Time is a theme that has been coming up a ton within my FB group, with my clients, and is definitely something I’ve dealt with during my entrepreneurial journey.
I even have a sign on my desk that says “You have the same amount of hours in the day as Beyonce” because I want to be empowered to remember that it’s not how much time I have, but how I choose to use that time!
Let’s dive into our relationship with time — managing it, making the most of it, and not being controlled by it.
MINDSET:
Most of us feel like time is something we’re working AGAINST, not with. If you got real with yourself would that be the case?
If it is, that’s the first thing we need to change. Time isn’t our enemy. It’s neutral (much like money). We just have to choose what to do with it.
One of my favorite mantras I use around time is “I have more than enough time each day to take care of my body, my business and myself”. Does that work out perfectly everyday? Definitely not, but it’s just about reminding myself that I am empowered with my time and that it’s always a choice.
So what’s the story you’re telling yourself around time? Is it serving you?
Is the story that time is your enemy and there’s never enough? Is it that you have to fight against a ticking clock?
STRATEGY:
Once you’ve shifted your mindset around this, it’s time to create a strategy around your time.
Here’s my take… we ALL need a different strategy when it comes to time.
Most people will tell you to do it a certain way, but what I’ve seen for myself and my clients is that we all relate to and schedule time in a different way.
Meaning, some of my clients work best in 30 minute spurts, some in 2 hour blocks. Some do best with scheduling EVERYTHING onto a calendar and some need more flexibility.
There is no one right way to do this time thing, but here are some basic strategies that can help:
1. Figure out what your “work time” looks like. What hours can you commit to each day? When we have set hours that we’re showing up in our business consistency becomes easier, “finding the time” becomes more fluid, and we create better habits. They might not be the same amount of hours or the same time everyday but having a plan for it and a commitment makes a big difference.
2. Make realistic to-do lists for the time you have. One of the reasons we often feel like time is our enemy is because we’re making SUPER unrealistic lists of what can happen within the time we have. I used to be the queen of the 12 item to do list, and always felt like I could never “get it all done”. DUHH. I was giving myself more to do list items than could be completed in a week to do in one day. When you create realistic expectations time stops feeling like the enemy and you actually get MORE done.
3. Do similar tasks in chunks. You all know that I’m big on minimizing decision fatigue (because it saves time, energy, etc.), and one of the best ways to do that is to do similar tasks together so you don’t have to put on different hats and make lots of decisions and fatigue yourself. Write your content in chunks, try to do client calls together, jump on all social media platforms in the same time span. This helps you to be IN whatever you’re doing, minimizes your fatigue, and maximizes your time.
4. Figure out what works for YOU. Test different time management strategies… work in different time chunks and see what feels good. Try scheduling everything or creating more flexibility. If you don’t try it, you don’t know what works. Be available to consider that your best strategy may be different that your coaches or your biz besties. Figure out what works for you so you can create a positive relationship with time and a strong foundation in your business.
EXECUTION:
Create an execution plan that helps you make the most of your time, and that helps you know where your time is going! Figure out how many hours of time you have available per week, then break it down into where you’ll spend that time.
Here’s an example:
I recently had a friend ask me what I would do to build a business from scratch with 11 hours of time available per week. Now, keep in mind I created this with HER specific business in mind, but I broke it down for her and wanted to share that with you:
- 1.5 hours- basic daily content creation for the week (posts that can be used on FB and turn into a newsletter/blog)
- 1.5 hour- engaging in groups/with others, offering feedback/commentary (daily broken into 15 min segments)
- 1 hour- connection call with 2 other entrepreneurs (30 min each)
- 5 hours- free sessions with potential ideal clients —> week/end
- 1 hour- bonus content creation- challenge? opt-in? Content you can work on putting out to rock someone’s world?
- 30 minutes- practice selling on a call
- 30 minutes- system improvements- what’s working/what’s not
Again, this was for her business, but what I want you to take away is that YOU get to take charge of your time, be empowered by it and decide where you’re going to spend it.
So for YOUR business I’d love for you to create a similar breakdown and execute on it and see how that changes your business AND your relationship with time.