Are you trying to figure out how to balance working on and in your business? Effective time management is key to growing your business, while also keeping daily operations running smoothly. Today, I’m sharing 5 tips for how to balance working on and in your business.
How to balance working on and in your business: Introduction
If you’re a small business owner or solopreneur, running your business from day to day might be a full-time job. If you want to grow your business, it will require additional time and effort. But at what cost?
So many small business owners and solopreneurs want to grow their business, but feel stuck because they can’t find the time. Some dread the extra time they’ll have to spend working, or feel like growing their business is impossible, because they’ve already maxed out their time and energy.
Small business owners shouldn’t have to choose between running and growing their business. Here are 5 simple tips on how to balance working on and in your business.
Have a goal for growth, and a plan to achieve it
The first step is to identify the type and volume of growth you want to achieve in your business, and to create a plan to make it happen.
One of the struggles that business owners and solopreneurs face in growing their business is a lack of clarity around their goals. They might have a vague idea of where they want their business to be in 6 months, a year, or 5 years, but they haven’t defined the specific outcomes they want to create.
Some business owners DO have specific goals for their business, but haven’t created detailed plans to achieve them. As a business owner, you’re probably already strapped for time and energy. If you don’t have a plan to achieve your business growth goals, you won’t know what specific tasks to work on when you DO have some extra time.
When you have clear goals for growth, and detailed plans to make them happen, it’s a lot easier to work ON your business, and not just IN it.
Identify the basics that will keep your business running smoothly
Another important step in figuring out how to balance working on and in your business is to identify the basic tasks and processes that will keep your business running smoothly, so you can responsibly make time to work ON your business.
Sometimes, small business owners or solopreneurs will invest significant time, energy, and resources into growing their business, while unintentionally allowing the day-to-day operations to deteriorate. Before they know it, they’ve experienced a backslide in their progress. That growth they were after has to take a back seat to getting their current business healthy again.
It’s important to tend to the business you currently have while you work to grow the business you want. Identify the basic, core tasks that need to be taken care of day-to-day, week-to-week, etc., to keep your business running smoothly. Make sure you’re taking the time to get those things done. Consider recurring tasks areas like:
- Marketing
- Sales (lead generation, quotes/consultations, follow-ups, etc.)
- Finance/accounting/legal
- Operations
- Staffing/HR
As you identify and prioritize the recurring tasks you’ll need to complete to maintain your business, consider which tasks you can stop doing, versus what you really need to continue doing. Cutting or delegating unnecessary tasks means more time to work on your business’s growth.
Finally, set aside time each day/week to work on those essential maintenance tasks, so you’re taking care of the business you currently have. After all, it’s tough to grow a business that’s shrinking.
Create space in your schedule to work ON your business
The next step in determining how to balance working on and in your business is to create space in your schedule to work on your goals for business growth.
You might hear that you need to “make time” to work on your business goals. Here’s the thing about that… it’s impossible to “make” time. Time is objective, immutable, and not within our control as humans. The clock ticks on, regardless of what we think, say, or do. What we CAN control is ourselves, and how we choose to spend our time.
Instead, make space in your schedule to work on your business growth goals. This means that you might have to put some other things on the back burner. It might mean that you won’t be able to work on your goals for as long or as often as you believe you need to. Just remember, some progress is better than none. You are in charge of how and why you spend your time and energy.
As you work to create space in your schedule to work toward your business goals, here are a few things to consider:
- When are your focus and energy at their best? Are you a morning person? A night owl? When possible, schedule goal-based tasks for times of day when you tend to feel your best.
- How much time would you like to spend working on your growth goals this week, and how much time do you actually have?
- Where can you find pockets of time to make a little progress toward a goal? It’s always nice to have larger chunks of time to do deep work on your business goals, but even 30 minutes here and there can create forward progress.
Prioritize working ON your business each week
Another important aspect of figuring out how to balance working on and in your business? Making working ON your business a priority each week.
Goals can easily get lost in the day-to-day shuffle of running a business. Be intentional about incorporating work on your goals into the structure of your days or weeks.
Sure, there will be weeks when you have less time to work on your growth-based goals. But if you’re keeping your goals top-of-mind on a regular basis, you’ll be more likely to make space in your schedule to work on them consistently. Even if you only have 30 minutes to spare one week, that’s more progress than none.
Manage interruptions effectively
Most business owners and solopreneurs know that it’s impossible to predict how your day will go with 100% accuracy. Interruptions are bound to come up. Part of learning how to balance working on and in your business means dealing with interruptions effectively.
Let your staff, family, and other frequent communicators know when you’d like to work without interruptions. When you’re scheduled to work ON your business, ask them gently to avoid interrupting you, unless it’s a true emergency.
One tactic that can help is to let others know when you’ll be available to interact or respond to them. For example, you could say, “I’m working on an important project between 8:00 and 10:00 tomorrow morning. I’ll be available to answer any questions you have at 10:00.”
How to balance working on and in your business: Conclusion
If you don’t make time to work toward growing your business, you risk stagnation. At the same time, figuring out how to balance working on and in your business can be a big challenge. To recap, here are 5 of my tips to consistently work toward your business goals:
- Have a goal for growth, and a plan to achieve it
- Identify the basics that will keep your business running smoothly
- Create space in your schedule to work ON your business
- Prioritize working ON your business each week
- Manage interruptions effectively
If you could use some help with creating a plan to work ON your business, let’s talk. I’d love to hear more about you and your business, and offer you come concrete tips and suggestions to help you get more done in less time, so you can make more money!