How to save time when you own your own business

As an entrepreneur time management can be one of the hardest things to get right. When you are working on something you are so passionate about and are determined to succeed, it can be hard to stop your work life spilling over into your personal life. However, a good work-life balance is vital in your success as an entrepreneur to ensure you don’t burn out too quickly. Likewise, when you own your own business and have a number of people to manage, it can be hard to decide when to delegate and take a step back, without feeling worried for the welfare of your company.

We look at the three best ways to save time when you are your own boss, to ensure your company and your health stay at the top of their game.

1)   Watch how much time you spend on emails

As the boss of a company it’s natural that employees want to copy you in to emails every step of the way. Although some bosses may encourage this, so that they are on top of everything that is going on, this can be a huge timewaster. Even reading emails without responding to them will take up a large part of your day, and most of the time the information you will read will not be beneficial to you. As a boss you need to know when to be copied in to emails and when to take a step back. Trust your employees and make sure you are only reading emails that require action from your end. For entrepreneurs that work alone, make sure that your ongoing tasks are not interrupted when a new email comes in. Being a multi-tasker isn’t always a good thing - stopping one task to start another can be detrimental to the quality of your work.

2)   Plan ahead

Every day should be planned into different blocks to ensure you make the most out of every working hour, and don’t have to spend your personal hours catching up. The best way to tackle this is to plan ahead. Start your day off with an hour of email catch-ups, and then leave that alone for the rest of the day. Then make a list of the most important tasks you need to complete that day and work your way through them strategically. If you find yourself spending too much time on one task, stop to think of the importance of it. Is this a task that will change the success of your business? If not, stop dragging it out and move on to the next thing on your to-do list.

3)   Delegate, delegate, delegate!

If there is a task that someone else can easily do, delegate it to them. If you are the boss of a company with multiple employees, make sure you are delegating as much work out as possible, so that you have enough time to manage the business as a whole and work on improving or growing it. If you are an entrepreneur, think of employing some freelancers to do the smaller tasks for you. For example, you spending time on admin or small marketing activities when they can easily be outsourced is a waste of time. As the brains behind the company there are a thousand more productive things you could be doing, so don’t be afraid to lighten your work load.

Whatever your business activity, time is the most precious asset a business owner or entrepreneur can have. Use these useful tips to make sure you are saving as much of your own time as possible, and instead use your free hours to grow your company even more.