productivity – Page 12 – Michele Christensen

Minimize non-productive work

What does “non-productive work” even mean? If I’m working, isn’t that by definition productive? After all, I have to be on Facebook for my business don’t I? I have to go to that cocktail party networking mixer right? How can I stay informed if I don’t read blogs? That’s work, not goofing around right?

Well, yes, those things are work. To a degree. That’s why I suggest minimizing that time, not eliminating it.

The trap with these types of activities is that they are fun. Who wouldn’t rather got to a mixer in a trendy bar than stay home and write articles, work on strategy, balance your checkbook or file that pile. The problem is that these activities, in many cases, don’t pay off well enough to invest massive time in them. But they are fun, so it’s tempting to spend too much time on them and justify it because after all it is work you know.

What’s the answer?

Decide what you want from those efforts (leads, sales, contacts, traffic, etc) and see if you can find a way to get that. If not, give consideration to letting the activity go.
Challenge any preconceived notions you have about things you “have to” do. If you really can’t let something go, figure out the minimum you need to do to sustain your business and come up with the fastest, lowest effort way to do that (I favor checklists).
If you decide to hang onto an activity that doesn’t produce results, acknowledge that you are doing the activity primarily for fun. Enjoy it and celebrate the opportunity your business provides.
While you are evaluating the effectiveness of your activities, try to set some numeric goals. For example, if you say you want leads from your networking activities, now many would make it worthwhile? How will you keep track? How many hours of networking effort are you willing to put in for each lead? Which events are the generating the most leads?
If you choose to continue a low-results activity, make sure to pick the best of the available options. If you love social networking but don’t get much in the way of results from it, at least spend your time on the network where you get the most results.

What fun-but-not-productive activities are you considering modifying? Tell me about it in the comments. I’ll be sharing my big shift in this area soon!

Find an hour or more per week easily

Ok, here’s a quick tip that’s not strictly business.

I’ve known about home grocery delivery for years, but never tried it until today. I saved at least an hour and a half and a lot of energy. What could you do with an extra hour and a half and some extra energy every week?

Here’s the highlights:

It was only $6.95 for the delivery, and the driver wouldn’t even take a tip.
I was able to find a lot of the foods we eat, which is surprising because we keep a vegan household and don’t use many packaged foods. A partial list of what we got: almond milk, tofu, grapes, fresh tomatoes, cashews and canned beans.
The driver puts the bagged groceries on your kitchen table. No lugging bag after bag from the car!
The process was smooth and included options where you could specify your rules for substitutions. You could also make a request to the person picking your order.
They did miss two items, but one quick call and my credit card was credited.

So, back to business. What could you do with an hour and a half per week that would make this pay for itself? Considering taxes and overhead, you’d need to gross something like $14 for example to make this worthwhile. Leave a note in the comments and tell me if you’ve ever used this service or plan to, and more importantly what you did with the time and energy you gained. If you’re a business owner who doesn’t have a way to make at least $14 in a newly-found hour and a half, let’s talk! Click the link below to schedule your free strategy session today!

Yes, I want a free strategy session!

Make use of holiday slow time, part 3

This is part 3 of a 3 part series. Click here for part 2.

The final idea I have to share about making use of a slow time in your business is to use the time to create processes and systems for things you do regularly. I’ve seen many business owners get caught up in reinventing the wheel for tasks they do all the time. My rule is this: the first time you do a repeating task, write down the steps you think you need to do in order to complete the task. As you do the work, adjust your list and add notes to help you next time. The second time you do it, work from your list and again improve it based on what you learned. By the third time, you should have a pretty solid process that continues to change over time as needed. The more you can systematize and document repeating tasks, the more efficient you’ll be at doing them. You’ll be less overwhelmed and it will be easier to start. Finally, if the time comes for you to hire some help, you’ll have a process in which to train the person not just an ill-defined result you want.

Don’t get stuck on making your processes perfect. Paper is fine to start with (and maybe for a long time after). Don’t worry too much about formatting or formality. This isn’t for your customers, it’s just to make you more efficient.

Here are some ideas on processes you might want to start with:

sorting and filing paperwork
bank, credit card and cash reconciliations
data entry
compiling your newsletter
cleaning and maintenance
opening and closing if applicable

Give it a try! Leave a comment if you have any other processes you can write up.

Make use of holiday slow time, part 2

This is the second of a 3-part series on how you can use your time if business is slow right now. Click here for part 1.

If your business is slow right now, it’s a great time to set up your files for 2011. For the next few months, most of us will be in transition with files – not quite ready to store 2010 but in need of places for 2011 paperwork. Start by finishing any filing you have right now. Any files you keep by year (bank records, vendor payments, utility bills, etc) should be pulled out and boxed for storage but not removed from your workspace yet. You’ll need those 2010 files as the last of 2010 paperwork dribbles in during early January and you’ll probably need them to file your 2010 taxes. Set up new files for 2011 using the same categories if they worked well for you in 2010. It’s a great feeling to be ready when those first few transactions of the new year happen and you are ready for them. Keep your 2010 files nearby in their boxes until you stop getting 2010 paperwork and your taxes are filed. At that time, it’s a good bet you won’t need them much so you are safe moving them to less convenient storage.

Click here for the last part in the series where I’ll give you one more really useful thing you can do right now if you aren’t serving as many customers as usual.