How to free up your time to make a more efficient workday
Freeing up schedules and upping efficiency is the elusive, eternal promise of technology. Finding time from those repetitive and tedious tasks means getting more time for more productive and rewarding work. After all, extra time spent on the things that matter most for your business might be the difference between a strong month and a challenging month.
But how do you create that time?
We’ve pulled together some of the best tips we’ve learned from various small business owners through the years. Consider these golden nuggets that will pay dividends down the road.
1. Always delegate the non-core tasks
There are two levels to this. The first is to get the busywork off your plate. Salesforce research shows that small business owners are responsible for an average of 4.2 roles in their business. If you’re at a senior level and can do so, never hesitate to ask an employee to handle routine tasks such as booking travel, setting meetings or data entry. Many business leaders use a 70% rule. If you think the person can do the task 70% as well as you, delegate it. It might be difficult to relent parts of the job, but your time is often more valuable than just about anything else during the day.
Employees also can spot when things should or could be delegated. If several people in the same department are doing the same task, can one person handle it? Talk to your manager and explain the benefits.
2. When possible, automate!
If you can’t delegate that admin work, there’s always the option to automate.
The option to streamline processes and cut down on manual tasks is invaluable to maximize a small business. Operations need to make the time to assess and invest in solutions that can handle mundane work. Whether it’s software that triggers an action when a customer places an order, responsive search ads that bring in business, or even a calendar that lets people schedule time with managers, that automation is the key to a productive day. And staying sane.
3. Leverage productivity tech
You’re not the only one trying to maximize with software. During the day, employees might use up to 13 different work apps more than 30 times a day. That’s a lot of switching tabs or programs! Find and recommend tools that perform multiple functions and avoid anything that only does one specific task. Everyone will thank you – and get more done!
This also applies to communication tools. If you’re in a virtual team, digital collaboration tools are key. These facilitate instant and effective communication through intuitive visual displays, live updates and performance analytics that measure individual employees’ productivity.
That’s where your printer should help. You need tools to streamline and automate everyday tasks, remove hassles, and make life simpler. All of which will help you work better – whether it’s collaborating with colleagues across locations, converting PDF or image files to editable formats, or using Apps to automate repetitive tasks.