time management – Michele Christensen

Scheduling Social Media Posts

Ask Me Anything, Segment 19

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In this segment of Ask Me Anything, I answer a question about scheduling social media posts. I share the main tool I use to schedule my posts and give my biggest tip on using scheduled posts.

Summary here:

I use Hootsuite to schedule social media posts ahead of time
Scheduling some posts ahead of time is a good way to have a continuous presence on your social media sites, however it is critical to regularly interact with people in real time.
Be sure to be social when you interact with people. Ask questions, join conversations and contribute useful ideas.
Takeaway: You can use Hootsuite or any of a number of apps to schedule some of your social media posts ahead of time. However, make sure to actually put some time in where you are interacting and engaging people in real time.
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Your solopreneur business: one big experiment

When you are trying something new in your business, it’s almost impossible to get it perfect on the first try. That’s why I suggest that you always be experimenting with your business. Even if a new idea that you try works out great, it’s valuable to learn why it worked and how to repeat it.

There is no limit to the number of things you could be doing in your business. If you are randomly doing new tactics and not stopping to measure your results, you are probably wasting time on things that aren’t working.

Before you start anything new in your business, know what you want from that effort. If it’s a new product, you probably want sales. If it’s a listbuilding event, you want people to sign up for your email list. If it’s a social media campaign, you may be trying to make new connections or grow your influence. The point is, always have a goal in mind and a way to measure if your efforts are working.

In the book “The Solopreneur’s Success Strategy: Use Metrics to Know What Works,” I teach you how to get started with metrics, or measuring results in your business. Metrics is the only sure way to know what works for your specific business, and you’ll have everything you need to get started in this book. Grab your copy in the Kindle store! (Note you do not need a Kindle device to read Kindle books. You can get a free Kindle app for your device or desktop.)

Have a practice in place for writing your to-do list (To Do List Tip #6)

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Keeping a to-do list isn’t just something to be done occasionally – solopreneurs have way too much to juggle to be haphazard about their workload. It’s important to have a regular practice of keeping your to-do list up to date.

Link mentioned in video: https://www.michelechristensen.com/daily

Summary here:

This tip is about having a regular practice of writing and maintaining your to do list. Your to do list should never be an afterthought.
There are lots of right ways to keep a to do list. The important thing is that you have a regular practice that works for you and that you follow your practice.
Your brain is not a good place to keep lists and minutiae. Keep your to do list somewhere other than your head, and free up your mind to do more of what you are great at.
By consistently recording your to do items in a reliable system, you’ll feel more on top of things and be better able to prioritize your work.
Takeaway: Have a practice for recording your to do list and follow it. Make sure it is something that works for you so it’s easy to stick with.
If you liked this to do list tip, you can download a free copy of my special report called “The 5 Biggest Mistakes Solopreneurs Make in Writing Their Daily To-Do List and How to Avoid Them” by clicking here.
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Solopreneurs have to manage their own schedule (To Do List Tip #5)

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As a solopreneur, you have a lot of freedom to decide when you work. In this video tip, I give some ideas for how to make use of that freedom so you can have a profitable business and an enjoyable life.

Link mentioned in video: https://www.michelechristensen.com/daily

Summary here:

This video tip is on how to create and manage your schedule as a solopreneur
Once you become a solopreneur, it’s important to realize that you have control over your schedule. Dump the traditional 8-5 and any other scheduling assumptions you have and create a schedule that works for you.
Idea 1 – Integrate your work and personal schedule. You can switch back and forth throughout the day so you can tend to both professional and personal matters.
Idea 2 – Work when you are at your best. Some examples: early in the morning or late at night.
Idea 3 – Save less demanding work for when you are not at your peak. It may serve as a reward for finishing the more demanding work of the day.
Takeaway: If you want to be a successful and happy solopreneur, throw away all your assumptions about how your schedule should work and create a schedule that works for you now.
If you liked this to do list tip, you can download a free copy of my special report called “The 5 Biggest Mistakes Solopreneurs Make in Writing Their Daily To-Do List and How to Avoid Them” by clicking here.
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Every action you take in your business must have a purpose

Excerpt from the book “The Solopreneur’s Success Strategy: Use Metrics to Know What Works“

Ultimately, the purpose of your entire business is to make a profit and to allow you to do your work. Therefore, every action you take in your business should have some positive impact on profit either directly or indirectly. I advise the business owners I work with not to do anything within their business without knowing the purpose for it. Even the most basic of things should have a defined and preferably measurable purpose.

The things you do in your business can impact your profit directly or indirectly. Examples of directly impacting profits would be things that either create sales or decrease expenses directly. Indirect examples would include things like expanding your reach. For example, you may build a social media following or attend live events with the goal of meeting new people. You may not expect to sell to them right away, or even soon, but you may meet people who are interested in what you have to sell or who can introduce you to people who may be interested in what you have to sell. So while building your reach may not directly contributing to profit it does indirectly contribute by giving you the chance to make more sales.

Don’t take for granted that you “have to” do anything. Even something as basic as having a website should have a definitive purpose. Why does your site exist? Is it to sell things directly? Is it to serve as an online version of a brochure and answer questions? Is it to collect contact information so you can follow up? Is it to educate people so they can make an
informed choice about your product? There are so many reasons to have a website that they could probably fill a book by themselves. Yet, so many people have no idea why they actually have a website or how it will make them a profit. It’s just become an unquestioned “given” that you have a website and so people don’t actually think about why they have one or what it
can do for them.

It’s almost impossible to know what will work in your business the first time you try something. The only way to know what works is to know why you are doing each thing in your business and measure your results.

In my book “The Solopreneur’s Success Strategy: Use Metrics to Know What Works,” I teach how to get started with metrics for your business so you can get better results and save time. The book comes with a downloadable metrics starter kit to get you started even faster. Click the link below to check out the book and grab your copy!

