If you would like to recommend someone on LinkedIn or would like to ask people to recommend you and your not sure how to do that… then watch this video:

Yes… absolutely yes!!! In fact if you noticed I have been quiet for the past week it’s because that is exactly what I did .

Last Saturday my father-in-law passed away, for those of you who have lost a loved one you know the emotional drain this puts on a family, whilst also coping with the organisation of a funeral. As a small business owner I found it was incredibly difficult to be there for my family whilst continuing to work in my business. I tried it for a day and it was neither productive nor beneficial to anyone. So I decided to stop working for a week.

One of the benefits to running your own business is you can drop everything and be there to support the people you love during a difficult time… and if you have proper systems and processes in place for your business its an incredibly easy thing to do.

Having effective procedures in your business means you can assign a team member or colleague to step in and hold the fort in your absence. They will have all the information to take over from you and you can leave the business and relax knowing it is running like clockwork, even if you are not at the helm.

Perhaps you don’t even need to have someone step into your business, effective systems and procedures means your team can function without you for the week. They know what is expected of them, they know how the process works and they can “hold the fort” and get by for one week without you.

A lot of small business people tell me ‘systems and processes are boring’ or ‘I don’t have time to write out my procedures’ however I don’t think these people would find them boring when an unexpected event occurs in their life and those systems and processes allow them to drop everything and leave their business with a moment’s notice.

So my question to you today is, could you leave your business at the drop of a hat? If not, then start getting your systems and procedures into a document, a manual, a video – anything you like as long as you can document your systems so anyone can run your business.

Contact us, if you need help with this process, we’d love to help you.

If you are using Mac Mail and are sick of missing emails due to the conversation mode setting, then this How To tip is for you…

This tip is about more than to-do lists. But let’s start there, as to-do lists are one of the most useful, free and easy ways to boost your efficiency. Why? If you can ease the constant juggling routine in your head of don’t-forget-about-this-and-make-sure-you-do-that, you can concentrate completely on the task at hand, and you’ll get it done faster, and better.

Clear some time at the start of your week to organise your head. I recommend you do this first thing Monday morning just after switching on your computer, so you can prioritise ALL your tasks even the ones that have come through over the weekend.

Make yourself a cup of tea and write down everything you need to do this week, and this month.  And I mean everything. You may want to have two separate notebooks, coloured post-it notes, word documents or Evernote folders for personal and professional tasks, or one for this week and this month. It doesn’t matter HOW you organise your lists, as long as you make them.

The trick is to list your personal tasks at the same time as your business tasks. If you have to organise a plumber, get your car serviced or need to buy new school uniforms, then write this down alongside your business to-dos. Personal tasks take up time, and often we have to get those jobs done in business hours, so you need to know how much time you’re going to spend away from your desk to carry them out.

Once you have written your list, prioritise the tasks in order of urgency (even providing yourself with due times and dates for items can help) then, get stuck into the week! Start with the jobs that take two seconds to finish, the ones that are quickly actioned and out of the way; an online order, a phone call, a quick email – you’ll feel great that you can start crossing off your list immediately.

Then work your way through your list, focusing on one job or project at a time. If you have read our “zone post” you will have the confidence of knowing you’ve allocated time for everything urgent and this will empower you to work more effectively. You’ll be surprised how much more fun work is when you’re getting everything done, and how powerful the “buzz” is from being on top of everything.

We’d love to hear from you on how you organise your to-do list? Whether you have time set aside at the beginning and end of the week to make and revise your lists? How do you feel when you are achieving goals from your list? And most importantly, let’s have a discussion on how you keep your to-do list, paper or on a computer? I’d love to hear from you…

Ever wished everything in your business would just quiet down or go away for a few hours so you can just get that tricky task at hand done? We’ve all got jobs we don’t like doing or maybe we’re just not good a particular task, so we welcome distractions, and then all of a sudden it becomes urgent. This is not the best use of your time, and the power to make the most of the tricky tasks is entirely in your hands.

Most entrepreneurs I know prioritise the urgent to-do list, then the exciting long-term strategy creation and keep the less-than-thrilling work sitting there in the back of their minds, creating stress. To combat this, I recommend you create focus zones in your week, so you can get those lingering tasks you struggle to finish out of the way to free up not only your mind but also your time.

To help you get started, here is my four-step guide to creating zones in your week:

Step 1:     Identify the tasks you struggle to finish because of distractions

So sit down and honestly identify the tasks you struggle with. This will vary considerably depending on what your skills, interests and responsibilities are. Make a list of these tasks and be incredibly specific of what you need to achieve, as you need to know when you’re done!

Step 2:    Schedule your zone times smartly

A lot of people fail at this step. To schedule zones well, you need to be mindful of two factors.

 The first is finding a regular time that won’t be interrupted by events, such as networking lunches or meetings. You want to create a regular focus zone so you can relax about completing that type of task during the week, as you know you’ve set aside the time to get it done.

