How is your yearly plan coming along? Are you excited about what you’ve mapped out or overwhelmed by all that you’ve committed to?
I often see entrepreneurs cram three years worth of work into 12 months, leaving themselves exhausted and burned out by June or frozen from the get-go.
I don’t want that to happen to you, so we’re going to nip those scenarios before they arise. This brings us to part 2 of Your Year of Stunning Success, a three-part series dedicated to making your goals a reality.
If you missed Part 1 on Systems, you can check it out here.
Today’s topic? We’re honing in on the way you pack your daily work, errands, and duties into a single day… and stay organized doing it. You’ve got a lot on your plate to begin with, and with Big Goals on the horizon, getting smart about time management is an absolute must.
I’m going to show you how to get it all done, without the overwhelm or freezing.
Managing the Day-to-Day Details for Long-Term Success
Tell me: how do you feel about your schedule?
Is your calendar already a neatly organized, paired with an intricate color-coded to-do list? Is it a jumble of notes piled together? Or does just the idea of planning out each and every day make you want to crawl back into bed?
Most people are somewhere in between. They do the minimum to ensure they don’t miss an important deadline or meeting, but ignore further granularity that could help skyrocket their organization and success.
Because, you see, there’s one really, really big benefit to creating and keeping a schedule that you may not yet realize:
Creating and keeping a schedule can actually help you find more free time. Tweet that!
The Awesome, Lesser-Known Perks of Schedules
Maybe you think a predetermined schedule is too confining. That’s why you started your own business in the first place, right? If you wanted to work a straight 9-5, you’d go take a job in an office.
I hear you. But an unscheduled day isn’t the most efficient option! You may be wasting quite a bit of time – time that could be spent making more money, working on passion projects, or simply having fun.
If you’re looking for a way to work less and make more space for your real life, building a schedule is what’s going to get you there. And your schedule can be as strict or as liberal as you like, though most entrepreneurs I know could benefit from a little more structure.
Now let’s dive into the details of finding the right schedule for you – and setting it.
5 Steps for Easy-Breezy Daily Scheduling
Step 1: Determine your “work hours”
Start by listing your “work hours.” For example, if you’re a parent, 9 am to 3 pm are likely your main work hours, with a little extra time in the evenings.
If you don’t have a lifestyle that sets “work hours,” like many parents, that’s okay. Consider the hours you prefer to work, and even something like 8 am – 2 pm & 9 – 11 pm is fair game. The important question to ask is: When do you want to work?
Setting boundaries on your day can help you get more done, instead of allowing work to bleed into every hour of every day. As Parkinson’s law states, “Work expands so as to fill the time available for its completion.” So put yourself first and make the business fit into the time you want to give it.
Step 2: Figure out what’s non-negotiable
Next, ask yourself what’s non-negotiable. For example, do you go to yoga on Wednesday mornings from 10-11? Or have another commitment that you want to keep?
Block that time out on your calendar. If you want it to happen, schedule it.
Step 3: Set specific slots for time-consuming tasks
Think about the larger tasks you complete regularly, like sending and replying to emails, working with clients, writing blog posts, etc.
Determine when you want to do those things. Yes, we are going to give each one a set time. For example, I coach every other Monday afternoon and on Wednesdays and Thursdays for most of the day. That’s it.
I usually write my blogs on Tuesdays. My mastermind group meets on Friday mornings. I prefer to leave Friday afternoons flexible and not to work on weekends. And ideally, I’d have set times to address email (though I’m admittedly not very good at this). All of this is blocked out on my calendar.
List out your time-intensive tasks and add them to your calendar.
Step 4: Fill in the blanks
Now that you’ve mapped out your non-negotiable time and set aside chunks of time for bigger tasks, you’re calendar’s looking pretty full. But you should have a little more time in there.
For those open spots, consider setting aside time for things like business-building, marketing, social media, working on your next project, or …. downtime. (Yes, seriously, schedule it.)
Consider what other things need to be put on your weekly or monthly schedule and put them in!
Step 5: Keep in mind, it is possible to over-do it
I made this mistake in college. Between work, classes, and volunteering, I had my day scheduled in 15-minute increments. That kind of extreme efficiency doesn’t leave much wiggle room—and that kind of rigidity can backfire on you.
Find the right balance of structure and flexibility that will help you reach your business and personal goals.
Why Scheduling Is Worth the Effort
Setting a schedule helps you create more time for yourself, your family, and the projects you love to work on, plus it keeps your work week and to-do list manageable.
Think about it; what would happen if you only accepted client calls two days a week, so you could have one full day open for creating a new product? With such a huge, dedicated time slot, it’ll be much easier to get the project done quickly and thoroughly. Plus, no more late-night rounds of content creation and editing! Yipee!
Take a moment to consider everything you’re doing in your business. How can you put yourself on a bit more of a time budget so you’re not wasting precious hours?
Getting Started with Schedules
Draft your schedule, and experiment with it for two weeks.
