By Jason Skinner
Ask any small business owner what they would change about their working life, and the answer is almost always the same: I need more time.
There’s never enough of it.
Jobs run over. Quotes and paperwork get done after hours. Emails, invoices, orders and compliance work all follow you home. The business may be busy and profitable, yet you’re still finishing your day at the kitchen table with a laptop.
We each have 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 52 weeks per year, not a second more or less. We can’t make or buy more of it. All we can do is use it wisely. And once a second has passed, it’s gone for good.
The truth is, nothing is wrong with time itself. It gives us a gauge to work with throughout our lives. The problem is time leakage. Because we can’t see it, we waste it easily, and it simply leaks away in small pieces. Since the arrival of smartphones, the internet and social media, those leaks are happening faster than ever.
The irony is that technology has evolved to make our lives easier, but I believe it’s coming at a cost: our effective use of time.
The good news is the leak is fixable, and the numbers are on your side. Did you know that if you can find just 10 minutes in the morning and another 10 in the afternoon, you’ve reclaimed 20 minutes a day? Across roughly 240 working days, that’s an extra 80 hours a year.
That is two full working weeks a year.
Two weeks might be a holiday you’ve been putting off. It might be the business development you keep postponing. It might simply be your evenings back with your family. You already own that time. The problem is that you’re spending that time on things that don’t serve you.
Here are the top ten places we see time go missing in most businesses.
1. No clear goals
Without an actionable target, the day drifts from task to task, and you finish it feeling busy but not productive. Setting goals is a whole topic in itself, but when you do set goals, make them specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-bound. “A goal to grow the business” is too big and ambiguous to act on. “Have the new online store up and running by the end of December” is something you can break into tangible, actionable steps and work toward.
2. Phone and social media
It’s easy to say you barely use it. Check your phone’s weekly screen-time report before you decide. Even one wasted hour a day is five hours a week, which adds up to weeks over a year. Try setting boundaries with your devices, especially around time-wasters like social media. You’ll be surprised how much extra time you can free up.
3. Procrastination
Procrastination is rarely laziness. It usually stems from unclear priorities or a lack of confidence about a particular task. In a small business, the jobs that get put off are often the most important, such as reviewing prices, chasing overdue invoices, rostering, and business planning. Book them in like a customer appointment, and do the hardest one first. Find the times during your week when you’re most productive and use them for these tasks. For me, early mornings before the world wakes up are my action times. For others, it’s late evenings.
4. Interruptions
Constant interruptions cost more than the seconds they last, because it takes time to refocus. Protect blocks of time for the important tasks in your business. You can’t ignore customers, but you can set aside times when you’re free from interruptions.
Ask staff to message you first rather than walking in, and switch off email and app notifications.
5. Poor delegation
“It’s quicker if I do it myself” is one of the most expensive sentences in business.
That five-minute task takes five minutes every single time. Spend the time once to train your staff or your bookkeeper, and you stop being the bottleneck. You also build the skills of the people around you.
6. Missing systems
If you do something more than once, turn it into a procedure. Quotes, invoices, customer follow-ups and onboarding new staff are all candidates. Better still, ask whether there is software or a tool that can do it for you. Good systems also reduce mistakes, which saves time and money.
7. Not saying no
Committees, extra jobs, favours and requests, often for good causes, all sound reasonable one at a time. But every yes is a no to something else. Say yes to what moves your business and your life forward, and learn to decline the rest politely.
8. Ineffective meetings
Meetings without an agenda run long and decide little. That includes staff meetings and catch-ups with suppliers, your bank or your advisers. Circulate an agenda beforehand, and start and finish on time. Record what was agreed, who is responsible and by when.
9. Being driven by your inbox
Opening your inbox first thing means other people’s priorities set your day. Try checking email at two set times a day, and protect your sharpest hours for your most valuable work.
10. Poor planning
Goals without a plan are just wishes. Spend 15 minutes at the end of each week deciding what needs to happen in the next seven days to move your goals forward. Be mindful that emergencies and obstacles will pop up at any time, so keep your planning flexible, but always set clear objectives for the week ahead. It’s the best return on time most people will ever find.
Where to start
Importantly, you don’t have to fix all ten at once. Read through the list and notice which point you relate to most. That’s your starting point. Write it down and commit to winning back 10 minutes a day. Then find the second 10.
Time is the one resource we can’t buy more of. But we can stop giving it away.
Importantly
This article is general in nature and does not constitute financial or taxation advice.
Jason is a CPA Accountant and the principal of Skinner Business Consultants located locally in the Bellingen Shire, and can be contacted at
jason@jasonskinner.com.au.