Productivity Hacks from Powerful Women Entrepreneurs

We’re all well familiar with the saying, “Time is money.” Time is precious. Time is an asset. We all wish we had more hours in the day. When we get older, time becomes more precious and we can begin to realize we can’t afford to waste it. As an entrepreneur, it seems like there aren’t enough hours in the day. My schedule is typically booked every day so making sure I am organized and productive is key.

We may think we don’t have enough time in the day when in reality, we could be controlled if we monitor ourselves more wisely. I love reading and learning what tactics other entrepreneurs are doing to stay organized and focused.

Here are some powerful hacks from some of my favorite fellow entrepreneurs:

Sara Blakely, Founder of SPANX

America’s youngest self-made billionaire and Spanx founder, Sara Blakely has a pretty unique morning routine to be her best, most creative self. Each morning, instead of driving straight to work, Sara takes a “fake commute” for about an hour to clear her head and spark her creativity. She suggests her best ideas come to her when she’s aimlessly driving around, including the name of her company. It doesn’t stop there, her Mondays are dedicated to just thinking and creating. Sara along with many other successful entrepreneurs find “batching” their weeks to be most productive.

Taking time to clear your schedule and mind to think is so essential however that may be. With my schedule booked up practically every day, clearing my mind is crucial to keep my sanity. I spend every morning taking my dogs, Sadie and Buster on a walk. Research even shows when we engage in monotonous, relatively mindless tasks, we are more likely to have a creative epiphany. Take time to schedule in mindless time for yourself. Whether it’s meditation, working out, or driving around like Sara, it will be worth it.

Christene Barberich, Refinery29

Before Refinery29 became what it is today, it was launched in a kitchen in Brooklyn between three girls, Christine was one of them. Today, she is the global editor in chief of the platform with a footprint of over 550 million. In order to stay on top of things, she suggests creating not a to-do list, but a done list. At the end of each week, Christene creates a new list of all the things she has completed the week before. By looking at all the tasks she has accomplished, she suggests it’s super rewarding and builds confidence to complete the next week’s assignments.

Sometimes a switch in your mindset is all it takes to get a task done. When we feel incapable of doing something, we are most likely not going to finish it or not do it at our max potential. I incorporate this strategy with my employees as well. Every Friday, each employee is required to create a weekly update reflecting on their highlights and wins from the week before. This is a way for them to not just share their accomplishments with their manager, but really allow them to see and reflect on how the week went and what they are capable of doing. Most people aren’t truly aware of what they are actually capable of.

Arianna Huffington, Thrive Global

Co-founder of the Huffington Post and now founder and CEO of Thrive Global, Arianna Huffington is a powerhouse woman. When asked how she manages to get it all done effectively, her response is actually “less is more.” She explains “you can’t get it all done and you never will. No one is ever able to get it all done in one day.” Her tip to being productive is to figure out the three things that are most important to get done that day. Stick to those three things and don’t worry if you don’t get to the rest.

Huffington stresses the importance of avoiding burnout in today’s age. Her tips are simple, yet hardly done by so many people, especially entrepreneurs. Sleeping at least 8 hours is a must as she says, “A good day starts the night before.” With more sleep, our cognitive performance improves as well as our mood and of course, productivity. Another way to keep stress at bay is to take breaks or “pauses” throughout the day. Take a colleague out for lunch and leave your phone at the office. Getting yourself out of your work environment and taking a mental break from all work distractions for 30 min can make all the difference in your day.

Marie Forleo, Marie Forleo International

Marie Forleo has created an empire for herself. As the host of MarieTV and a life coach, motivational speaker, philanthropist, and author, it appears she does it all. Considering her expertise, it seems like she would have the perfect solution to set yourself up for productivity success and not surprisingly, she does. Her tip is so simple yet makes a huge impact. Marie suggests taking time to plan your day out the night before. No matter how late, take 4-5 minutes to really think about what you need to get done the next day. She highlights that with each task, appointment, or project, you should write an estimate of how long that task will take you.

By planning out your day the night before, you know when you need to wake up, be at your desk, etc. without feeling rushed or stressed. I have engaged in this task since I started my career and it makes all the difference. When we plan, we eliminate any surprises the next day that could ultimately shift your productivity. Investing in a good planner is the first step.

Carrie Dorr, Pure Barre

Carrie Dorr, the woman behind the international franchise, Pure Barre wears many hats every day. Not only is she working in the business and philanthropic world, but she is also a mother of three and a dancer. When it comes to being productive, accepting reality and changing perception is her answer. Carrie suggests one of the worst things we can do is think that we are going to end every day on a good, productive note. Thinking this way will only set you up for failure mentally and physically. Instead, be realistic and ask yourself when your brain is most creative and operative and schedule your tasks that way.

By having the mindset that you need to get everything done and end each day on a successful note is just going to set you up for defeat and frustration. Trying to multi-task and do too much at once can stall you from getting anything done at all and at the end of the day, you are left feeling upset and unproductive.

Sophia Amoruso, GirlBoss

Sophia Amoruso is the founder of Girlboss, a resource for women to provide the tools and guides to help them advance in their life and career. What’s her secret to staying productive? “Be good at one thing at a time; don’t try to do everything at once,” she explains. “It’s great to be super ambitious, but you can be over-ambitious to the point of distracting yourself and your company.”

It’s good to take a look at yourself and figure out your strengths and weaknesses. When you discover what you are not good at, hire someone who is good at that. I always emphasize to my team that we need to hire people who are better than us. Hire people who can do the things you aren’t great at, so you can focus on what you are good at and excel at that.

Whitney Wolfe Herd, Bumble

At just 29, Whitney Wolfe Herd is the women behind the popular app, Bumble. Her tip to stay productive may seem ironic considering her business. She swears by turning off your phone and storing it out of sight when you need to focus. As cliche as this sounds, rarely anyone actually does this. It’s safe to say our phones are the most distracting things in our lives right now and never fails to take us away from what we are doing. We can’t control texts and calls we get, but we can control turning off our phone and allowing ourselves to fully emerge in whatever project we are working on.

Whitney also swears by writing things down. When you write things down as they come up, you can move on to the next thing without worrying about what you just wrote down. Whitney points out, “It’s fascinating to see how much the human mind actually just disposes of, in terms of memory.”  Having a small journal with you at all times is key to making this possible.

Getting everything done in hindsight may seem close to impossible. However, there are small steps you can take to create huge impacts. What’s your go-to productivity hack?

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Kara Goldin is the founder and CEO of San Francisco–based hint?, a healthy lifestyle brand that produces the leading unsweetened flavored water and a scented sunscreen spray that’s oxybenzone and paraben-free. Listen to her podcast, Unstoppable, where she interviews founders, entrepreneurs, and disruptors across various industries and keep up with her on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

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