be dealing with something that is urgent and not important is a bit delusional.  It must be important at some level, or it doesn’t deserve the time.

The problem is most business owners are stuck between the important and urgent. So, your time becomes reactionary. The customer who has got a complaint, the bank manager who wants to close your account, SARS who wants a tax return, the team member who demands your time. Urgent things.

It’s very important not to confuse urgency and priorities. Yes, that maybe urgent, but it may not be a top priority.  The challenge for Business Owners is that building a business requires a considerable amount of time doing things that are important but not urgent – strategic planning, focusing on activities crucial for long-term success, doing your marketing plan, developing a team member, getting clear on your organization goals is seldom urgent. If you don’t get clear on your goals today, nothing is going to happen. If you don’t set SMART goals this week, your life isn’t going to fall apart. Your days become your weeks, your weeks, your months, your months your years ………. until your life is spent, never getting to the things that are important to you, the things that will support you to realise your dreams.

How much time do you spend every week on activities that are important but are not demanding your time because of a level of urgency? How much of your time was used reacting to other people’s priorities?

Question Two: How do I find the time to fix my business?

For business owners, finding time to fix their business can feel like trying to solve a puzzle with missing pieces while juggling a dozen other tasks. From managing employees and handling customer requests to keeping up with finances, the to-do list never seems to shrink. This leaves little room for stepping back and tackling underlying issues that could be holding the business back.

To tackle this problem business owners, need to keep in mind a clear dichotomy of what Michael Gerber referred to as working “in” and “on” the business. Once this distinction is made it becomes easier to assess where your work has the most value and begin implementing time allocations that maximize your value.

The difference between working “In” vs “On” the Business

Most Businesses are started when the founder becomes confident that they have sufficient expertise to deliver a product or service, that they start a business and in effect become self-employed. The Business Owners is the expert and not surprisingly becomes the hardest working (often last to be paid) employee in their own business. This is perfectly natural, but it’s problematic at so many levels if it is still the case 5/10 years later.

All to often the businesses overtakes the dream and Business owners find themselves consumed by the day-to-day operations (working in the business) with very little time or energy left over to work on the business. Working on the businesses includes such activities as reviewing financial performance, goal setting, planning, creating or optimizing systems, building team, sales and marketing plans and reviews.

Striking a balance is crucial for scalability. Most Business Owners we at ActioCOACH iNala meet spend almost all their time working in their business and then wonder why they don’t have any money. A great example of this is a Hairdresser that we worked with who earned the same as the other hairdressers in her Salon. Most of her time was spent doing hairdresser work, cutting, styling etc, Now for that she can only expect a market related salary, ie to earn the same as her stylists. Yet as a Business Owner she is the one taking all the risk, and investing her hard earned money back into the business. We helped her to spend more time doing Business Owner work, which is not limited to selling time and therefore has significantly more earning potential.

It is vital that you become the conductor of your own vehicle and not limit yourself to the engine room. As a start we recommend that you spend 5 hours a week working “on” your business.

The value of your work

A business owner is not an employee and the work they are doing should reflect this. The main job of a business owner is running the business. This may seem like an obvious statement. But if you tally up the tasks performed by a business owner, you will find that most of their time is spent producing/delivering their product or service. Until the Business Owner starts valuing what they do as a business owner more than they value being the expert delivering their products / services it is unlikely that there will be any change. At iNala we find that the common stumbling blocks to this challenge are:

• How the business owner sees him or herself is vital. Most business Owners pride themselves on being the expert, including being the best person for the customer to deal with. In effect their identity is wrapped up with being the best employee in their own business and from our experience if there is one thing we preserve at all costs it’s our sense of identity good or bad
• “No one does it as well as I can” and “my customers only want me” are common assertions that we hear. It’s the business Owners job to create a business where the team are able to consistently meet the customers expectation and in our experience even the business owner is only meeting customer expectations 80% of the time. In regard to the latter of course this is true because that’s how you have positioned your business.
• If you’re unclear on what to focus on and how this adds more value than the urgent nature that dominates deliver of products and services. Here we are back to Vision and Goal setting.
• The real value of a business owner is to create systems that are scalable and build a dynamic team, so that their business delivers their product and services in such a way as to create raving fans that produce extra ordinary profits for the businesses. What do you need to do to get your expertise out of your head and into your business so that you don’t become your businesses bottle neck? Where do you add most value? What can only you do?

Time Allocation Strategies

I arrived at a coaching session some years ago, to be told that one of the owners had moved out of his office as he had gone to work “on” the business. I had to get him back to his post pronto as the businesses was not yet at the stage where he could work full time on his business. It takes time to build a business that can run full independently of the Business Owner (Im happy to report that he has now achieved this objective). You will need to ensure that the Business has the building blocks of consistent cashflow, controls, systems and people in place, consistency takes time.

But you must walk before you can run.

Until then you must create the discipline of allocating time in your diary to work on your business. If you are like most business owners that we meet your diary is either blank or has appointments with customers and suppliers. Accept on thing if you don’t allocate your time, everyone else will and guess who’s priorities they’re basing the use of your time on – THEIRS! We call this a default diary, where you allocate time to work “on” your business, to build your business, to achieve your goals to fulfill your dreams.

To be effective in crafting a default diary you need to be clear on your goals, to value your work as a business owner over and above anything else and you need to take steps to protect this time. Remember that working on your business is seldom urgent and so don’t be derailed by the urgent demands that present themselves day to day. My rule comes from the game of polo “no blood no foul” if no one’s going to get hurt then it can wait till you are done with your working on the business slot. If someone’s going to get hurt you can change the time allocation to another time, the same way you would if you needed to change a date with an important customer.

