If you’re thinking about joining the Begin Bright network but wondering how you would find the time, this article is for you.

Most of us wish there were more hours in the day. But be honest with yourself – even if you had more hours, would you just waste them away? 

Ask any successful businessperson, and they’ll tell you that it’s not the number of hours you have, but how you use them. By learning and practising effective time management techniques, you can get more done and have more time to spend on the things that matter to you.

Here are ten simple things you can do today to work more efficiently: 

1.  Prioritise Better. 

Narrow down everything you have to do to just three to five manageable items. Put these tasks in order from most to least important so that you’re focusing on what’s essential. If you do this, you’ll eliminate nonessential, time-wasting activities.

2.  Set Time Blocks. 

Create a block of time for each task you have to do and decide precisely how long you’ll do it—for example, one hour on an ongoing project or thirty minutes a day on Facebook. Blocking your time will help keep you on track and prevents you from spending too long on any one task.

3.  Take Regular Breaks. 

If you work too long doing something, you may lose focus and burn out. Break up activities with short rest periods to refresh yourself and get your mind off work. Then, you can get back to what you’re doing with renewed energy and use your time better.

4.  Remove Distractions. 

Things may be taking too long because you’re letting yourself get distracted. Turn off all notifications and sign out of social media. Let people know that you’re working and not to be bothered. If there’s something urgent, tell the person you’ll get to it when you’re finished.

5.  Perform a Time Audit. 

Keep track of how you spend your time each day with a timer and write down the results. Over several days, a picture will emerge showing how you actually spend your time. You may be surprised at where you’re wasting it!

6.  Choose Optimal Times. 

There’s an optimal time of day for each type of task. For example, you may be better at communications late in the morning or creative in the evening. There may also be a time of day when you’re at your most productive. Identify these times and use them to schedule your daily tasks more effectively.

7.  Schedule Fun Time. 

Set aside time for entertainment, mindless distraction, and pure fun when making your daily schedule. You can indulge in these activities during breaks from more challenging things or use them as a reward for completing tasks.

8.  Don’t Multitask. 

Contrary to what many believe, multitasking doesn’t make you more productive. It ruins your focus and prevents you from efficiently completing any task. Focus on one thing at a time.

9.  Get Organised. 

Organise your workspace so that everything is where you need it and easily accessible. Set aside a little time daily or weekly to clean up, organise, and put things away. Doing this will cut down on time spent searching for items and doing on-the-spot organising.

10.Keep Goals in Mind. 

For each thing you have to do in a day, take a moment to consider whether it’s directly helping you reach a specific goal or not. If it’s not, consider eliminating it from your list, moving it to a later time, or delegating it to somebody else.

Organising and prioritising your time is key to being a successful business owner. Find out more about our business opportunities and joining the Begin Bright network by registering for our FREE information pack with more details on Begin Bright, our programmes, pricing and more by clicking the button below

Do you feel like you work hard, but never get anything done? This is a common problem that plagues small business owners, freelancers, and solo entrepreneurs.

 If you find that you’re not reaching your goals, you’re probably falling into one of these four traps:

1 - Poor Prioritizing

 How do you get started on your list of things to do? Do you just pick one off the list at random and get moving?

 The reason you’re not getting anything done could simply be a case of not setting the right priorities. We do the best job identifying priorities by looking at a list of three to five daily items, and choosing which is the most urgent and important. Then, take the remaining items and repeat. Repeat until you have a list ranked from most to least important.

2 – Too Many Distractions

 Your day may be dragging without getting anything done because you’ve failed to eliminate distractions. In fact, you may not even realise what’s distracting you.

 We live in an age of constant electronic notifications from the ever-present computer screens that surround us. Add to these distractors the regular interruptions from people and phone calls, and it’s a wonder anyone ever gets anything done.

 While working on specific tasks, turn off your electronic devices and don’t check email. Let the people around you know that you’re not to be distracted. If there are phone calls or urgent matters, take care of them quickly or arrange another time when you can give them your full attention.

3 - Everything Takes Longer Than You Thought

Even with a well-prioritised to-do list, you may find yourself getting to the end of the day with several items still left untouched. This is because everything is taking longer than you expected.

 A good way to avoid this is to set a time limit for each item. Decide that, for example, you’re going to spend one hour on this project, or you’re going to work on this task for a maximum of two hours and then pick it up again the next day.

4 - Your Rhythm’s Off

 We all have optimal times of day when we’re most productive. It’s important to know yours so that you can schedule the most important or difficult tasks during those times.

 For example, if you’re at your best in the late mornings, set aside that time to get the most work done. Eliminate distractions and focus on the most pressing tasks during these hours.

 We also have optimal times for certain types of tasks. You may be best at problem-solving, for example, in the afternoon after lunch. You might find that evening is your “idea time” when you get inspiration. Scheduling tasks during the appropriate times is the best way to play to your strengths and rhythms to get more done.

Stay Goal-Focused

 You can also improve your efficiency by keeping your goals in mind and making sure that the tasks you spend your time on get you closer to them.