The life of an entrepreneur can be described as overwhelming. It can also be exhilarating. Entrepreneurs tend to wear multiple hats, juggle multiple facets and can often have an hefty task list to get through.
With an ever-increasing workload, so many distractions and juggling between different tasks, one of the biggest problems faced by many entrepreneurs is time management and productivity.
A typical day can include so many things like meetings, hundreds of unread emails, an ever-growing to-do list, and so much more. Any entrepreneur can feel like their hands and feet are tied and this can make it quite difficult for you to reach your goals in a productive, time-efficient manner.
However, you must understand here that no matter how tough it gets, you can always find a way out and manage your time and energy efficiently.
We’ve rounded up some of the best and most useful productivity hacks for entrepreneurs that every entrepreneur should try.
Create a Detailed Plan
If you begin each day with a proper plan, you will notice how it helps you stay organised, get things done and possibly even find some time for you to have some ‘me time’.
Get your hands on a productivity journals, planners, or diaries where you can detail plans (*cough* we might be able to recommend one or two). What do you need to do? What are the urgent tasks to get done?
A little planning actually goes a long way in terms of time management and boosting your overall productivity.
You could either draft daily plans or even weekly plans to help give you some idea as to how your week will look like and what objectives you need to accomplish.
Assign Themes to Each Day of the Week
This might sound strange to some entrepreneurs, but truth be told, it’s an excellent productivity hack to stay at the top of everything.
Also known as day theming, the idea here is to assign a different theme to each day of the week so that every day is unique and free of monotony. Most importantly, doing this will help you split up your priorities so that you can focus on important things that matter the most.
For instance, you can set Mondays aside for having meetings. You could use Tuesdays for catching up on communications and pending conversations. Perhaps Wednesdays could be your day for getting the little things out of the way. Why not use Thursdays for high-level strategic planning and Fridays for launching new ideas. Then that leaves you with the weekend to relax and unwind!
This is just to give you an idea, but you catch the drift, right?
The Pomodoro Technique
This is a popular time management technique that also paves the way to increased productivity and efficiency.
The crux of the Pomodoro (Italian for tomato) Technique is to work for 25 minutes followed by a 5-minute break. Let’s delve into this a bit further.
First, pick a task from your plan or to-do list. Set a 25-minute timer and try to finish that particular task within the prescribed time frame. Once the timer goes off, take a five-minute break. Mark Pomodoro off your list and make a record of what you’ve done so far.
Once you’ve completed four pomodoros from your list, take longer breaks.
The Pomodoro Technique is one of the most popular productive hacks for entrepreneurs. It re-trains your brain to focus by helping you resist all of those self-interruptions and distractions.
I actually like to work in 15 minute bursts, I find it a useful way to bring my focus back to what’s important. When I work in 15 minute chunks, especially in tandem with a colleague checking in with each other, I can have the most productive days ever!
Key Takeaway
As an ambitious entrepreneur, your life is probably challenging when you struggle with productivity and time management issues. Remember that it’s within your control to bring a balance and create a more efficient and productive environment and routine for your work. Make your schedule work FOR you, not against you and make sure you schedule in time for some R&R.