Secondly, you need to keep in mind how your brain works throughout the day. If you’re doing creative work such as coming up with new ideas, writing or designing a new brief, schedule your zone first thing in the morning and in the middle of the week. This way you can charge into work, and get the task done with your full focus before the day kicks off, distractions arise and you start getting tired or stressed.

If it’s a less mentally demanding job, schedule an hour or two in the middle of the afternoon. This is usually the time of day when our minds start to wander, so refocusing on a specific task will help you make the most of these hours.

Step 3:    Prepare for your zone time

If you have staff, or remote assistance, let them know you won’t be contactable during your zone times. Ask them to email you rather than call if they have any questions or work to submit.

Turn off your email program so you don’t see any new emails hitting your inbox during your zone time. If you can, switch of your telephone so you can really concentrate for the time you have set aside or alternatively let the calls go to voicemail and then screen for urgent matters.

Step 4:    Do and review

Perhaps my most important tip for making zone times work for you is to stick with it. The first few times you try to get stuck into your work and focus, your mind will still fill with extra tasks or more urgent work. Keep a notepad next to your computer to jot down ideas. I recommend a notepad rather than a word document to maintain your single focus on your computer.

If you find by the third zone time you’re still unable to focus, reassess the tasks you’ve created the zone time for. Are they too vague for you to focus on? Are they not a priority for you at this time? Is this task something you could outsource, or seek training for to make you more confident at finishing it?

Zone times are very effective, but you may need to tweak how you do them until you find the perfect fit for you. Remember this is a efficiency tip to help you focus on and power through tasks, so make sure you’re organising your zone time so it adds time to your week, rather than eats up hours ineffectively.

No matter where you fall on the introvert-extrovert spectrum, learning how and when to wrap up conversations that are (to put it bluntly) wasting your time is an important skill for entrepreneurs of all social persuasions.

These lingering conversations could be at a conference display table, a networking event, with a customer, or even an almost-customer who is trying to squeeze as much advice out of you for free as possible.

I’m not going to give you a script to follow, because we all talk differently and if you suddenly segue into someone else’s words, it’ll be jarring for the person you’re trying to politely move on from. But there are three elements that your conversation-ending point should cover.

Thank them for the conversation

We all know thank-yous come at the beginning or end of the conversation, and it’s clearly not the beginning of your conversation! This is the easiest way to kindly show the person you’re wrapping up the conversation. Find something genuinely useful to thank the person for, so they feel encouraged and not brushed off. It could be as simple as “thanks so much for helping me understand what you do better” or something deeper such as “thank you for sharing that story about x, it helped me re-analyse one of the ongoing business challenge I’ve been thinking about for a while”.

Remember to make eye contact while saying thank you, so it feels genuine and connected. Even if you get drawn into conversation, you’ve shown that you’re ready to move on. Interrupting to say something nice is one of the easiest ways to change the direction of a conversation, so use this tactic to end it well.

Make it clear you’re moving on

There is nothing quite as awkward for people as that moment when the one person realises the other person tried to leave and failed. So make your excuses and move on. Don’t feel guilty about it, you’re both busy and guilt shows.

I recommend you avoid the “I have another call coming in/oh look there’s Greg, I had to talk to him about x” excuse unless it’s true.

Following your thank-you up with an “it was so nice to meet you” or “we should have coffee sometime” and a handshake, or “please don’t hesitate to call if you have any further questions” is all you need to move on.

Don’t forget to smile, and if they’re not getting the message, straighten up and look like you’re ready to move on before you give your reason or say your farewell. If you’re on the phone, re-inject some energy into your voice. Both of these non-verbal clues are enough to let the person know you’re moving on.

Don’t end the conversation forever

Make sure you have their business card or contact details. Always mention your offer of ongoing support, or a desire to catch up sometime soon. When you get home, follow up with a friendly email or LinkedIn connection request. This means if they did have any lingering doubts you brushed them off, your friendly follow up will wipe that concern away.

A How To video on managing your inbox. This demonstration is using Mac Mail however the same technique can be used in Outlook, Gmail and others.

Due to client confidentiality, I have blocked out the specific email details but this doesn’t effect the process.

Your business will not thank you for working 18 hours a day, and if you think you need to, you really need to reassess where and how you’re investing your time and energy.

I know that sounds tough, and believe me, I understand that feeling where you need to get everything done and there is just not enough time. So I thought I would remind you why it’s not beneficial to you or your business to be working 18 hour days.

It’s unsustainable, and can go from hard to impossible in ten seconds

While we all launched our business for a range of reasons, a common one is control over our own time, and more flexible hours. But frantically doing 18 hours everyday will sap your energy, and whittle away at your motivation to keep doing the hard work you need to do so your business can flourish.

More importantly, you should never be working that close to your full capacity. You use the same mind and heart to run your business as you do to live your life. So something as simple as a child or pet getting sick, a broken pipe or a particularly tricky issue with your partner or friend comes up, and suddenly you’ve got nothing left to draw on for energy.

You need the hours in the day, the diversity of mental stimuli and moods to stay strong no matter what happens, and overworking is only manageable until life throws something up, as it inevitably will.

