Working smarter instead of harder makes the entire exercise of being in business more joyful. Going into business is supposed to afford you greater flexibility and freedom but with that come great responsibilities. How can you manage the added weight on your to-do list effectively? Many people falter when it comes to delegating, but that’s not the only way to work smarter in your business. There are four other ways to lighten your load without compromising on productivity.
1. Update your workplace policies
Have you considered flexible work schedules for your team? Research, as indicated in an article published by Forbes, suggests flexible work schedules can lighten the load on management and increase productivity levels. COVID may have forced many businesses to implement work-from-home protocols but with this sudden change came many problems, largely due to poor planning, there was no warning. Implementing a flexible work schedule needn’t be so stressful, by sitting down with an HR professional and strategising, you can reduce the stress levels on you as the manager.
2. Leverage the power of modern technology
Managing workflow and ensuring each phase of a project is completed on time is simplified when you leverage some of the project management tools out there. In fact, it’s not just for workflow management. There are tools and apps for everything, including managing your own to-do lists, automating updates to clients via emails as you progress on projects, and even managing your bookkeeping and accounting. Some of the top tools include Xero (for accounting), Trello for workflow management, and Hubspot for managing your sales pipelines and client communications.
3. Plan ahead
Every quarter, meeting with your accountant should involve analysing your business’s financial health and projecting possible challenges that lie ahead. These projections measure the consumer markets too, giving you a good structure around which to build a plan of action. At the next quarter meeting, you can evaluate your new figures against the actions you have implemented to measure the efficacy of your plan. Planning ahead gives you tools to make calculated moves.
4. Gather the right “crew”
As business owners, people tend to focus greatly on the calibre of people they introduce into their teams. This makes sense, it is important to invest in people who will drive the business forward. However, your team doesn’t only comprise the people that work with you under your brand name, it’s also the service providers and external professionals you leverage. Your marketing agency, your accounting firm, your bookkeeper, your legal team, and even your HR advisor. Don’t settle for the first person who takes your calls, find and build a crew that gets your brand, that resonates with your values and goals.