The Solopreneur’s Success Strategy: Use Metrics to Know What Works

Write a daily to do list just for today (To Do List Tip #4)

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In this video, I teach you the practice of writing a small to do list that is just for today. It’s inefficient to pick from hundreds or thousands of tasks every time you need to make a decision about what to work on. Instead, make a smaller to do list just for today. Link mentioned in video: michelechristensen.com/daily.

Summary here:

In this video I teach you why it is important to write a daily to do list just for today and how to do it.
If you have a solid habit of writing things down either electronically or on paper, you may end up with hundreds or even thousands of tasks on you to do list. There may be a mix of small tasks and huge projects.
Make it a daily habit to create a to do list just for today. Once per day, scan that huge list that holds all your tasks and select just a few for today based on what your day looks like.
You can write your to do list at night, as a way to wrap up the day and be ready to go in the morning, or in the morning as a way to start your day.
The real value in this practice is that is saves you looking through those hundreds or thousands of tasks every time during the day you need to move to the next task. Instead of picking from a big number, you can pick from a small number of tasks that are relevant to today.
You can feel more confidence that you are working on the right thing right now.
The takeaway: Set aside a few minutes every day to write a to do list that is just for today. You’ll work more efficiently and confidently throughout the day.
If you like this tip, go to michelechristensen.com/daily and get your free copy of my special report “The Five Biggest Mistakes Solopreneurs Make in Writing Their Daily To-Do List and How to Avoid Them.”
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How to get the things on your to do list done (To Do List Tip #3)

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After you’ve analyzed, prioritized and organized your to do list, it’s time to get some things done! Here’s a tip on how to tackle your to do list.

Summary here:

This is a tip for actually getting the things on your to do list done.
You already know you have to keep track of and prioritize the things you want to do. There are lots of good ways to do this.
Make sure to prioritize things that actually make you money!
One way to get your tasks done is to set an appointment with yourself dedicated solely to heads-down, uninterrupted time to crank out tasks.
Treat your task time like a “silo,” meaning it has defined walls and nothing else gets mixed in.
Takeaway: All the excellent prioritizing, tracking and analyzing you can do with your to-do list isn’t worth anything if you don’t actually do the tasks you need to.
If you like this tip, you’ll love my free report “The 5 Biggest Mistakes Solopreneurs Make in Writing Their Daily To-Do List and How to Avoid Them.” Grab your copy at www.michelechristensen.com/daily.
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How to handle tasks that tend to expand (To Do List Tip #2)

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Some tasks can take up as much time as you are willing to give them. This video tip is on how to handle those creeping tasks. Link mentioned in video: www.michelechristensen.com/daily

Summary here:

As a solopreneur, you have to be an excellent time manager and this means not letting your day get eaten up by tasks that take as long as you give them.
For example, it may take a lot of time to keep up with your social media posting and email, or it can take hours to write a script for a short video.
People who work on the internet seem especially vulnerable because so many expanding tasks are right in front of you.
Today’s tip is to put edges on expanding tasks so you will know when they are done.
Some examples you can use right away: Use a timer or checklist for social media, empty your inbox completely on a regular basis, and set a limit on how much time you’ll spend on your writing.
Bonus tip: Don’t use your email inbox as a place to store emails. It’s a holding place for emails you haven’t processed yet.
Takeaway: Keep an eye on tasks that tend to creep or expand and put some edges on them so you know when they are done.
If you like this tip, go to www.michelechristensen.com/daily and download my free report “5 Mistakes Solopreneurs Make in Writing Their Daily To Do List and How to Avoid Them.”
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Bright, Shiny Object Syndrome

Ask Me Anything, Segment 10

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It’s really easy to get sidetracked by the next big thing or the next bright, shiny object. It’s critical to stay focused and finish projects before moving on to the next one. You can find the entire Ask Me Anything series on my blog or YouTube channel under Ask Me Anything.

If you prefer to read instead of watch, here are the notes for this video:

Bright, shiny object syndrome is a funny name for a very real problem faced by entrepreneurs. We can get distracted by the next new idea before we take time to finish what we are working on.
New ideas are especially tempting to entrepreneurs because we love new ideas and like to take action and try new things.
One of the things that separates the superstars from the middle of the pack is the ability to persevere and finish projects even when they get boring.
Learning can be a huge bright, shiny object. Make sure to take the time to implement what you learn before moving on to learning something else.
One of the things I can help you with is finishing what you start. I can help you to know exactly what to be working on. I would love to be one of the people you learn from. Click on the green “Send Me More” button below the video, enter your name and email address, and I’ll send you tips and strategies just for solopreneurs.

How to handle your infinite to do list (To Do List Tip #1)

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As a one-person business, your to do list is literally infinite. There is an unlimited number of things you could be doing to build your business. This video teaches you how to know what to work on. Link mentioned in video: https://www.michelechristensen.com/daily

Summary here:

As a solopreneur, your to do list is infinite – there is literally always more you could be doing to build and promote your business.
It’s no surprise that so many solopreneurs feel overwhelmed!
Having a solid strategy for your business will help you know what to work on.
With a strategy, you know exactly how to find new prospects and convert them to clients.
You can confidently say yes or no to any opportunity depending on whether it fits into your strategy or not.
Takeaway: Don’t even try to do everything you hear about. Have a strategy so you know exactly what to work on.
If you liked this tip, go to www.michelechristensen.com/daily and get a copy of my free report “The 5 Biggest Mistakes Solopreneurs Make in Writing Their Daily To-Do List and How to Avoid Them.”
Please use the social sharing buttons below this video to share the video with your friends and colleagues who would find it valuable.