People become problems

Whether they’re clients or staff, if you’re working too hard and have too much to do, any unwanted interruptions will be rushed through. And I haven’t met an business owner yet who hasn’t snapped at a staff or family member when stressed.

But even more damaging to a business are the opportunities you miss, or worse, mess up with clients because you don’t have the time to hear what they’re saying, and think creatively and conscientiously about how to meet their need. No one else is going to be the creative force behind your brand, so give yourself the opportunity to do it as best you can by not overworking.

Lack of downtime leads to fewer ideas and weaker connections

Where were you when the most recent, great idea for your business came to you? Were you were in the shower or lying in bed? I know for 99% of us, it wasn’t sitting pen in hand at our desks, listing ideas.

Our brain makes connections and comes up with some of our best ideas while we’re focused on something else. This is because your mind is so much bigger and more creative than we think it is. Allowing your business brain to rest will enable it to find connections you might miss when you’re thinking through issues strategically.

Don’t deny your mind the downtime it needs to relax, and to come up with the best ideas for your business that you just can’t force yourself to come up with.

If you’re working too many hours and feel that any of the above points could be true for you, why not
sign up for our monthly efficiency tips or alternatively shoot me an email about how to streamline your business so you can invest your time where it matters most?

Yes. Definitely yes. You may want to choose a different word than dictate, but as a business manager, you are responsible for using every idea, insight and hour your business produces and uses.

While many of us moved into running our own businesses because of the alluring promise of flexibility, there are some aspects to your business that you know you shouldn’t be relaxed about.  I’m sure none of us would feel remotely dictatorial for specifying how invoicing has to happen in our business.

I know no one wants to be a dragon boss, and we’re all familiar with the morale and initiative crushing woes of micro-managing, but every document (not just invoices) your business produces is valuable, and it’s your job as a smart manager to work out a uniform system for organising and sharing these.

This has four benefits:

1.     It’s neater, and quicker

Your server and computer files are just like your office. A messy (or shall we diplomatically say ‘relaxed’) office is manageable, but a neat and well set-up office creates a better and more productive atmosphere. Files named using different systems (or none at all) is okay, but a uniform system of naming takes five minutes per staff member to put in place, and will save you hours each month.

2.    Stay up-to-date with what your team is working on

As soon as you hit ‘sort by most recently updated’ in finder, you’ll be able to see what your team has been working on most recently. This information will help you better manage your team, and make sure you’re giving them the support they need at the right time in their project flow.

3.    Better knowledge sharing

If every staff member can tell what a document is about by the title, staff can keep themselves better informed about developments of ideas and projects they’re involved in. It’s also easier for a staff member tasked with a new project to be able to tell at a glance what other information is available.

4.    Sustainability and hand-overs

Whether it’s poor health, parental leave, the inevitable retirement or just a new job, your staff will not be with you every day for the rest of your life. By creating a uniform system for saving documents, you cut out hours of frustrating conversations and searching through files trying to find relevant information.

In addition, you won’t need to be a mind reader to find a document someone meant to send as an attachment before they went home but forgot to or if you’re in meetings all day, you can have peace of mind that staff can cover for you without constant calls asking for more information on file locations and names.

The value of social media is in the eye of the beholder. Most of us will know someone who swears by Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn (or probably all three!). We all probably know someone else who declares social media was the biggest waste of time they ever got goaded into investing their time in.

Ultimately, social media is as useful as the strategy you put into it. I wanted to outline a rich opportunity for connections and new clients that many busy business owners miss – new LinkedIn connections. A thoughtful and efficient approach to accepting new connections is a must for every smart business owner.

Don’t just click accept

Once you’ve accepted a new connection, take the time to shoot that person a quick email to thank them for finding you and connecting. Not only is this courteous, it also opens up a conversation. Even if you can’t find a way to immediately work together, an email six months later will be much more welcome and you won’t be doing the equivalent of social media cold-calling.

Open the doors for greater connection

If you’re on Facebook or Twitter, let your new connection know your contacts on these sites. And don’t forget the most important reminder, include a casual summary of what your business is about and let them know where they can sign up for your newsletter so they can stay in touch.

Always finish your message with an offer of support. Let them know if they ever need any help in your area of expertise, you’re available. You’ll be surprised how many valuable opportunities come through a simple courtesy like a follow-up message, and an open offer of sharing wisdom.

Don’t type the same thing twenty times a week (or day!)

Type up a standard response that mentions all of the above points. You can copy and paste this into each message, and add more personalised information in if you feel you need to.  Remember to keep the tone casual, professional and friendly.

While I’m all for saving every second you can, don’t copy the “Hi John” part of the message. Sooner or later you will accidentally hit send too quickly and realise you’ve addressed your new friend with an utterly incorrect name.

Search your LinkedIn contacts regularly

Schedule 10 minutes each month to browse through your connections list on LinkedIn. We all forget how many people we have in our networks, so doing a regular refresher scroll through your list is an efficient and effective way to stay up-to-date with past, current and future clients and partners. It will help you stay on top of news in your network, and inspire you as you think about how you can make the most out of every LinkedIn connection.