Discover 5 Must Know Tips on Productivity That Every Entrepreneur Should Know
When it comes to being successful online or in business I find that execution can make it or break it.
If you can’t execute things that are going to get you results, you’ll be dead in the water.
BUT
There’s a difference between getting a few things done and executing effectively.
That being the case here are 5 things that I think will dramatically improve your productivity no matter what business you are in.
Side note: being more productive doesn’t have to mean getting more things done but rather getting the right things done.
- Weekly Planning – if you are not planning your week out every Sunday night you are really doing yourself a disservice. By planning your week out you can slot in all the important things first and build your schedule around the major wins you need to accomplish each and every week.
- Setting Daily and Weekly Goals – You should certainly set long-term goals and I like to focus on 6-month and 1-year goals myself. But no matter what time frame you’re working with, you need to design your days and your weeks to help you achieve those goals. This is critical, and by breaking down what needs to be done on a weekly and daily basis, you are going to give yourself a major advantage in achieving those 6 month – 12 month goals typically much faster than you thought possible. Don’t be lazy when it comes to this. Get detailed and very clear on what needs to be done.
- Setting Specific Work Hours – As an entrepreneur, you can usually choose whenever you want to work, especially if you work online. This can be a good thing and a bad thing as some people end up working less and some work nonstop–both of which are arguably bad. Figure out what time of day you work best and make those your most productive hours (I work best at night so I do a lot of work in the later hours).
- Work in 60-90 Minute Blocks – As entrepreneurs, I think we can naturally get distracted easily. Our brains inherently work differently and we should do whatever we can to focus. By working in 60 – 90 minute blocks you can be super productive and stay focused on 1-3 tasks. Once you finish them you can take a 5-15 minute break and do another session. I find that taking longer breaks after 2 sessions is key for my productivity. Also, during these focused sessions close email, turn off Skype, shut Facebook, and even turn your phone off or put it on silent. This time should be treated as sacred so you don’t want any distractions.
- Set Deadlines and Reward Yourself – Like any business, you should run your business with deadlines and project completion dates. To help keep you focused on reaching goals you need to have deadlines and completion dates for everything you do. It’s critical that you keep yourself, your employees and contractors accountable. The more you treat your business like a business the more you will be rewarded. When you reach the deadlines and complete your projects reward yourself even if it’s just a small reward. This starts to train your subconscious in a positive way.
Hopefully these 5 quick tips will help you get more done in less time all while focusing on things that will make a major impact on your business.
I want to throw in one more tip, so here’s a bonus tip.
Bonus Tip: Batching – Batch your work into similar tasks. For example, only respond to email in 2 batches a day, say at 11am and 4pm. Or as another example, only write content on one day a week and schedule it out across the week. Another great thing to do in batches is email swipe copy. Once a week, queue up all the emails you want to send that week and schedule them. This saves you time and allows for you to stay focused on one task at a time which leverages your brain power and the voice you use in your marketing.
If this was helpful please let me know in the comments below.
Ryan
