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Get More Done With Time Blocking

Get More Done With Time Blocking

Michele Duwe from Miss Task | Get More Done With Time Blocking

Now, I know what you're thinking. Will time blocking help me get more done? Yes, it will!

As online entrepreneurs, you're trying to conquer so many things, and instead of feeling accomplished, you feel unproductive, stuck, and frustrated. At the end of most days, it seems as if the day ran away with a lack of focus, leaving you feeling overwhelmed.

Are you tired of feeling this way and ready to be clear about your day and what needs to be done to move your business forward?

First, jumping around from project to project isn't the secret sauce to success. It all boils down to getting laser-focused and completing essential tasks.

You must be wondering how this happens. 

The solution is simple: it's with time blocking your day. Time blocking breaks your day into an achievable structure. What would it feel like to look back at your day and feel productive and efficient? You'd feel like you won the day, just saying.

No worries, friend, if you're not a planner. It's a life skill you can improve, I pinky swear. I'm guessing you're ready to let go of running your business like a disorganized, headless chicken.

Here’s how you’ll time block:

Power Hours

When are you in your power hours? Do you know the time of day when your productivity superpower comes out? You're about to find out this is different for everyone.

If you're not sure, start paying attention and simply jot down the time of day that you easily and effortlessly completed your work. This would indicate that you're in the power hours of productivity.

Let's make this your first official time block. During this time, use it for a creative project or a project you've been procrastinating on. For me, this is not the first hour of my day. I need a slow start in the first hour of my day. Otherwise, I'll find myself sitting and staring at my computer screen.

Here is an excellent post about Eating Frogs! https://misstask.com/eat-your-frogs/

What are Things to Time Block? 

Let me break it down for you; you can time block hours or choose to have theme days.

But what does that mean? It's simple. You may want to select the days and times for your coaching calls and meetings with your team. You can also designate content creation days.

Perhaps you like to have variety in your day, so you sprinkle in a little bit of everything with themed time blocks. With theme days, you'd pick one primary day for all your meetings and coaching and a secondary day for any overflow meetings or coaching sessions.

In a similar fashion, if you conduct discovery calls in your online business, it would be nice to have a specific day for these calls. Could they possibly be on your overflow meeting day?

Now, this is important: your most productive day of the week should be for creative work only. Here's what I mean: no meetings or anything else that will drain your energy. I love the trend that corporate America is following with designated no-meeting days.

Let me clarify: You may want to divide your days into halves. The trick is to work with your personal power hours. If you find that you're very productive in the afternoons, you could schedule meetings in the mornings and plan your creative work in the afternoons.

During your creative block, you will record your podcast, write your blog, and create your course outline. Here's the big secret: time blocking goes hand in hand with batch creation. When you batch similar work, it will get you into the flow and keep you in the state of flow versus bouncing from one thing to another without completing it from start to finish.

This can be done in many different ways; finding when you feel like a productivity rock star is essential. When I ask a new client about time blocking or batch work, they usually don't do it very well.

Start Small 

You must wonder how to start when this whole time blocking and batching is new to you. 

Start small.

The answer? Begin with 45 minutes of dedicated time scheduled 2-3 times a week and see how it goes. What is something you're getting behind on that you find you're doing at the last minute EVERY SINGLE WEEK?

Michele Duwe from Miss Task | Get More Done With Time Blocking

Do A Time Audit to Figure Out Your Time Blocks

Another great way to figure out time blocking is to do a time audit for one week. I understand even the thought of time tracking feels like a burden; I say this with love, suck it up, buttercup, it's only for a week.

Most people don't realize how much time they spend on tasks or how easily they are distracted and waste time. 

Here's how it works: time tracking can be done on paper by jotting down the time along with what you're working on or by using time tracking software to track everything. 

If you'd like to try tracking software, I suggest Toggl Track, a great tool offering a free task-tracking plan. https://toggl.com/track/

 

My Own Example From the Past 

When client work began to fill my days, the creative work for my business went out the window. I was an inconsistent content creator.

Blah, all that time I'd spent building up an audience—well, y'all, that doesn't stay without being nurtured. Unfortunately, this was a business lesson I had to learn for myself.

