Time is precious, Time is money – the cliche list goes on! And while these may be true – what can we, small business owners do, in a practical sense, to improve the use of our time and get the most from our efforts. This article will discuss ways that small business owners can increase profits by increasing productivity. Let’s dive in!

1. MAKE SMALL BUSINESS
PROFITABLE BY
INCREASING YOUR
PRODUCTIVITY
Rachel Dool
Just in Time Virtual
Assistant

2. COMMON
CHALLENG
ES THAT
SMALL
BUSINESSE
S FACE
Information Overload
Technology is helpful but it’s also
a major distraction in the
workplace
Dealing with Interruptions
Overflowing Inboxes
Shifting Priorities
Lack of Time

3. TAKE ACTION SCOPING

4. 1. IDENTIFY
YOUR
BUSINESS
CHALLENG
ES
Ask yourself some questions
to get started
What are you struggling
with, in your small business?
What are the possibilities for
moving forward?

5. 2. SET
YOUR
BUSINESS
GOALS
Set some time aside to work
out your businesses short
and long-term goals
The end of the financial or
calendar year is a great time
to do this
Once your goals are set –
revisit these regularly and
keep them front of mind.

6. 3. IDENTIFY
THE
BENEFITS
OF ADDING
STRUCTUR
E
Ticking off
your to-do list
Finding things
quickly
Having an
empty inbox
Save money
Save time

7. (THE REAL
BENEFITS)
TAKE CONTROL OF
YOUR TIME
ACHIEVE YOUR GOALS
AND DREAMS
DECREASE STRESS
GAIN HOURS IN YOUR
WEEK
SPEND THAT TIME ON
WHAT MATTERS MOST
TO YOU

8. 4.
UNDERSTA
ND WHY
YOUR
BUSINESS
IS
STRUGGLIN
G
Lack of a
strategy
for personal
productivity
Undeveloped
or
absent positive
habits
Lack
of discipline
Absence of
systems or not
using smart
systems

9. 5. LEVERAGE THE KEYS
TO SUCCESS
KNOW YOUR PRIORITIES
 Analyse what you’re currently doing
 Identify your day to day and higher-level priorities
 Break down your goal dependent priorities into
activities to do on a daily basis
 Add Structure to your day and your business
ADD SYSTEMS
MAINTAIN THE NEW STAtUS QUO WITH
DISCIPLINE

10. The ONLY thing we spend
is Time
How are you spending your
time each day? Time is
everybody’s most valuable
resource.
You can -
WASTE it
SELL it, Or
INVEST it

11. LEVERAGE THE KEYS TO
SUCCESS
PRACTICAL TIPS

12. A. KNOW
YOUR
PRIORITIES
Take stock of how you are currently spending your
timeKeep a diary for several days or weeks
Work out how much time does it take you to do a task?
You can time yourself to work this out (or use a time-
tracking app – e’g Harvest, RescueTime, Toggl)
Identify your tasks and
categorise into
Ad hoc / one-off / irregular
Weekly, Monthly, Quarterly,
Yearly
Divide your tasks into levels –
Low, Medium, High
Setting these is like filtering – eg
scanning through email
It can be useful to use
a decision-making matrix to do
this (see below)

13. A. KNOW
YOUR
PRIORITIES
Knowing your commitments goes
hand-in-hand with this process
Don’t disregard
commitments outside
of your business!
Family
Social
Self-care

14. A. KNOW YOUR PRIORITIES
•QUESTION if these tasks are the best
use of your timeDo you add value to
the task?
•Could it be outsourced cheaper?
•Could someone else do it better?
•Could it be streamlined or eliminated?
•Could it be automated?

15. B. ADD SYSTEMS AND STRUCTURE
THERE ARE MANY WAYS TO ACCOMPLISH THIS! SOME EXAMPLES ARE
TIME MANAGEMENT
Set up a structure around your time to maximise efficiency and reduce
overwhelm,
over-committing yourself and, burnout.
• Don’t have “unplanned” days
• Add time for tasks and projects
Batch your time
Plot your tasks onto a calendar – eg Google Calendar
• Don’t over-schedule yourself!! Only 50% needs to be scheduled
• Add breaks in – lunch or reminders
• Use the features of your calendar – repeat etc
• If tasks are date sensitive – add immediately!!
Use a productivity or planning app
eg Asana, Trello, Evernote

16. B. ADD SYSTEMS AND STRUCTURE
WORKSPACE ORGANISATION
Have a designated place for things
Remember our workspace is
 Physical
 Digital
 Computer – files, software
 Communication channels – work coming in

17. WORKFLOW
ORGANISATION
Manage all aspects of your
work – eg.
contacts, onboarding,
email, doing your
work/client tasks
Basic workflow example
Collect-Process-Plan-Do-
Review

18. WORKFLO
W
EXAMPLE
COLLECT - Identify and manage your collection buckets –
this is where you gather things – eg. email, voicemail/SMS,
Messaging – Skype, Messenger, Social Media apps
PROCESS
What is it?
Is it actionable?
Yes
If it can be done quickly (2 mins) – do it
If it will take longer
Delegate it
Defer it – add to calendar or planning app
No
Delete/Trash it
Defer long-term – “someday”
Add as reference material
PLAN - As above – use of calendar or planning app

19. WORKFLO
W
EXAMPLE
REVIEW
This can be done daily, weekly etc. Ask your
self – “How did things go?, What went well,
what didn’t? “
You can use a simple plus-minus list for
this
Ensure that you reward yourself for what
you’ve achieved!
Celebrate your wins – small and large.

20. C. DISCIPLINE
There are 2 schools of thought
1. Make changes one at a time
and sustain the change before
adding more
2. Radically change many
things all at one time
Maintaining change and
creating discipline is related to
the creation of HABITS

21. HABITS - EXAMPLES
Focus on protecting your time
Turn off phone and notifications at a certain time each
day
Say “no” – if you find it difficult to say no immediately –
delay so you can make a decision
Implement planning and prioritisation daily
Simplify
Workspace, wardrobe, possessions etc.
Clean up at the end or beginning of each day
Single rather than Multi-tasking
Create Systems and Rituals
Around common actions, tasks that repeat
themselves
Mornings
Bedtime – Sleep Hygiene
Aim to Continuously Improve
Healthy eating
Weekly review to check and maintain progress

22. A NOTE ON TO
DO LISTS
These fall in between planning
and doing
Choose what works for you
(there are many types!)
Keep it simple, short – 3 to 5
things per day, concise
Use Action or Doing words
Also add context, work out
how long it will take you,
choose the best time of the
day