Working smart beats working hard. In some cases, working more can actually damage the amount you accomplish. But working less and accomplishing more isn’t easy. It requires thinking creatively to find more effective ways of doing things. Here are a few tips to get you started:
1. Have clarity of your vision and purpose
Write down exactly what your purpose is, and the vision you have for your future. Consider why these things are important to you, and what you want your life to look like in 3, 5, 10, 25, 50 years. Use this as a basis of the things you do and decisions you make.
2. Let go to grow
The biggest challenge when scaling a business is the owner’s lack of knowledge and need for control. They’re often naïve in believing that no one can do the work they do as well as them. Often they fear bringing other people into the business and managing them.
Companies can only reach a certain size if all you do as the owner is graft. At some stage you have to let go of the control, bring in experts and turn graft into craft, mission and vision.
3. Hire sales and marketing people to market and sell for you
To increase the productivity in your business, you can give your staff ownership and leadership over projects, so they are perceived as leaders. You can continue to guide them from a managerial point of view. Sales and marketing plays an essential part in advancing your position and generating money. In virtually every business, this is the activity that if done well, will bring in the money.
4. Outsource
Leveraging or outsourcing in your business has the power to give you more time, business success and financial freedom. In this blog post, I list the things you should consider outsourcing in your business, including administrative tasks and project management.
5. Prioritise MITs
Each day, make a list with only three items: the three Most Important Tasks you want to accomplish today. Make at least one of them related to your 12 month goal.
The others might be a really big project that’s due, or something you’ve been procrastinating on. MITs are the most important tasks – ones that will gain you longer-term income or recognition. It’s best to do your MITs first, before you get interrupted by other things.
6. Embark on time management hacks
There is an endless amount of large and small things you can do to eliminate efficiency and get more done every hour you work. Here, I’ve listed 26 time management and productivity tips. Use these things to gain yourself more time.
