For many entrepreneurs, success comes at the heavy price of working long hours and failing to maintain an optimal work-life balance. With the market evolving at a breakneck pace that’s not getting any easier to keep up with, the challenge of managing a busy schedule is greater than ever. That’s why it’s never too soon to address the problem before it ends up leading to serious burnout.
#1. Focus on smaller goals
Entrepreneurs and business owners are driven by their visions to achieve something great, often in a very short time. Whether it’s running a startup or trying to rejuvenate an old business model, it’s easy to end up setting impossible goals and succumb to disappointment when you fail to meet them. Instead, focus on smaller goals over which you have complete control. Don’t think about goals that you can’t directly influence, such as is typically the case with financial goals. Instead, set small daily or weekly activity goals, incrementally raising the stakes only when you’re comfortable enough to do so. It’s about continuous improvement, and not trying to get everything done in as little time as possible.
#2. Stop trying to multitask
Multitasking has long been heralded as a major productivity booster. Many entrepreneurs try to juggle with multiple responsibilities at the same time, but it’s simply not possible to deliver the same quality of work if you’re unable to focus and prioritize effectively. While it’s important to break the routine on occasion and avoid getting completely bogged down in a singular task, that doesn’t mean you should be doing two jobs at once. Instead, set aside specific times of the day to specific tasks to maintain your focus and hone your skills.
#3. Keep track of your ideas
Those lightbulb moments can strike at any time. In fact, it’s safe to say they can be quite the distraction. Still, when a good idea comes to mind, the last thing you want to do is forget about it. Also, you don’t want distractions getting in the way of an already busy schedule and ultimately leading to burnout. Write down your ideas in a notebook or Microsoft OneNote if you carry a mobile device.
#4. Automate your workflows
Repetitive manual processes are the bane of any entrepreneurial activity. They don’t just take up time, they also leave your work open to costly human error and end up creating yet more work.
Fortunately, technology has the answer when it comes to automating routine workflows. For example, if you’re taking hours out of your week filling in forms with the same information, you may want to use a tool that populates the fields automatically.
Another task that is easily automated is password management, whereby single sign-on lets you access all the tools and data you need for work without needing to remember multiple sets of login credentials and entering them manually every time.
#5. Take a technology detox
From notification fatigue to software bloat to social media, technology can itself be the biggest time waster of all. Wherever we are and whatever we’re doing, the virtual road is never more than a click or a tap away, but things don’t have to be like that.
Many successful entrepreneurs, such as Bill Gates, Mark Zuckerberg, and Tim Cook, all famously take tech detoxes to get a needed break from the constant bombardment of updates and notifications. It’s never been more important to switch off on occasion by setting aside some weekly time away from tech.
Cyber Shift Technologies offers expert guidance and solutions that transform your technology from a costly liability to an invaluable asset. Call us today to take the stress out of IT.
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