Archive for the ‘Time Management’ Category

If you want to get stuff done at work, you need to take breaks. Our brains and bodies aren’t meant to go non-stop. The longer you go without taking a break, the slower you’re going to be working. By taking breaks, you’re going to increase your productivity and probably get more done in the long run. Occasionally, you’re going to need a day off, or even a full vacation.

When you work in a regular office, you have specific vacation time that you can take to get out of the office. When you work at home, it’s easy to not only skip vacations, but also to work through weekends and holidays too. If you try to take a day off at home, you’ll often end up working through your break. To really get a break, you need to get out of the office and the house.

You’ve probably heard of people or media outlets talk about office burnout. This is when you get so stressed out at work, you just don’t want to do it anymore. You’re tired, angry, and disinterested in your work, or sometimes anything else. This not only decreases your productivity, it also can be dangerous to your health.

Don’t have time to take off? You’ll get too far behind on your projects? Before you write off taking a break, sit down and think about why you started working at home to begin with. Chances are it had something to do with your family. Whether it was to make more money for them or to spend more time with them, it’s probably about them. If you work yourself so hard you’re having physical and mental problems, how is that helping your family?

When we’re used to keeping going and going, it’s hard to figure out what to do on a day off. However, there are plenty of things you can do for any interest. Like learning? You can go to a local museum. If you like nature, go to your local zoo or park. If you prefer adventure you could take the family canoeing. If you just need to relax you might look into your local day spa. There are endless possibilities to fit every personality.

Just because you take a day away from the office doesn’t mean you necessarily need to stop working. One great way to do this is to go to a seminar. The beauty of seminars is not just that you meet new people and learn things, it’s that they’re often in fun, sometimes exotic places. You can build useful business relationships, learn new techniques and ideas, and have a relaxing vacation all at the same time. If there are no useful seminars, you could just go on vacation with someone in your field. You can brainstorm, trade ideas, and relax at the same time.

The important thing to remember is that if you don’t take care of yourself, you can’t take care of anyone else. Taking the occasional day off is a great idea to recharge and refresh yourself so you can get back to being the best version of you.

It is easy for time to get away from us. We get bogged down in the details and that is that. When it comes to your home business, losing track of time is crucial. Find out where your time is going and how to rectify the situation.

One way to see where you are losing time is with a time log. We stress “where” instead of “if” because everyone loses track of time. It becomes a problem when that loss of time leads to burning the midnight oil to meet client deadlines, or stress because one or more activities coincide with each other.

Stress is the likely result of lost time. Consistently finding yourself in stressful situations can affect your entire life and your health. Avoid all of that with a few simple experiments.

One is using a time log which was mentioned earlier. A time log can be as simple as a spreadsheet document that you can fill out with the names of activities you did during each day of the week. A time log is like a food diary. It tracks your current time management habits for later evaluation.

Where does most of the time get lost? It could be at the beginning of the day. When there is not a plan in place to govern your tasks for the day, the day can get off to a sluggish start. You spend time deciding what to accomplish or you begin with one area and see what falls out. Because you have missed deadlines or forgotten about projects, your day is spent playing catch-up and apologizing to clients.

The same goes for the family side of your time. It is hard to find the balance between family life and business. Without a schedule it is next to impossible. A forgotten deadline could mean you are working well into the weekend when you were supposed to take a family outing. Do you skip the outing or delay the project work longer? It is a tough decision that will leave you stressed either way.

Consider charting your time as a way of keeping it from escaping you. You can keep a big chart in your office. A large chart can be purchased if it meets your specifications. The days of the week run along the top with the times running along the side. Color-code the chart for easier reading. Choose two or three colors for business activities and do the same for family activities.

Whenever you get a deadline, record it on the chart. Scheduled family activities are also recorded. Each day, block out time for work, personal time and family. In a smaller planner or a digital calendar, record the details of the plan for the work and personal blocks for each day.

