How to set yourself free and still run a successful business
I was chatting to a fellow business owner the other day and we both agreed that time is very precious during our working lives. We agreed that it's all too easy to work long hours, waste time on things or people that don't matter and get caught up with silly stuff that eats into our downtime. We admitted that it could probably be avoided but we're our own worse enemies.
Speaking to other business owners and freelancers, it seems we're all as bad as each other. We work hard, we work long hours and we forget to give ourselves some necessary breaks and downtime. We sweat the small stuff and we waste so much time on things that really don't deserve our attention. So how do you set yourself free and still run a successful business? How do you find more hours in the day for your leisure time? How do you break bad habits and start living a happier life?
I've put together these top tips to help you become happier, less stressed and more productive overall...
Set yourself regular working hours
Before you do anything else, set yourself some regular working hours. If 9 'til 5 isn't really your thing, just make sure you discipline yourself by saying that you'll work at certain times. For example, between 8am and 11am every day with a two hour break for lunch and then starting back up again at 1pm until 4pm. Whichever suits you best. Just try and set a routine and stick to it.
Keep a diary
To identify what's eating up your time, keep a diary. Log what you're doing throughout the day and you'll be able to spot those time-wasting activities that you could do without. Patterns will emerge and you'll be able to see where you can make changes to cut down on your working hours and diminish any unnecessary stress.
Check emails only twice
Emails are a pain and, if you're not careful, you could spend all day checking your inbox. Try to only check your emails first thing in the morning over a cup of tea or coffee. And then maybe once more during lunch. Finally, switch off any email alert services to avoid distraction.
Use social media sparingly
Twitter and Facebook are awesome for business and make great free marketing tools. But they're also big time-wasters. Limit time spent on social networks. The world isn't going to cave in on itself if you haven't tweeted in the last 10 minutes.
Stop worrying about what other people think
A lot of time and energy is always wasted on what other people think. Who cares! Stop fretting over people's opinions on how you decide to run your own business. Don't worry if someone criticises your work on Twitter. Don't take it personally if you lose a client. Just learn from stuff, take a mental note and then move on quickly. Don't dwell on negativity, it'll only make you miserable.
Take regular breaks
Some people - including myself - can just put their heads down and work, work, work until 10 hours have passed. This isn't healthy and won't get work done any faster. Take regular breaks from your desk and stretch. If you work all hours without any break, you'll never be productive. Set alarms on your mobile or use online tools such as Online Break Reminder. You'll find that you can get more work done in less time.
Get outside help
Got some projects you can outsource? Do it. As long as you've found some decent freelancers who can help. Outsourcing will lessen the workload and leave you to have a better work/life balance without working every waking hour.
Leave the admin to someone else
Administration takes up a lot of time, so get some help and hire someone else to do it! Virtual PAs and assistants are everywhere these days and they can do everything from chasing invoice payments and accounts to answering your phone. Ok, so it's an extra outgoing - but think of the time you'll save. Besides, your time is better spent earning money.
Put the phone on divert
Don't fancy going to your office? Divert your office phone to your mobile so you can still seemingly be at your desk. Clients won't know if you've decided to spend the day at the seaside. Just pretend you're in a meeting and that you'll deal with their enquiry when you're back at your desk. If you work from home, hire a phone-answering service via a business centre. You'll have a receptionist answering your calls and taking messages for a fee - but well worth the money!
Have a regular dinner time every night
It sounds silly but if you say to your partner or family that you'll all have dinner every night at 6pm - it'll help you to focus on your work and ensure you get everything done in time. You won't want to keep letting everyone else down by working late and missing one of the nicest meals of the day.
Streamline your processes
If you've got a current system in place to tackle an administrative task and it's taking too long to sort, then find a system that works faster and smarter. Look at everything you need to do to run a business and find ways to streamline your processes. For example, I used to manually create invoices at the end of every month and it would take me a good day of my time to organise. But then I signed up to FreeAgent and invoicing now takes me approximately half an hour every month.
Got a long commute? Make the most of it
If you're travelling by train or bus every day, then why not make the most of the time? You can use your commute to think about new ideas for your business, jot down potential blog post topics for your website or even read a 'how to' book to help you become a better freelancer. By making the most of your commute, you'll free up your leisure time to relax and follow non-work pursuits.
Task management will stop any outside work stress
Keep in control of your workload at all times, so you avoid worrying about work during your downtime. Use task management software and ensure all your jobs are logged at the end of every day, so you know exactly what you've got to do the following day. Remember, you'll never ever finish your task list, so stop stressing about your workload and just try and do your very best every day.
Stop feeling guilty
So you've decided to go out and exercise at 10am instead of working.. But you're feeling mega guilty? Don't be! Freelancing is tough and you deserve to embrace some of the positives about working for yourself. Free up your time to do the things you love and you'll be a much happier person. And if you're happier, you'll be a productive worker.
Ask yourself the big question...
If you're working long hours and being unproductive, type the following onto a piece of paper and stick it on your office wall: 'Am I making the most of my time right now?' Look at that question on a regular basis to stop yourself losing focus and wasting precious time on non-important tasks.
