How to Make Time Your Ally - Not Your Enemy

In the fraction of a second it takes to blink your eye, the future becomes the present. When you blink again, just as quickly, the present becomes the past and is gone forever.

Time passes by quickly. We can't change that. But we can manage the process, so time works for us, not against us.

Effective time management is perhaps the most important factor in the success of any small business, entrepreneur or independent businessperson. Freelance art directors and writers included. The old saying "Time is Money" holds true today more than ever.

Poor time management costs money. Lots of it. No business is immune.

Mastering time management requires a small investment of time and money at the start. But the cost of not learning to manage time effectively is far higher.

Effective time management is a trait all financially successful people. At large ad agencies and law firms, time literally is money. Executives in these industries who can't manage their time, increase billable hours and get their staff to do the same don't last long. Top sales people at any company are usually effective time managers as well. The CEO of any successful company will tell you that time is one of his or her biggest day to day challenges is their own time management.

Developing effective time management skills is even more critical for independent businesspeople. Their livelihood and financial success are directly related to their ability to manage their time and the time of others. With no large staff and specialized departments to fall back on, everything rests on their shoulders. They alone have to find the time to get everything accomplished on their own.

When you learn to manage time, it becomes your ally and not your enemy. The result of putting time on your side will become very clear - you'll make more money. Effective time management also allows you to devote more time to growing your business and still enjoy a personal life.

People make hundreds of excuses for not managing time effectively. "I've got a million things to do and they're all important'. "I was born unfocused". "I'm the creative type and not-detail oriented".

The truth is everyone can improve their time management skills to some degree and benefit financially as a result. Even the most creative freelancers, frazzled working mom or the biggest procrastinator in the world can learn to manage their time better. Once they learn the secret, along with a few helpful hints.

There are thousands of time management techniques and systems. In fact, you can spend tens of thousands of dollars on books, systems and seminars offered by time management gurus, each promoting their own unique system.

The secret to successful time management is simple. Find and use only those specific techniques that work for you and stick to it.

You don't need to follow one guru's system. You don't even need a guru. Choose from techniques you've gotten from any books you've read or seminars you've attended. Feel free to create your own techniques and systems as well.

There's only one time management system that counts. That's the one that works and produces results for you.

Here are 15 proven, time-management techniques that are especially effective for entrepreneurs, start-ups and small businesses. Try them and pick the ones that are right for your business and you. Once you do just stick to it

Number 1 - Put a Monetary Value on Your Time. Regardless of what you do or what you sell, your time is worth money. Others won't perceive your time as valuable unless you do. That's why you have to firmly establish in your own mind, exactly how much every minute of your time is worth.

Use the hourly rate you charge clients if you bill by the hour. If you don't have an hourly rate, use $60 per hour. Billing a minimum of 40 client hours every week at this rate would translate to a minimum income of $120,000 a year making your time a very valuable commodity.

At this rate, every minute of your time is worth $1. That means spending an unnecessary half hour on the phone costs you $30. Spending 2 hours hand collating and assembling copies of a presentation Kinko's would charge $15 to do actually is costing you $120. Using this technique proves your time is definitely money.

Number 2 - Set Up A Designated Office Area. Whether you run a retail shop or operate a typing service from your home, one of the keys to effective time management and increased productivity is establishing a designated and organized work area. Sales counters and kitchen tables aren't desks or organized work areas that are conducive to efficient time management.

If you don't have the luxury of a private office, set aside a quiet area of your store, showroom, basement, family room or garage and turn it into an organized workspace. Ideally, it should have a business telephone, fax, computer, printer, storage, desk, and desk organizers. Make it your space and create a place where you enjoy working. But don't make it too comfortable, it's a place of business - yours!

Setting up and organizing your own personal workspace will help you work smarter and faster by reducing the number of distractions that decrease your productivity and waste time. Equally as important, this creates the right mindset and re-enforces the fact that you're in business and your time is worth money.

Number 3 - Keep Regular Working Hours. Whether you work from home or your car, keeping regular working hours is important. Set regular daily working hours for yourself such as 8:30 am to 5:30 pm. If you're a working mom and have to pick up kids at school establish hours like 9:00 am - 2:00 pm and 3:30pm - 5:00 pm. Just stick to your hours as closely as if you had a success driven boss watching your every move.

Number 4 - Minimize Interruptions. Get Caller ID so you can screen calls and ignore those from your friends or relatives who call you 10 times a day because they have nothing better to do. Once chronic interrupters learn you mean business they'll leave you alone during your business hours, unless it's an emergency.

Number 5 - Keep a daily calendar and appointment book. Everyone forgets things they don't write down. That's why keeping an updated calendar is important.

Unless you have a laptop or PDA that is glued to your hand, it's a good idea to keep a written appointment book you carry with you regularly. Update it as soon as you schedule appointments or make changes. This calendar also helps you track entertainment costs and other important tax records that are invaluable at tax time.

Even if you're a totally electronic person, keeping an updated hard copy calendar in addition is a good idea. There are times when you just can't carry a computer or PDA, or it's just quicker and easier to pull out the appointment book rather than boot up the laptop.

Number 6 - Schedule Activities in "Manageable Day Parts". Be realistic and consistent in scheduling appointments and activities. Break up your day into 15-minute intervals to make planning and scheduling a lot easier.