A chart can help organize your time better than keeping everything in your head. At a glance you can see what your schedule will be like each day.

Does it always seem like you are under the gun to get things done? Time seems to get away from you and you don’t know why. Maybe what you need is a way to effectively manage your time.

Time management is an age-old problem. Remember Wimpy in the old Popeye cartoons? He’d pay on Tuesday for a hamburger today. Why not pay now? Procrastination is the enemy of all who try to manage their time. If you have been bitten by the procrastination bug, it’s time to take an antidote.

Time management issues can be dealt with in three stages: planning, tracking and assessing. Just like with other issues in life, the best way to handle them is head on, before the problem gets to be too big for us to even want to look at it.

1. Planning – Those who fail to plan, plan to fail. We’ve all heard it and it’s true for the most part. You have to have somewhere to start or you’ll spend half of your day deciding what to do. Planning begins with the end – deadlines. Know how much time you have for each task you have to accomplish. Within that timeline, you can break down the larger goal into more manageable pieces.

This method is less of a drain on your resources and your brain. Use a planning tool like a calendar. The calendar, preferably a computerized one, needs to have the capability of looking at a several views: daily, weekly, monthly and yearly. Use the calendar to map out work and personal tasks so that nothing gets overlooked.

2. Tracking – How are you using your time? Use tracking software to monitor how much time is spent on business projects and how much is devoted to each project. Tracking lets you see where time is being lost. Maybe it takes too long to do the research for a project or the final organization of it.

If your desk is unorganized, you could be losing what amounts to hours just trying to find what you need. Time tracking software allows you to create categories for the way that you spend your time so you can easily follow. If you don’t want to make that investment, create a time tracking spreadsheet in Microsoft Excel to prioritize tasks each day and track the time you work on them.

3. Assessing – So, where did the time go? Are you spending more time on minimum priority projects and less time on high priority ones, or is it vice versa? Take a look at where you are developing black holes of lost time. On your logs, choose a place for comments about what exactly you did during the time spent on each category during the day. If writing up a proposal is supposed to take two hours but it is taking you four, what is being missed?

It is easy for time to escape us. For a business, time is money that you are losing. Re-evaluate how you spend your time and tighten up on projects that are taking too long.

Teaching at a rock and roll music camp for 7-14 year olds this week taught me (or reminded me) of some valuable lessons that can help us to running successful businesses. In this, the first article in a two part series, I'll share 3 lessons you can learn from rock camp and how you can start applying them to your business.

Lesson #1: Life is short. Have fun!

While this lesson may seem cliche, it became so clear for me just after the first few moments of being with my eager young students. Laughing, giggling, joking is innate in kids and isn't something they need to plan for, schedule in, or "make time for." Imagine how challenges, obstacles, or decisions would be easier to manage and handle if we just injected a little bit more fun into our businesses. Here are some ideas on how to have more fun at work, whether you work alone, with others, at home, or in an office.

• Write a joke on a post-it and tell it to those who call you or you call during the day
• Before making a difficult call or one you've been putting off, start laughing for no reason for at least 10 seconds, no matter how forced it may feel, then stop and dial
• Dress up one day in a silly outfit. Be a clown, pirate, hobo, or punk rocker. Look at yourself in the mirror often and remember what it felt like to be a kid
• Color in a coloring book, finger paint, make music on a kazoo, or do a dance when you are feeling stressed. You'll release creativity and energy will flow in a more positive direction

Lesson #2: Practice Makes Progress

Each day at camp, each band (there were four) not only practiced their instruments but, also got together for band rehearsal. In 5 days each band will play 3 new songs, and sing on 2 new ones too. Plus, they'll write one collectively as a group. Whether it's playing music, having sales conversations, or introducing yourself at a networking event, practice is KEY to having a great performance. Repetition is the mother of all learning. The more we do anything, if we practice noticing what worked and what didn't, we will improve.