Then it finally dawned on me that my power hours are in the morning, and my brain is done by 2 or 3 p.m. every day. Now, the first two hours of my workday are dedicated to creating content or the top priorities for my business—also known as the things I'll procrastinate on until the last minute.

Fortunately, there's a simple solution: I work in sprints of time; I set the timer for 50 minutes and pour out all the words. I take a quick break and complete another sprint. And during that time, some days I'll have it all done, others the struggle is real, and I start over a bazillion times.

When planning my day, I know client work does not begin until 9 am. Blocking this time and setting the boundary have also taught me not to say yes to all the things and projects. 

With my people-pleasing, helpful personality, I must not overbook myself. Which was also another business lesson I had to learn for myself. If this is you, be sure to read “Yes to Everything” mindset. https://misstask.com/mindful-yes/

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Discover the Secret to Effortless Content Creation –

From Overwhelmed to Thriving: Your Content Creation Simplified Journey Starts Here!

My Time Blocks are Simple 

You must be wondering how I schedule my day. I have a morning routine that was significantly simplified. 

I don't know about you, but when I started my business, I heard people talk about 2-3 hour morning routines. What I found was that an extensive morning routine simply stressed me out. 

For quite a while now, the first hours have been spent with Bible reading, meditation, journaling, and the daily Wordle, and then I go into the office for my priority work block.

Once I'm at my desk, every weekday is content-focused while I enjoy several cups of coffee. A bulk of my day is reserved for my done-for-you content repurposing clients, and coaching clients are in the afternoons or every other Friday.

Stay with me now; 98% of the time, the block is consistently scheduled at the same time every day. Keeping the schedule consistent has the added bonus of reducing the decisions I must make about what I'm working on.

Flexible Friday! This day is a wildcard for me. I may have coaching calls, podcast interviews, or a travel day. Fridays are the days that I enjoy the freedom that comes with entrepreneurship.

This is a typical Monday – Thursday Schedule
5:30-6:30: Morning Routine
6:30-8: Power Block: Top Priorities for the day
8-9: Eat, Get Ready, Walk With The Dogs 
9-10: Client Block 
10-11: Client Block
11-12: Client Block
12-1: Client Block
1-2: Client Block
2-3: Client Block
3-4:30: Walk With The Dogs, Strength Training
4:30-5:30: Wrap Up Work Day, Look Ahead to Tomorrow and Finish Anything Undone

Will this schedule stay the same for years to come? Nope, but it is what works right now in this season of my life.

Michele Duwe from Miss Task | Get More Done With Time Blocking

It Is Time To Wrap This Up!

If you're ready to stop feeling overwhelmed and start making tangible progress in your business, now is the time to take action. With the power of time blocking and focused productivity strategies, you can transform your daily routine and achieve more than you ever thought possible. Don't let another day slip by feeling unproductive and frustrated.

By identifying your power hours, creating a structured schedule, and focusing on essential tasks, you can break free from the overwhelming cycle of unproductivity and take control of your business. Remember, it's okay to start small and make adjustments as you go. Embrace the journey of self-discovery and be patient with yourself as you develop these new habits. With consistency and dedication, you'll soon find yourself accomplishing more than you ever thought possible, all while enjoying the freedom and satisfaction that comes with a thriving online business. Once you take that first step with time blocking, you will be amazed at how much more productive you become.

Transform Your Business with the Mindful Yes Mindset

Transform Your Business with the Mindful Yes Mindset

Michele Duwe from Miss Task | Transform Your Business with the Mindful Yes Mindset

You've finally just shy of the six-figure revenue mark in your online business; you’ve reached this point through sheer will, determination, and hustle. Lots and lots of hustle. You know what got you here will not grow you any further. Because you’re burnt out and exhausted from saying yes to everything and anything that needs to be done to grow your online business. You’re tired of wearing all the hats in your business. It is time to say no to the distractions that keep you from focusing on what matters the tasks necessary to grow your business.

You Know That You Have To Say No To Doing It All

Overcoming the yes to everything mindset, starts with knowing what you need to say no to doing. It is figuring out the tasks that are distracting you and keeping you stuck. It is that mindset that keeps you holding on tight out of fear that it will not be done right. You have to let go of control in areas of your business that you can offload to a virtual team member.

