Take a moment to ask yourself: What would you do if you had an extra hour in the day? What if it were possible to have that extra hour every day?
By building efficient processes into your business, you can carve out extra time to dedicate elsewhere, whether it’s for your personal life, a passion project on the side, or a new endeavor for your company. Regardless, the key to freeing up more time is simply to get through your to-do list faster.
Easier said than done, right?
Through the years of running our company, we’ve all learned a bit about being smart with our time and making most of the hours we’re in the office. We almost run 24/7, with offices and employees in multiple locations, so being organized is a must for us to keep the wheels turning. Let’s take a look at some of the biggest efficiency hindrances, as well as best practices for overcoming them and finding more time in your day.
Emails
Ah, the dreaded inbox. While necessary for communication with colleagues, clients, and prospects, it can easily become a black hole that sucks up hours of time. Soon enough, it’s time to go home and you’re wondering where the day went. Sound familiar? Well, it’s time to take your inbox back.
I like to look over all of my emails that I received overnight, first thing in the morning. At this time, I respond to emails to the best of my abilities and work to tackle the emails which have pending answers. I make it a point to answer my emails daily, but I also allow specific time periods for it. This allows me to fully focus on the task at hand throughout the workday.
Meetings
Meetings really have a way of killing your day. While client meetings tend to be necessary, try to limit the number of internal meetings in the office. If you can say it in an email, do so. It is far more productive to let your teams work and communicate via messaging systems and have a weekly 30-minute update than to call a meeting every time you need an answer.
Being efficient means being able to keep moving forward in your day—something that is hard to do when you’re sitting in meetings for hours on end. Meetings also cause people to lose focus, as they have to readjust their attention when they get back to work. If you lose focus, you end up being all over the place and nothing gets done.
Implementing digital solutions
Technology plays a large role in helping to create a more efficient office and work environment. Collaborative tools, like Skype, Zoom, and GoTo Webinar, keep everyone connected on the same page, helping teams stay aware of what everyone is working on. This allows every employee to remain flexible with their schedule, taking meetings and working remotely as needed.
Efficiency is far from unattainable; if anything, it is just within reach with the right level of discipline and leadership. Provide your team with the tools that they need to streamline their day-to-day processes, but don’t forget to lead by example as well.
Cut the mindless social media scrolling and constant email checking when you have work that needs to be done – those things can always wait until you’ve gotten through your to-do list. By prioritizing efficiency, you can build more time into your schedule while also creating more consistent and organized company procedures.