• Read your 10 second introduction or elevator speech out loud every day in front of the mirror
• Call a friend and ask them to practice being a prospect. Walk through your qualifying questions or "free consultation" process with them
• Get dressed in your networking clothes and go to a new networking event. Set a goal to meet 3 new people and try to connect them with one person within your network that would be a good referral partner for them
• Meet with a colleague to practice overcoming sales objections that you might hear from a prospect. Be realistic and offer each other feedback after each role play.

Lesson #3: Classics Never Go Out of Style

This week the bands are playing some of my favorite rock and roll tunes: Twist and Shout, Joy to the World (Three Dog Night, not the carol,) Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me, and Hey Jude. These songs are expertly written and well loved by hundreds of thousands of music lovers. They were chosen for the show because they are songs that would be entertaining and enjoyed by the audience and the bands playing and singing them. How does this apply to your business? 2 things, actually. Give your audience what they want. Here are some thoughts how...

• Ask your favorite clients what they'd like to see from you in terms of new products or services. Survey them as a group, call and ask them three short questions to get their feedback, find trends in their answers, create what they want or find someone to offer it to them
• Don't waste time creating a new product, service, or package and then marketing it if you aren't absolutely sure your target market wants it. (It doesn't count if you think they need it, if they haven't told you they want it too.)
• Remind your target market, current clients, and your past clients of all the services you provide. Send them a note every once in awhile to remind them and make an offer to work with you again. Don't let repeat business fall through the cracks because you've become invisible to them.
• Review the services you provide and find new ways to offer them. Usually work in person, consider working by phone to reach more people. Usually work one on one, consider doing a group program or a one day workshop. See ways to offer the same or similar results and leverage your time by using a different delivery model and you could start reaping the rewards of working smarter in no time.

With these three rock camp lessons, you'll start to feel a new creativity, flow, and rhythm in your business and move closer to being the business rock star you were born to be.

I'm convinced there's just too much information available in the world for business owners. We don't need all the options that exist. We need the top two or three options pulled out from the heap, simplified, and then we need to select one and get moving. Information is not what is stopping business owners from getting the results they want.

You see, I believe it's a lack of action or support during the implementation process that gets us in trouble. We're trying to get so much done that often we don't get started on the important projects and improvements in our businesses that can make the really big differences:

***More Sales
***Better Relationships
***More Referrals
***Streamlined Processes
***Faster Results

Some people are born doers. Some people are born thinkers. Some think about doing and never get anything done. There are many ways to become a person of action and what works for someone else may not work for you.

Action people are usually people who are organized and seem to know exactly how to proceed from one project to another seamlessly and without effort. Others flounder in a world of disorganization, haplessly moving one piece of paper to another location without knowing why. At the end of the day, the doers typically have more energy than at the beginning as they feed on taking action.

The flounders at the end of the day are still floundering and can’t understand why nothing has been accomplished and they feel exhausted. They step back to assess their day’s accomplishments and deceive themselves into believing progress is being made, when in realty little or nothing has been done.

For these people, organization is an essential key. Whether it’s for your home or business, make a to-do list and prioritize it. Tips for a successful list include:

***Put only the most important tasks on the list
***Each time you complete a goal or project scratch it off
***Feel the satisfaction.
***Don’t mark tasks off until their done.

When everything on the list is finished, reward yourself. Even if you don’t quite complete the list in one day, go ahead and celebrate your victories. This gives you something to look forward to and gives you incentive to accomplish more. Again, be honest with yourself and only accept reward when deserved.

Another plan of action states that you can waste too much time making lists and you should visualize your task at hand until you have the energy to do it. They suggest you sit quietly, clear your mind of all other things and concentrate on your task or goal at hand. See yourself doing the project in vivid detail. Whatever the job entails imagine yourself doing each and every step.

Change the way your think and you will change the way you act and how many results you create.

Hiring an intern is a great way to get extra help for your business but in order for an internship to be successful, you must choose your intern carefully. Understanding the concepts of choosing a member for your support team will greatly benefit you. The following 5 savvy strategies will guide you in your decision.

