1. Overcoming Time Management Obstacles in Easy Steps
Time managementcan be the single biggest challengeto working from homeand beinga successful entrepreneur. Learning to overcome
these obstaclescan be the key to managingand leading a successful business.
What are time managementobstaclesand what causesthem? Many thingscause time management obstaclesincluding:
1. Perfectionism - Many people use perfectionism asa crutch; a way to stay busy doing what they know how to do and to let the rest slide.
For example,you’re a skilled writer but detest accounting, which meansyou spend dayson a sales letter and your books are so messed up
you don’t know who owes you what or how much money you’re making or losing.
2. Procrastination - Thishappensfor a number of reasons. If you’re facing burnout, thenyou’ll likely feel like avoiding anythingrelated to your
business. However, if you’re facing a task you don’t want to do it’smuch easier to procrastinate.
3. An inability to say no - Guess what; not only should you not be doingeverything – you can’t! And ifyou try to, something’sgoing to give.
You’re not going to be able to devote your full attention to your business-related tasks, they’ll suffer and your bottom line will suffer.
4. Lack of planning - It’seasy to become caught up intasks like
* Social networking
* Email
* Phone calls
* Checking stats and website analytics(Thisisimportant butyou don’t need to obsessively watch the numbers)
* Surfing the net, reading blogsand industry information
One quickemail checkcan turn intoa full hour of backand forth email correspondence andbefore you know it, your entire schedule isoff for
the day. Planning, and sticking to your plan, helpsyou stay on track.
To overcome time management obstacles, consider these four steps:
#1 - What’s stopping you?
Lookat what’s holding you up. Isit procrastination? Perfection?A lackof planning? What’sgetting inyour way?
#2 - Prioritize andset goals
Prioritizing andgoal setting are two very important componentsof time management. Goal settingiseasiest to accomplish when you set a
goal that isattainable and measurableand whenyou breakit down intosmaller manageablegoals.
Creating a task list is another item that, asstrange as it may sound, needsto become a scheduledpart of your day and your week. You’ll
want to spend a bit of time prior to Monday morning creatinga list of tasks and goalsfor the upcomingweek. Keep in mind that some days
may be set aside as planning days, daysoff or meetingdays.
#3 - Schedule your day, weekand month
Make sure you have time to accomplish the goals, tasks and prioritiesyou’ve established. Set asidethe time you need by plan ning your
days, weeks, and even your month out.
To make thisprocess easier, and to lighten your load,there are time management toolslike a PDA, desktop scheduling software and the
good old fashioned paper calendar, whichcan help you establish and maintaintime management success.
#4 - Get help
Finally, ifyou’re feeling overwhelmed, it may be time to seekoutside help.Consider hiringsomeoneto managethe tasks that seem to get in
the way. Often these are the administrativetasks. You can outsource them to a virtual assistant to lighten the load. You can also hire a
housekeeper if daily choresare a distraction from your business. And don’t forget about technology. Many tasks can be automated.
Overcoming your time management obstaclesiseasy when you are able to acknowledge what they are and why they exist. From the re it’s
merely a process of planning how to overcome them andusing the right toolsto get the job done.
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