I think most entrepreneurs can agree that one of their biggest challenges in growing their business and a top contributer to their stress level is lack of time. If you are a mom, this is an even bigger obstacle. We want to be everything to everyone, all the time. Well, I am here to remind you that you are doing a great job and there are ways to reduce the overwhelm, gain a sense of control over your life, and put your family first, all while continuing to grow your business.

1. Identify Your Top 3 Goals by Creating a Long Term Road Map

Getting clear on where you want to take your business long term will help you break down the tasks necessary to get there. For instance, if you have the long term goal of operating at capacity in your spa business, you may need to hire more employees, increase marketing efforts, and create a sales strategy. Make a list of all the weekly tasks needed to achieve these goals. Prioritize by scheduling your most important and most time consuming tasks first. 

2. Schedule Your Activities in a Digital Calendar

I love google calendar and basecamp to manage to-do lists, scheduling tasks and attaching deadlines. Be sure to schedule 30 minutes per week to plan for the week ahead. By tracking your time for the prior week you can evaluate your productivity and adjust accordingly. Assess distractions and anything that helped you stay productive.

3. Start Your Day Early

Once you have your top 3 goals broken down into actions, you can determine your MIT (most important task of the day). I recently started waking up at 5 am to achieve my MIT. In fact, that is when I am writing this blog. If you’re a mom like me, this is especially helpful to carve out more time in the day to spend with your family. Plus, if you’re a morning person, this is when you’ll have the most energy and focus.

4. Create Routine by Having Designated Days

Designate days for each department in your business to focus on HR, marketing and sales, finance, and operations/quality control. It is easy to want to start multitasking but I find it helps maximize productivity and organization when my focus is on one thing. Designate days and times for personal activities as well such as groceries, work outs, and errands helps improve consistency. 

5. Delegate

Learning how to effectively delegate can take some work. You will need to create systems or guides on how to accomplish the tasks at hand or you will find yourself needing to re-do things. However, you simply cannot handle everything associated with running a business alone. Taking the initial time to create the system will amplify your business’s results in the long run.

6. Batch Content

Content creation is a big part of any marketing strategy and takes time to produce good, quality value in your market. Scheduling large chunks of time to record videos, write social posts, and schedule emails will help you stay consistent and reduce the stress of last minute marketing. 

7. Automation

Use a social media scheduler like Later, schedule blogs, texts and email campaigns, and utilize your operating software to send follow up emails, confirmations, and reminders. Create SOP’s (standard operating procedures) for your business for tasks like onboarding and training to stay organized, effective, and productive. Use tools like Quickbooks to automatically manage your P+L each month.

8. Schedule Downtime + Self-Care

Remember self-care is productive. Give your mind and body time to relax to allow for reflection, recharging, and rejuvenation so you can run the marathon of owning a business and remain happy and healthy in the process for yourself and your family. Some ideas could be yoga, meditation, tea and journaling, going for a nature walk, reading a book at the beach, or having a spa day. 

Need some accountability? Try a mentor, coach, or trade with a friend or co-worker. Feel free to get in touch so we can chat about how I might be able to help.