If you’re like others, this brings on a whole new set of worries because now you’ll be required to manage a team member.

It is time for you to say no to doing all the things in your business. 

With continued growth, it has you questioning what tasks you must say yes to and tasks that you must say no to. 

What are the tasks you want to let go of? What are the ones that maybe you love to do, but someone else can do this easily to allow you more time to work with more clients? 

For me, it was the realization that I was holding on to all the pieces of the content creation because I love that piece. Obviously, since content management is the main service I offer in my business. By keeping all the things to get my podcast from recorded to published, it limited the number of clients I could take on. For me, the decision to say no to all the steps after the podcast was recorded became a lot simpler. 

Once I realized that it was time to expand my content creation team past me. Once I said yes to hiring and let go of control, I felt a weight off my shoulders. 

You see, long-form content is necessary for marketing and lead generation in your business. Ask yourself, does this get your “yes”? Are you the one that needs to do it all? 

Perhaps, it is something else that needs to be a hard no and what must be a mindful yes in your business. Here are the steps to help you figure out how to Say No to the Distractions that Keep You from Focusing on What Matters.

Recognize the Weight of “Yes To Everything”

Your business journey to this point has been marked by an incredible willingness to embrace every opportunity. The yes to everything mindset has served you well to grow your business. You only have so many hours in the day and let’s be real your family needs you too.

Overcoming the yes-to-everything mindset begins by asking yourself: At what expense? Each “yes” carries weight, impacting not only your schedule but also your well-being and focus. The feeling of perpetual overwhelm is a sign—it's time to evaluate what truly deserves your time and energy.

Michele Duwe from Miss Task | Transform Your Business with the Mindful Yes Mindset

3 key points I want you to consider for a Mindful Yes:

1. Let the Pressure of Guilt Make the Decision:

When faced with difficult decisions, it's common for business owners like you to feel the pressure to say “yes” to everyone and everything. This mindset stems from a desire to please and a fear of missing out. However, it's important to understand that it's okay to say no to certain tasks or opportunities. Instead of relying on mindfulness, you allow the pressure of guilt to make the decision for you. Trust your gut and listen to your inner voice, which will guide you towards saying no to the things that don't align with your priorities.

2. Sacrificing Time with Clients or Family:

One consequence of saying yes to everything can be giving up valuable time with your clients or family. When you take on too many commitments, you risk neglecting the people who matter most to you. Remember, saying no to some tasks or projects allows you to give more time to those who truly deserve your attention. Prioritizing your relationships and making time for self-care are key factors in maintaining a successful and fulfilling coaching career.

3. Guilt for Saying Yes:

The guilt associated with saying no can weigh heavily on your mind. You may feel like you're letting others down or missing out on that one valuable opportunity. However, it's important to remember that saying yes to everything often leads to overwhelm and burnout. By learning to say no, you can minimize the guilt associated with your decisions. Remember that saying no lets you focus on what truly matters and make conscious choices about your time and commitments.

When you say yes to something that is not in alignment with your life and business, you’ll likely have to say no to something that would be a better fit. Or if you said yes, you'll have to back out. Or worse, you'll say yes and have to miss time with your family. 

Friends, I learned this lesson before I started my business journey, but I’m saving that story for my email list.

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From Overwhelmed to Thriving: Your Content Creation Simplified Journey Starts Here!

How to Pick Your Mindful Yes:

1. Listen to Your Body:

Your body is often a giveaway when it comes to decision-making. Are you feeling drained or exhausted? Are you experiencing physical discomfort or stress? If yes, it's a sign that you need to say no. Listen to your body's cues. Saying no to things that are draining your energy or distract you from the bigger picture opens up room to say yes to the opportunities that truly energize and will impact your business growth.

2. Evaluate the Significance:

Before saying yes to anything, take a moment to evaluate the significance it holds in your life and business. Consider how it will align with your values and help you achieve your goals. If it's not a top priority or doesn't align with your long-term impact, it's okay to say no. Remember that saying no to less important tasks opens up space for more meaningful work. If you’re not sure, it is okay to sleep on it. If someone needs an answer right now without giving you time to figure out if it fits into your life, it may be a good idea to say no. 