Effective time managers usually schedule and bill in 15-minute intervals.
Even the shortest and simplest business communication takes about 15 minutes to complete, by the time you look up and dial the phone number, keyboard the email address and say what has to be said. Generally the shortest travel time between appointments is 15 minutes, with most averaging 30 to 45 minutes.

Schedule conservatively and allow more time rather than less. It's more productive and better for your professional image to be early. You can find some productive work you can do in the car, restaurant or reception room if you arrive. If you're late you not only annoy the person you have the appointment with, you throw off your schedule and the schedules of people your meeting later too.

Number 7 - Create A "Portable Desktop" you can carry with you. Purchase a zippered organizer or folder to carry a traveling desktop that will allow you to work without a computer almost anywhere or anytime you find the opportunity. This also assures you have the right materials to present to prospects, customers or other interested parties when the time arises.

Ideally, your portable desktop should include business cards, a calendar, your daily to do list, a note pad, pens, a felt market, a highlighter, resumes and bios, paper clips, breath mints or gum, and of course, any promotional materials you use.

Number 8 - Carry A Mobile File Cabinet In Your Car. You always run out of brochures, press kits, resumes or marketing materials you need when you need them the most ... at a networking event, a trade show or when you are unexpectedly introduced to a hot prospective customer.

To make sure your always equipped and never miss an opportunity, keep a briefcase, accordion style folder or egg crate with hanging file folders stocked with extra promotional material, business cards, resumes and bios and other frequently used material.

Number 9 - Productively Use Unavoidable Down Time. Business operates at three speeds - Over Drive, Slow and Stop. Slow and stop are the most common. The average businessperson spends several hours of "down time" each week waiting for late appointments in office reception areas or stuck in traffic. This down time is unavoidable and not under your control. There are several things you can do to manage the time lost in these situations:

Call In Advance To Confirm Your Appointment Is Running On Schedule. If there's a problem, sometimes it's better to reschedule, rather than throw off your schedule only to spend an entire afternoon waiting for one person - especially if you have other important appointments that day. This simple phone call also makes you look highly professional and organized to the person your meeting and those you won't keep waiting later in the day.

Bring Your Portable Desk Top. Even if you call in advance and are assured that the person your meeting is on schedule, things can change pretty quickly and you may find yourself waiting in a reception area longer than you expect. Don't get angry, think of it as found time and use it productively to read a business magazine you brought along, make summary notes from your previous appointment, or work on some other project needing your attention.

Avoid making cell phone calls from a reception area unless it's absolutely necessary. Nothing is more annoying and unprofessional than someone talking incessantly on a cell phone in a reception room. It makes a bad first impression and first impressions are lasting ones. If you need to make an emergency call, simply excuse yourself, step outside, make the call and keep it brief.

Number 10 - Recognize and Plan for "Down Days". There are just some days when you're ready to work, but the rest of the world isn't. And there's nothing you can do to change it.

Let's face it, the day before a long holiday weekend, the week between Christmas and New Years, and Friday afternoons during the summer just not good days for scheduling meetings, making presentations or doing things that depend on other people. So rather than wasting time and energy trying to do the impossible, schedule business activities that depend 100% on you ad your schedule. Like updating your database, cleaning up your hard drive, catching up on paperwork or other jobs you keep putting off until you have the time.

Number 11 - Create a Prioritized "To Do List". Each weekend prepare a To Do List for each day of the upcoming week. Prioritize each project by assigning it a number based on the following system:1 - Urgent. Do or die ... This absolutely must be completed today. 2 - Very Important ... items requiring immediate attention and must be addressed and ideally completed today.3 - Important ... Must be addressed or started today. 4 - Routine ... Should be addressed but can be postponed. 5 - Unimportant ... Not important to address, start or complete today.

Focus your energies on your number 1,2 and 3 priority items, preferably in numerical sequence. Once you've completed them, the number 4 and 5 priorities should be easy.

Number 12 - Don't Bite Off More Than You Can Chew. To Do Lists must be realistic in order to be of any value. Too many people load their lists with more than they can ever accomplish in one day. As a result, they rarely accomplish even a small percentage of what they plan.

Don't over extend yourself by scheduling more than you can ever accomplish in a day - it's not fair to your associates, clients, your family and above all, yourself.

Even if you can accomplish everything, what good is it if you run yourself ragged and burn yourself out in the process. If you find you are consistently not accomplishing everything on your list, you're probably trying to do too much in too little time.

Number 13 - Don't Over-organize. Very often, the magnetic wall-size boards, card and book systems or project management software available actually waste more time and money than they save.

Using any tool to create elaborate systems that require too much time to manage, takes time away from more important things that need to get done. People invest in these tools and only remain committed to the system because it cost them a few hundred dollars. When they realize it's too complicated, they abandon the system and give up on time management entirely. It you are going to use one of these tools, keep things simple. Use the KISS (Keep It Simple Sam) principle as your roule of thumb.

Number 14 - Schedule Time for Rest and Relaxation. The human mind and body can only do so much without a little break to recharge and rejuvenate. Make time for whatever turns you on - jogging, a massage, or cocktails with a friend. Just include it and do it!

Number 15 - Stick to Ir. Even when you've created the perfect time management system for yourself, there will be days when you'll fall behind. Don't get angry or upset. It's part of life and doing business. Just get right back up and get back on schedule, as soon as possible

Try these suggestions and only use the ones that you find are right for you. Doing this will get you started on the road to mastering time management so you make time your ally and not your enemy.