This small commitment can do awesome things for your business! You’ll be able to spot where you’ve been squandering hours, and have more time for yourself, your dream projects, and your loved ones. You’ll also develop a clearer idea of how long your work actually takes you.
Don’t worry: setting up a schedule won’t turn you into a robot. In fact, it might be one of the most liberating things you do for yourself and your work! Give it a shot, and play around to find what’s best for you.
Where Will You Start?
Schedules are a must-do if this is going to be Your Year of Stunning Success! So now, I want to know…
1. Where are you wasting time in your business? How could creating a schedule could free up more hours, and help you do what you love?
2. It’s time to hop into action! What step are you going to take TODAY to start implementing a schedule?
I can’t wait to hear your thoughts in the comments below.
I’ve been wasting a lot of time. So I’ve set up a weekly schedule for myself. The problem is going to be sticking to it, when I’m not the only one demanding pieces of my time. Almost every day a family member will ask me to do something, and there goes the schedule.
I used to waste a lot of time with email correspondence at the beginning of my day until someone reminded me (I think I did actually realize this!) that email is SOMEONE ELSE’S agenda – not yours. Don’t get me wrong. I still respond to email (how would I get by without doing that?) but it’s on my terms. I now start the day with my top priority and work at it for a set amount of time. I find my productivity has improved tremendously AND I still get back to people in a timely manner. Win-win!
I’ll have to try that. I get about 150 emails a day, but not all require a response.
Smart, Melissa! Yes, I had to be taught that one, too. It is someone else’s agenda (usually!) and by choosing when to reply we have much more control over our day.
Thanks for sharing that insight here. I know others will appreciate it!
I have to chime in and say “me too” on this one – scheduling emails until after my productive burst of energy at the start of the day has been one of the biggest shifts in my business so far!
I’m definitely a scheduler by nature, but I rebel against it more often than not, so this is a reminder to me that HONORING my schedule is just as important as creating it :).
Good one, Sabrina! “HONORING my schedule is just as important as creating it.”
Yes!
That is a great way to look at it Melissa! I used to think I had to respond to every email as it came in, but once I realized I didn’t have to do that and I could respond on MY time, then my life felt less stressful. Baby steps :).
I love that: “someone else’s agenda”! Although I’m guilty of just boycotting my email altogether and then it amasses into a morass of omg what is all of this! Been working to pare down notifications and other non-essential emails too.
Something that helped me is I decided how much time would be reasonable to spend on email for me, just in general. For my personal email I give myself an hour (I really do get a lot of stuff I want to at least look through mostly read, but not really reply). Then I cut it in half and did a little in the morning & a little in the evening. Taking 20-30 minutes to check through it was much less daunting and distracting than trying to sit there for a full hour. And with my businesses I further divided up the hour so each only gets 30 minutes total, 15 minutes even once a day does wonders to keep it down to a dull roar!
I’ve been resistant to have a set schedule for writing blog posts, answering emails and meeting with clients. I have left my schedule open to be most accommodating to my clients availability and then I have just left open spaces in order to do all the other stuff my business needs to be successful. But I’m willing to try actually writing these other important tasks into my schedule and see how it works. I am definitely committed to be more efficient in my business this year to help it grow. Thanks for the encouragement Jenny!
Something amazing happens, Gail, when you say “this are my coaching hours, these are my blogging hours, and I turn my computer off at 6 pm.” More people hire you. More gets done. Your business takes a step forward.
I learned this from a massage therapist friend (who learned it from one of her friends). I always teach my clients to choose the coaching hours that are best for them–the coach–because when we work at the times that work for us, our clients get the best results.
I love how you’re going for it in all areas of your biz!
I have been so hesitant to set coaching hours. At first I thought that it was because I didn’t know what my ideal hours are. But the truth is, I was afraid that it would leave people out and that I had to be available at all different times of day to appeal to the most clients.
What a lightbulb — when we work at times that work for us, our clients get the best results! Also love love the first paragraph that when you set hours, more gets done and more people hire you. Thanks Jenny!
I love this too. I really need to take a page from y’alls book about this!
I feel you! I hate to limit myself and I can feel the restriction of what a schedule can mean. But I recently set up an editorial calendar for my blogging scheduling regular posts I have every month and set up a weekly time (I space them out enough that I have no more than 2 come out in a week ever) to write and it’s during an actual “quiet time” in my home and I was amazed at how easy it was to get things done. I even got ahead of schedule by a few weeks at one point!
I’m guilty of being too open too. I set hours but I hedge on sticking to them because I’m such a night owl and I have to be a little fly-by-night in my personal life.
Love this tip Jenny! I just cleaned up my calendar and am feeling good about it (don’t you just love color-coding? Or is that just me??).
Now begins the hard part (or at least the part that’s always been hard in the past) – sticking to it, showing up and doing the work.
I think I may have turned a corner on that. I real Turning Pro by Steven Pressfield (again) and this time something shifted. I “got it”. Look forward to seeing how this calendar helps me truly go pro in my life.
Thanks as always Jenny!