Treat the process of hiring an intern just like hiring an actual employee.

Request a resume, cover letter, or both. Do an interview, and give the same tests/questions to your potential intern as you would any other applicant for a similar position. Also, treat the intern as you would an employee. Having a solid relationship is key to success. This will give you valuable insight into the intern's capabilities and work habits.

Keep in mind that interns rarely have a great deal of work experience.

It is important not to expect too much right away. Do though, encourage your Intern to ask questions while also encouraging them to find the answer themselves. The usual purpose of an internship is to gain work experience and credits for college. So if you're looking for years of experience in the field, an internship is not going to be the right solution for you.

On the other hand, there are some forms of experience outside the workplace that you could consider. Some potential interns may have volunteer experience that is relevant to your business. And most have done extensive coursework in their fields, giving them knowledge they can apply when working for you.

Look for enthusiastic candidates.

Someone who is excited about the position will try harder than someone who is just in it because she needs an internship to get her degree. And when most candidates are lacking concrete experience, trying hard and wanting the experience is very important.

Think about which candidate can benefit the most

An internship is a two-way street and should be a mutually beneficial experience. You get work done at little or no cost, and the intern gains valuable experience. But if the experience is irrelevant to the intern's goals, she will be less likely to do her best and have a truly valuable experience.  Make sure that your intern is a good fit for the position and that she will leave with new knowledge in her chosen field as well as experience. This will ensure that the internship is a success.

Make sure your intern has realistic expectations regarding the position.

She shouldn't expect this to be an ongoing job, even if you plan on considering an intern for full-time employment. If she gets a paying job out of the deal, that's great, but she should be prepared to look for work once the internship is over.

Just like paid employees, a new member of your support team can be very valuable to your business. Taking the time to choose the right one for the job can pay big dividends. By keeping your expectations realistic, communicating them thoroughly, and looking for some key traits, you can find an intern that is perfect for your purpose and is a good fit for your team.

Click here if you would rather listen to this article.

As a small business owner, finding good help can be a challenge. Qualified candidates are more likely to be attracted to large companies than small businesses because of their high profile and better pay.

If you are very small or just getting started, you probably can't afford to hire someone even part-time but, having office help would free you from the busywork and tasks that get in the way of the stuff that needs to get done to bring in the revenue.

One way that you can get good help is by creating your own free powerful support team by capitalizing on the power of academic internships.

Who Are They?

Most interns are college students (though there are some high school students looking for internships) who need more school credits for graduation, or simply want to get work experience. But some are past students or displaced workers who would like to either build skills and experience or try to break into a new field. Both of these groups can be a key asset to your business. And they are often open to working for little or no pay, so they are less costly than bringing on a regular employee.

Interns Can Help With Everyday Tasks

Most interns have little or no actual experience in their field, so they're best suited to small tasks initially. But, don't relegate them to the role of gopher. They'll just need to work their way up to the more complicated tasks.

Interns can start out doing the busywork and paperwork you dislike Or maybe it's the administrative and clerical work you may put off or ignore. Once they've mastered that, they can grow into tasks that are more complicated. The timing will depend on the intern's skill level and your needs.

Here’s just a short list of what my interns do for me:

***They manage my email and answer my phones
***Keep my calendar organized and confirm my appointments
***Update my website and manage my social networking
***Help me publish my ezine and post articles to my blog
***Keep my database and email list updated and growing
***Develop processes for running my business smarter

Oh, yeah, and did I mention they do it for free? They need and want experience, skill building, and knowledge for the next stage of their career. I get help. They get another resume entry, everyone wins!

Interns Can Help With Short-Term Projects

If you have a short-term project that you need extra help on, or if your company gets seasonal boosts of business, having interns is a super way to acquire the support you need at a low or no cost. They are often willing to put in extra effort to get a good reference or letter of recommendation from you. And because you don't have an employment agreement, they can stay on with you only as long as you need them.

