What did I do today to grow my business?
What did I do today to grow my business?
You fill your day with client work because that is what brings in the profit, but are you holding yourself accountable to grow your business? Let me ask, do you look back at your days and ask what did I do today to grow my business?
If the answer most days is nothing. Then you may need time accountability to focus on the growth of your business.
After all, putting billable work before the work may seem like a growth strategy.
Without a doubt, you’re not alone when the focus on the growth of your client’s business takes center stage over your own. Granted it can be difficult to flip the script back to your own self and business, but it’s not impossible.
With this in mind, it may be the perfect opportunity for you to do a time audit. With the intention to figure out where you’re spending your valuable time and how you can put a few more hours of focus on the growth of your business.
What would it feel like to have a list of tasks you did to grow your business? You’d feel like you won the day, just saying.
How to do a time audit
A time audit is done by simply jotting down what you’re working on and the amount of time it took to complete it. With these results look for areas that you could either eliminate, become more time-efficient with or dare I say outsourced.
When Are You In The Zone
What day or time do you feel your productivity superpower coming out? If you’re not sure, start to pay attention and simply jot down a little note of the day and time that you crushed your work.
This would be a good indication that you’re in the zone of productivity.
For this reason, let’s make this zone of production your first official time block dedicated to your business, not your client's work or meetings.
For the most part, you’ll want to use this for a creative project that’s going on or one that you have been procrastinating on for a while.
Figure out time blocks
- Days that you take client meetings
- Days that you take discovery calls
- Days that would be just working
- Days to record your podcast, videos
- Days to write your blogs
Time blocking goes hand in hand with batch creation. Consequently, when you batch like work it will get you into the flow and keep you in the state of flow verse bouncing from one thing to the other without getting it completed from start to finish.
This can be done in many different ways, what’s is important is to find when you feel like a productivity rock star.
In general, when I ask a new client about time blocking or batch work, most of the time this isn’t something they are doing at all.
Start Small
If this whole time blocking and batching got you like what. While this concept may feel uncomfortable, remember to just start, start small and know that you can adjust.
Generally speaking, begin with 45 minutes of dedicated time that is scheduled 2-3 times a week and see how it goes.
What is something that you’re getting behind on, that you find you’re doing it at the last minute repeatedly every single week?
My own example for the past
When client work began to fill my days, the creative work for my business went out of the window.
My blog and social media posts came to a standstill. Blah! As a result, all that time I’d spent building it up, well y’all, if you’re not providing value and giving you’ll find that you don’t have a clan to share your content and ideas with.
For this reason, now my first two hours of my workday are dedicated to creating content in my business. I work in sprints of time, I set the timer for 25 minutes and pour out all the words. Somedays I’ll have it all done, others the struggle is real and I start over a bazillion times.
When I plan my day I know that client work does not begin until 9 am for me. Blocking this time and setting the bounty has also taught me to not say yes to all the things and projects. Just checking you heard that right, you don’t need to say yes to all the things.
Which with my people-pleasing, helpful personality it's important that I do not overbook myself. This rule applies to my personal commitments as well.
Because when I'm saying “yes” to something that I only kinda care about I’m saying no to something that I really care about.
After my time accountability audit
After my time accountability audit, I came up with the following schedule.
It’s important to realize, this schedule is a little flexible because sometimes I’m tired and my brain doesn’t want to be creative.
Every weekday is content-focused, while I enjoy my coffee.
Discovery Calls are the afternoons on Mondays and Tuesdays
Client Calls are scheduled only during their scheduled time block Monday – Wednesday. 98% of the time the block is consistently scheduled at the same time every day.
Planning workshops are on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. With the preferred day Wednesday.
Thursday is 100% focused on the work
Friday is blocked for my operations and financial. Financial Friday WooHoo. Client work is kept to a minimum.
Quote Of The Week
Sometimes if you want to see a change for the better, you have to take things into your own hands.
This is a typical Wednesday
- 7-9: Content Creation
- 9-10: Client Project
- 10-11: Client Project
- 11-12: Client Project
- 12-1: Client Project
- 1-2: Project Management Work
- 2-3: Daily Work Out/Get Ready/Eat
- 3-4: Wrap Up the Day and Finish Anything Undone
Please send me your questions and comments, either here or a direct message on Instagram find me here.
If you’d like me to walk through this with you. Set up a coffee chat.
Or if you’ve got this, but, would like a bit of guidance, check out my page on time accountability.
