Staying focused on your business
One of the biggest hurdles of running a small business is staying focused on every aspect of your business and keeping yourself accountable to your goals (short and long term)
I’ve compiled a list of ways to help keep you focused on your business:
PLAN
Keep an up to date to-do list and your current projects at your work station (wherever that might be) and at the end of each day create a plan for the following day. Keeping in mind how long each task will take, how longs it’s been in your to-do pile and it urgency.
Planning effectively each day will ensure each project is completed and you’re not swimming in a pile of partially completed work that’s slowly consuming you creating unnecessary stress and unhappy customers
STOP MULTI TASKING
Sure, Multi-tasking is an important skill, but when you’re multi taking in the office you’re making simple mistakes, forgetting that small detail or losing your train of thought on the project at hand. Have you ever been on a role with an email or document, your brain thinking faster than your hands are typing? You have the perfect words to portray what your brains thinking, then the phone rings or you quickly check that text you just received and you lose that train of thought? STOP! Focus on the job at hand and ignore the distractions.
STOP UNDERESTIMATING
Underestimating how long a project or task will take is counterproductive. Add half an hour or an hour on to allow for hurdles and setbacks.
GOALS
Set yourself short and long-term goals and look at them every day to remind you and keep you focused. Update your short-term goals every month. What do you want to achieve?
USE YOUR CALENDAR
Add every last detail of your life in there including time set aside for projects, quotes and following up with clients. Following a schedule keeps your business, projects and appointments on track.
KEEP YOUR DESK TIDY
Only have documents related to the task at hand in your work space to avoid distractions. This will keep productivity high and your mind clear. A tidy filing system makes it easy to find papers when you need them and lets you move with ease between projects. It also screams professionalism to your clients.
