The Constant Entrepreneur: Advice for Running a Productive Business

Time Management

The scarecest resource we have is time – once it’s gone, it’s gone and can’t be replaced. Yet rather than manage our time better, many entrepreneurs just pile up more hours every week working. An entrepreneur working more than 50 hours per week needs to carefully examine how effectively the time is being used.

The best advice I ever received on time management is found in the first chapter of a book called “The Ultimate Sales Machine” by Chet Holmes. To summarize:

1. Touch it once – read an e-mail or memo, follow-up on it and dispose of it.

2. Make lists – the most important, is a list of the 6 most important tasks that need to be done today.

3. Plan how much time you will allocate to each task – Adding up the total time for the six most important tasks to be done today should be no more than six hours. This leaves time for answering e-mails and interruptions.

4. Plan the day – Knowing how much time is allocated for each task, assign a start and stop time for each one.

5. Prioritize – Knowing that 20 percent of effort brings 80 percent results, plan for most effort to be focused on high-results-producing activities.

6. If you don’t need it, throw it away.

That’s it. I found it amazing how much more productive I could be in following these six simple steps.

By the way, Chet’s book is also a wonderful sales book.

Will Limkemann
Limkemann Business Advisors
440-871-0976
www.neobizadvisor.com