How To Manage Yourself (and your time) as a New Entrepreneur

The truth is we can't really manage time.

Time just is.

What we can do, though, is learn to manage ourselves. And that's why the whole "time management" thing is such a farce. Become disciplined.

The number one skill most successful entrepreneurs understand or take the time to perfect is self-management. Proper self-management skills are essential for entrepreneurs and business owners. You are now responsible for every part and decision required to run your business.

If you are constantly behind schedule, you won't have the proper focus to create value for your target audience nor have the time to communicate correctly. This can lead to a poor understanding of your marketing and place within the industry altogether. This will ultimately make it harder to market your products and run your business successfully.

Thankfully, just like any skill, you can do the work to improve it.

The following are essential self-management techniques to learn as a new entrepreneur.

Work in batches and with deadlines

Batch work is where you make sure the tasks you start with and work on during your productive hours are similar.

For example. If you need to focus on social media, only focus on social media. Knock out 2, 3, or 4 weeks' worth in one fell swoop. Do that and that only before you move on to the next task.

This way, you are using your time more efficiently by not going back and forth and, for example, responding to emails while trying to upload blog posts to your WordPress website.

While these tasks may seem similar, you will likely waste a lot of time going back and forth from your email provider to your WordPress site. You can easily miss important details required to get your post noticed and the point of the emails you are responding to.

Keeping these tasks separate to maximize your efficiency and quality will work best.

Use proper tools and technology

Technology is your friend regarding social media and other marketing strategies entrepreneurs need to make.

Unfortunately, one person can't do all the work.

However, many tools like Zapier make it easy to automate important yet tedious and repetitive tasks. Not only that but tools like email service providers are critical.

The point is to work smarter, not harder.

Learn to fight off procrastination

Procrastination can instantly kill many start-ups before they even get off the ground.

If you don't do the work, you can't expect success. Period, end of story.

Furthermore, an inconsistent schedule or work delivery doesn't help install the trust and creditability you need to build a solid and successful business.

Schedule everything you can

A schedule is an entrepreneur's best friend as it can save you so much time and frustration.

It is always a great way to keep you organized between your professional and personal life. That line can become blurry pretty darn quick. Anything you do should be scheduled so you know exactly when and what needs to be done to achieve your goals and get 'er done.

First, however, you must conduct a time audit of each task you do so you have a fundamental understanding of how long it takes. This way, you know you are not under or overscheduling your work. It won't be helpful if you constantly go over schedule due to a lack of foresight.

The final word

While being an entrepreneur certainly has its challenges, it's important to remember that the most successful people have overcome these same hurdles.

With proper self-management techniques and the use of helpful tools, you can improve your productivity and focus on what's important: creating value for your target audience.

You can improve your productivity and run your business more efficiently by following these tips.

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