Here are some projects an intern could help with:

***Preparing receipts and records for tax time
***Organizing a file cabinet or creating filing system
***Scanning important documents or photos
***Direct mail campaigns
***Moving or organizing your office

Interns are great for businesses, and small businesses, including solo-business owners, can benefit from hiring them. Whether you need a temporary extra hand around the office or someone to help with a small project, hiring an intern could be just the solution you're looking for. It's a cost-effective way to help others in your community get much-needed career experience and you get the help you need to stay focused on what's most important in your business.

I'm so super excited to announce my newest program, Creating Your Free Powerful Support Team.
Learn More and Enroll Now

I put together a little video for you about it. Check it out here:

I hope to see you there!
Deanna

Have you ever procrastinated on something? Of course you have; we all do it at one time or another and some of us suffer from procrastination more than others. If you’re an entrepreneur, procrastination can have some detrimental effects on both you and your organization. Not to worry, there are several straightforward strategies to reduce and eliminate procrastination.

How Procrastination Affects You

We procrastinate for a variety of reasons. Several of them include:

* Fear – we’re worried that the task is going to be complex, we’re going to fail at it, it’s going to be disagreeable, and so on.

* Disinterest – it’s easy to procrastinate when you’re faced with doing something that you simply don’t feel like doing. However, if everyone did that, the dishes would always be dirty and the laundry would pile up.

* Expectations – this parallels fear. When someone is expecting something from us and we’re nervous about not meeting their expectations, it can cause procrastination.

Regardless of the reasons we procrastinate, the conclusion is always the same. We end up in nail biting, sweat inducing crunch time. Now, instead of a week or a month to get something accomplished, we’ve left only a day or even an hour. This creates incredible amounts of unnecessary stress. The stress that procrastination creates is bad for our physical and emotional wellbeing. We can become drained because we don’t take care of ourselves, and some major consequences can be insomnia, depression, and binge eating.

Burn, Baby, Burn

Procrastination also creates burnout. It becomes a vicious circle. You procrastinate because you’re burned out and exhausted and then when you’re under pressure it only prolongs that feeling. The final result is that you’re no longer finding pleasure in what you’re doing and you don’t want to do it. You don’t have the same sense of excitement or enjoyment in your activities and you’re no longer enthusiastic and positive.

Productivity Dwindles

Procrastination also diminishes productivity. When you procrastinate and then are forced to finish the job quickly, the task usually takes much longer to complete because you’re not focusing on it with energy and enthusiasm. You are only focused on completing the task. It becomes a mad dash for the finish line. This uncomfortable scurry usually leads to mistakes which can damage your reputation and ultimately your business.

Effects of Procrastination

Procrastination, as we’ve already talked about, can cause a lack of productivity, burnout and stress. It can also lead to a second-rate final product. If you don’t take pleasure in what you’re doing, you’re troubled about the outcome or you have to hustle through it, the end result can be something you’re just not proud of. And procrastination can also make you lose enthusiasm for an occupation you once loved.

Digging Deep

Procrastination can be reduced and/or eliminated by digging deep and discovering the reasons behind your procrastinating. If it’s due to fear, then you’ll need to determine if it’s a legitimate fear and how you are going to tackle it.

If you’re procrastinating because you dislike the task, create a solution. You could:

* Outsource the task to a coworker,
* Construct a system that eliminates the task, or
* Find a way to embrace the task and get it done.

Procrastination is something that everyone has to deal with from time to time. Learn to understand and control your procrastination tendencies and you will eliminate its effect on you and your business.

How can you confidently respond when someone makes a request you'd prefer not to accommodate?

The question has just been posed. Pause. Was your inclination to say yes, even though there's a voice deep down saying "no." Well, let's raise the volume on that voice.

What possible reasons could there be for saying no?

