Productivity is always on the minds of many small business owners. Whether you’re new to the business world or an established business owner it’s something that will occupy your thoughts from time to time.
Running a business takes a lot of time, and energy. There’s so many things you need to think about, planning, marketing, sales, customer service, admin, book-keeping…the list goes on and on.
So, it’s not surprising that business owners are always looking for new ways to make the most of the time we have available during an already busy day.
How do we get more done in the same (or less) amount of time, without it having a negative impact on our business?
Here’s 3 habits that will boost your productivity, make your business run more smoothly and therefore increase your profits….
Get Help When You Need it
No matter how hard you try, it can be impossible to do everything that comes with running a business all by yourself. Even if you only need a little support from time to time.
Many smart business owners know what tasks lie within their skillset and accept that they cannot do everything. Instead, they hire someone who is an expert on the task at hand to help.
What takes one expert an hour to do can easily take a less experienced person a full day to complete. Is that really a good use of your time? Delegating these tasks can save you time that you can then spend on the actual money-making tasks that only you can do in your business.
As a new business owner, you may not have the budget to hire the help of an expert and it can be tempting to do everything yourself. Whilst, there’s nothing wrong with this choice, it can significantly slow down your business growth and progression. Maybe you could add this expense into your next (or future) budget.
Hiring help is the fastest way to grow your business
Regularly Review Your Business
A really simple yet effective way to boost your productivity is by reviewing the various aspects of your business on a regular basis.
Over time, natural progression can lead to additional needs for both your business and the systems/tools you use.
For example, when you first start out in business, it could be cost effective to track your accounts using a simple excel spreadsheet. As your business grows and the number of financial transactions increase, a software program that tracks sales and expenses for you could be more efficient.
Take a look at the different aspects of your business and consider:
- What process do you currently have in place?
- How is this process working out for you?
- Are there any new software programs or apps that can save you time, increase efficiency or simplify this process?
Doing things in a particular way ‘because that’s the way it’s always been done” doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s still the best way to do it.
Review your processes, tools, systems and even your working schedule.
Create an Actual Plan
A business plan is your step-by-step guideline to reaching your goals, no matter how big they are. Seeing this plan daily will give you something to focus on, therefore increasing your daily productivity.
Without a plan, your actions are may not be aligned with the goal you are working towards. You might decide to work on something unrelated to your goals or you might delay your own deadlines in order to put client work ahead of your own work.
There are a variety of methods that we can use to keep track of our plan/project.
We can use a good old-fashioned paper planner, add them to our calendar or take advantage of the many online project management programs that are available, such as Trello, Monday and my personal favourite Asana.
Planning is a vital part of every business
And the good news is that you can start building all of these habits today…
Delegate tasks; find a new software; plan out new programs or updates; these are all excellent ways to start investing in your business.
Investing in your business not only decreases stress but it makes your business run more smoothly, therefore increasing profits. New business owners are often reluctant to invest in their business, but there are often free or lower cost options available, albeit with limited functionality. These are usually a great place to start when you have a low budget.
If you find yourself overwhelmed at the thought of planning out all you need to do, my free masterclass ‘Business Planning : Secrets to Success’ could be exactly what you need…
Register for this FREE masterclass recording, where I share the secrets to successful business planning.
Including how you can get better results for your efforts, how to create your personalised plan and how to implement strategies that will increase your income.
We'll also take a look at how you can use the planning process to improve your productivity.