There are three steps that can help you protect your time. First: remove yourself from the business environment. Second, teach your team that this time is not available for discussion. Finally maximize your energy flows (refer to the final section to read more on this.)

Question 3: How can I be more effective with my time?

The biggest reason for business failure is BURNOUT. Aside from questions like, “How do I find the time to fix my business”, and “Where to start” we often receive questions from clients around making the most out of the time they do have. It may be that with all that is going on, your mind is overcrowded or tired by the time you get to the next task.

There are some simple tricks for time optimization that can help you with this. The first is knowing your energy flows. Secondly: remove yourself from time distractors. And finally, surround yourself with triggers that prompt effective work.

Knowing your High-Energy time

Throughout the working day, we all have natural peaks and dips in our energy levels. Understanding the concept of high-energy time and optimizing it for crucial tasks is fundamental to optimizing your time.

The first step is to identify your High-Energy Time Slots. Take the time to track your energy level fluctuations. Most people are typically at their peak in the morning. If this is you then allocating your most important work, your working on the business work, to the morning to ensure maximum productivity. It also has the added benefit of not allowing the day to get away from you before you’ve completed your most important work.

A lot of people waste their highest energy time, in the morning going through their emails. Ive never had a Business Owner tell me that this is the most high energy important work that they could be doing. Really if we’re honest with ourselves it’s an easy way to ease ourselves into the day and from their we’re set up to react to all the demands that we’re likely to expect. Is it any wonder that by the end of the day we achieved little of the what we intended to achieve. The truth is you don’t need creative energy flow to answer emails, but you do need it to work on your business. At ActionCOACH iNala we expect our Business Owners to clear their in boxes at the end of the day (low energy work!) and to focus on building their business in the morning, before getting on with the demands of the day

Time distractors 

Identifying and minimizing time distractors is essential for maintaining focus. Distractions can range from incessant email checking to unscheduled meetings. Business owners must cultivate a disciplined approach to protect their high-energy time.

In their book “The One Thing” authors Papasan and Keller point out that research shows that multitasking is a mythe and that switching from one task to another can take anything between 6 to 57 minutes to refocus on the task at hand when we switch between tasks. One glance at WhatsApp can cost you so much time. Business Owners need to ensure that they focus and don’t allow interruptions (of any nature) during their allocated default diary time intended to build a profitable and scalable business.

Triggers 

Incorporating triggers into daily routines can create a conducive environment for consistent, focused work. Closing an office door or signaling dedicated focus time through triggers sets the stage for intentional and productive work.

Triggers not only help initiate focused work but also aid in avoiding distractions. Cultivating habits that signal dedicated work periods can significantly enhance productivity.

Question Four: How do I stop procrastinating?

Procrastination is an ever-present adversary in the modern world. Despite our best intentions, we often find ourselves postponing critical tasks, driven by the overwhelming sense of the workload’s magnitude or the complexity of upcoming challenges. Yet, permitting procrastination to persist can prove detrimental to productivity, creativity, and overall success. In this handbook, we’ll delve into strategies tailored to surmount procrastination rooted in feelings of overwhelm, empowering you to seize command of your time and productivity in the business domain.

Understanding Overwhelm

Before delving into remedies, it’s imperative to grasp why overwhelm breeds procrastination. Research shows that when we set the intention to achieve more than two things we end up achieving nothing.

When confronted with daunting tasks or extensive to-do lists, our minds interpret the challenge as insurmountable. This triggers a stress response, leading to avoidance behavior, commonly known as procrastination. Furthermore, overwhelm may arise from various sources, such as stringent deadlines, ambiguous priorities, or insufficient resources, exacerbating the sensation of paralysis.

Strategies to Combat Procrastination 

Break it Down:

One of the most potent methods to vanquish overwhelm-induced procrastination is by fragmenting tasks into more manageable segments. Instead of fixating on the enormity of a project, direct your focus towards completing individual steps or milestones. This approach not only diminishes the task’s perceived magnitude but also instills a sense of progress and achievement with each incremental advancement, which will build your self confidence.

Prioritize Ruthlessly:

Amidst overwhelm, it’s effortless to become ensnared in a multitude of competing tasks clamoring for attention. Counteract this by meticulously prioritizing your to-do list. Identify the most critical tasks aligning with your business objectives and address them foremost. By concentrating on high-impact activities, you alleviate the burden of attempting to juggle everything simultaneously and mitigate the likelihood of succumbing to procrastination.

Time Blocking:

Enforcing a time-blocking regimen can serve as a game-changer in combatting overwhelm-induced procrastination. Allocate dedicated time slots for specific tasks or projects, ensuring uninterrupted focus during these intervals. By compartmentalizing your day and segmenting it into manageable portions, you cultivate a sense of structure and control, facilitating task completion without succumbing to procrastination.

Practice Self-Compassion:

It’s imperative to acknowledge that experiencing overwhelm is a common phenomenon, particularly in the fast-paced realm of business. Extend kindness to yourself and practice self-compassion when grappling with procrastination. Instead of chastising yourself for perceived lack of productivity, recognize your feelings of overwhelm and take proactive measures to address them. This may involve taking brief respites, engaging in mindfulness exercises, or seeking support from peers or mentors.

Seek Clarity and Support:

At times, overwhelm stems from ambiguity regarding expectations or resources. If you find yourself inundated with uncertainty, don’t hesitate to seek clarification from your team or superiors. Additionally, be unafraid to solicit assistance or delegate tasks when necessary. Remember, you need not shoulder the burden alone, and seeking aid can alleviate overwhelm and deter procrastination.