You’re so ready to go pro all the way, Stephanie. You and I both know it 🙂
It’s the little things like this that shift a business from hobby-mode to serious-mode, which is what brings in clients, cash, and confidence.
Woo-hoo!!
Great tips, Jenny. I also find when I block time for specific tasks–blog writing for example–it trains my brain. When I have a new idea, I make a note of it but don’t get all caught up in the details because I know I’ve set aside time in the future to really dig in. Then, when the time to write my blog comes up, I can give it my full attention and my brain is firing on all cylinders. I sleep better, too, because I walk away from the day feeling more productive, and I know what’s in store for the next day. No guessing!
I hadn’t thought about that, Adrianne, about training your brain to do things at a specific time. It totally makes sense. Thanks for sharing that here. I think I’m going to steal that for myself!
Hi Jenny,
Yet another spot on blog! This one is so timely because I have been wondering…what the h#@% happened to the day? I end up working every Saturday because I have an insufficient weekly schedule…duh! I declare that Saturday working is now over..caput. I have had it wired that I couldn’t possibly blog until Saturday. What an idiot, I am. With a more efficient schedule I can take weekends off and stop suffering. Thank you!
On another note to you: I am so impressed with your relentless professionalism. You continue to delight and create more appreciation over here for maintaining your own standard of being a professional. For instance, you didn’t have to have follow up calls for people who are using your new creation: Get Your First 1000 Subscribers and yet you you did and will.
I am so pleased to say that I know you, have been coached by you and you continue to stay in touch. You can count on me to continue to shout your praises! You ROCK!
Susan James
I’m so happy for you, Susan, that you’re declaring Saturday a no-work day! Yay for that!
Second, thank you SO MUCH for your super kind words. I know you and how genuine you are, so seeing those here makes my heart melt. Your presence in the comments week after week — especially with all the wonderful things you say — always makes me smile.
It is because of people like you that I keep doing what I do every week to help you and all of the other superheroes out there change the world! XO
oh jenny, you make it sound so simple.. yet this is the hardest thing for me to do.. lol
… wait until next week 🙂
In the mean time, see if you can put a schedule in place. You can. I know you can!
It took about a year of my entrepreneurial journey to figure this (scheduling) all out but holy hell has it been the best thing ever.
And color-coding just makes it all the more fun, lol. I had a client just the other day talking about her chaotic schedule and I had to get tough-love on her. The beauty of owning your business is YOU get to define exactly how it supports your life. You either take control of it or you don’t. I thrive in calm and peace (I’m the anit-chaotic) so my schedule damn well better support that or my business doesn’t support me.
After years and years of being scheduled (sometimes double and triple scheduled) back to back in my corporate job…it felt good to set boundaries around my hours :).
Excellent, Jen! You’re totally right – as entrepreneurs we get to set our schedules (or not) and that’s a great thing or a dangerous thing!
I love hearing that it’s worked well for you, as that always encourages others to give it a go. Thanks for sharing that here!
Ah, thanks for the reminder….I need to adjust my client availability in my online scheduler! When I am prepping for clients every single day, I find that I am jumping all over the place, which is not very efficient. I like chunking like-tasks together. And while I am in business for my clients, as an entrepreneur, I have lots of moving parts, and I need to be mindful of that. Off to my online scheduler now…..
I love the action-taker in you, Aimee!
Hi Jenny!
You mentioned that your Mastermind group meets every Friday. May I ask if it’s online or in person?
We meet on a phone conference line each week.
LOVE these tips! I use a google calendar and have been pretty good about setting up these boundaries but I need to review and see what has and hasn’t been working and make some tweaks. Hardest part is staying on the schedule!
Skimming through other comments I’m loving what’s been said already! I can echo the difficulties in keeping to a schedule when other people want a piece of your time, especially when those are small people and making them wait isn’t always the answer.
For me I’m great at setting up a schedule isn’t difficult, limiting it is however. I want to get so much done in a day that it just isn’t possible – there really aren’t enough hours in the day given how much time anything takes me to do. And that’s without interruptions.
So I decided I would take your advice, but in steps. I know in my old schedule I had 7 hours “left over” in the day after home & family things to work, and allowing time to sleep, eat, etc. Having two businesses makes it a little bit of a balancing act between what gets done when but I’ve set up something I know from my system work needs to be done in the am (social media & touching base briefly with email). I’ve learned if I don’t do it in the morning I won’t do it at all then suddenly my day is gone and then some. Deciding what is non-negotiable is a toughie though – I’m a true workaholic and I have to remind and even make myself take a break. In my work I really do know better than to work doggedly but listening to that sage advice is another story entirely sometimes!
As always I love your straightforward insights and no nonsense talk. The clarity is wonderfully refreshing and helpful!
Hi Jenny,
Thanks so much for this little series. This post in particular was a huge help to me, and I wrote about it on my site in a post called “Happiness Boost: Move From ‘Cranky’ to ‘Rockstar’ in 3 Steps”.
Thanks again!
Katie