***It's beyond your means?
***It's beyond your comfort level?
***You have no interest?

Identify all the reasons you have for saying "no." Identify which stem from a lack of confidence, versus a sincere disinterest in fulfilling the request.
What would happen if you said yes?

Perhaps:

***You would be considered agreeable
***It would make your friends/colleagues/significant other happy
***Your visibility with your prospects, referral partners, or clients would be improved

It's comes down to a simple cost/benefit really. Would the discomfort involved in saying yes outweigh the benefits of possibly going along with the request? Or, do the benefits outweigh your temporary discomforts?

The role of guilt

Saying "no" is hard for many of us. Guilt often comes into play. Whether this guilt has its foundation in religion, a proper upbringing, or a worldview that simply says "it's not nice to say no", we often recognize it and make decisions we'd rather not be making, based upon it.

Saying "NO"

You've made the decision, after scientifically weighing the results of your cost/benefit analysis, do honestly say "NO". Well, go ahead and say it clearly, and self-assuredly...in the mirror. Look yourself in the eye, and do it. Just say "NO."

Say it like you really mean it, and then say it again as you would to whomever made the request of you. When you pretend you're speaking to the person who made the request, does it come out differently? Practice and experiment with different ways to say "NO" until you find one you're comfortable with. Then go, and say "NO."

After you say "NO"

If you're used to giving in to others, then guess what? After all that practice, you may just be surprised to find that they are not willing to accept it! They may push, rephrase the question, or make a new, not altogether different, request. Be prepared for this! Know your boundary - what ARE you willing to do? Revisit the questions you asked yourself before - what would happen if you said no, or yes? If you are serious about saying "NO" then stick to your guns.

Tell the individual making the request that you would appreciate it if they respected your wishes, and ask them to refrain from pursuing it further. If you are comfortable expressing your "reasons why" then do so speaking from your personal perspective. "No." is a complete sentence and you don't have to share reasons why if you don't want to.

Tips on how to say your "NO!"

The "Wet lettuce NO"
If you are going to say NO, you must say it in a way that means NO! Saying NO in a quiet, unassuming voice is like a hand shake that is floppy and limp. By saying NO in a non-confident manner it will make you feel as though you have got to convince the other person about your decision and the reasons why you have said it!

The "Mr Angry NO"
This is at the other end of the spectrum in how to say NO. It is done in an aggressive manner and usually said with contempt. It is not an effective way to communicate your NO.
Here are a couple of examples:
"NO. I'm not doing that rubbish. You've got to be joking aren't you"
"NO. I wouldn't lower myself to do that piece of work"

The assertive NO
This is the best way to say NO! In a firm, yet polite voice say:
"No. I will not be able to do that for you"
Also, if you want to say the reasons why, keep it short and sweet.
"No. I will not be able to do that for you. I will be having my hair done at that time"

Use effective body language
When saying NO remember the power of non-verbal communication:
***Look the person in the eye when you say the NO.
***Shake your head at the same time as saying NO.
***Stand up tall.
***Use a firm tone in your voice.

When all is said and done
Don't forget that when anyone asks a question of you, you are perfectly OK to say, "Can I think about that and get back to you". No-one should be pressured into giving an immediate answer, even if the delay is only a couple of minutes. It will give you some time to think it through and to gather your thoughts. It will also give you some time to think about how you are going to say it, the words to use and your body language.

Saying NO exercise
Practice makes perfect, as they say!

What I would like you to do for the next 7 days is to start to say NO more often.

So whether it is the double glazing salesman, the cold call, "Would you like fries with that" or the shop assistant - practice saying NO to one person for at least the next 7 days.

You will be an expert come the end of the week! What will happen?

You will feel much more confident and proud.
You will find that practice makes perfect and the more you confidently say "NO" the easier it becomes.
Others will respect your wishes and take you seriously the first time you say "NO."
You won't find yourself doing things you never wanted to do in the first place.
You'll have more time to focus on the things you do want to be involved in.

The list goes on from there.