Time To Wrap This Up

As a just about six-figure coach, you have achieved success through hard work and hustle. However, as you continue to grow, it becomes necessary to prioritize your time and energy. By shifting your mindset from “yes to everything” to “choosing the right yes,” you can say no to the distractions that keep you from focusing on what truly matters. Trust your gut, are saying yes out of guilt, or is it because it is a true yes? Don’t let the pressure of guilt steamroll you into the wrong decision. Be mindful of what gets your yes. 

Listen to your body to guide you in making the right decisions, prioritize your time with clients and family, and evaluate the significance of each opportunity before saying yes. By following these steps, you can overcome your “yes to everything” mindset and unlock greater success in your business journey.

Friend, if you’re ready to say no to all the things and focus on growing your audience and impact with less overwhelm, I’d love to help you maximize your podcast so you can stop saying yes to all the things and posting to all the places and focus on creating the content, bringing on another client and giving more time to what matters most, your family. If this sounds like what you’ve been hoping for, please consider hiring us as your content creation team. With our easy done-for-you content repurposing service, we turn your podcast into eight pieces of content to grow your audience and impact in less time.

Here is the link to discover if this is the missing piece in your consistent content creation. 

Michele Duwe from Miss Task | Small Business Owner working at desk: Finding Work Life Balance for Entrepreneurs This Thanksgiving
Simple Process To Planning and Brainstorming Your Opt-In Freebie

Simple Process To Planning and Brainstorming Your Opt-In Freebie

Michele Duwe from Miss Task | Simple Process To Planning and Brainstorming Your Opt-In Freebie

After a few years in the life coaching business and honing in on your niche, you've realized that your old opt-in isn't working. While it still gets a lot of downloads, it's no longer attracting the right people.

The dwindling number of subscribers converting to paid offers screams this to you. It's disappointing, right? Despite all the effort you put into your business, that essential tool for growing your email list—the lead magnet—has been quietly falling short, leading to lower-than-desired conversion rates.

We've all been there, putting off the creation of a new, more aligned opt-in because, honestly, the whole process feels daunting.

Where do you start? The first place I would begin is planning and brainstorming your opt-in. However, I'll give you the whole process.

How is that?

When the Problem You Solve Changes

As business owners grow, it is natural to focus on one specific problem; when that happens, it requires updating several marketing pieces. If your current opt-in is not producing the conversion rates you've had in the past, it's a clear sign that something needs to change. Likely, your free offer to grow your email list is no longer in alignment with your paid offer. This is a common sign of the bigger problem: mismatched opt-in content.

Focusing on the Solution

To fix the bigger problem, planning and brainstorming your opt-in is crucial. The longer you put it off, the bigger the effect it will have on your business. That's a stressful problem to have. Despite being overwhelming, it is necessary to come up with a strategy that engages and converts your audience. I'm guessing you already have a good understanding of the problem your audience is trying to solve. Now, it is time to plan an opt-in that leaves your paid offer irresistible.

Step One: Begin With The End In Mind

What most people do not realize is that the simplest way to plan is to start with the end in mind. What paid offer will your updated opt-in and email series lead them to? Your opt-in should solve one quick-fix problem. Then, your email sequence takes them down the path of getting to know you. Understanding what it is like to work with you.

As a result, we begin at the end, which is your paid offer. What free offer can you create that is easy to do and gives them a quick fix to the problem they are actively trying to solve?

Remember, it only needs to be one piece. Actually, it is better this way. Each email in your sequence should bring them one step closer to saying ‘yes' to your offer.

Step Two: Idea Generation with Conversion in Mind

At this point, you have a very clear picture of the problem you are solving. As I said at the beginning, you've overtime niche down from a general life coach or virtual assistant into a very specific market. This has come from working with a broad range of clients. Along the way, you've discovered what you love to do most.

Now is the time to write an exhaustive list of ideas. I want to mention this because it has been an ah-ha moment for more than one client.

What free content have you already created? Here's the thing: you can repurpose content with a proven track record of driving engagement and interest. This content can become your new opt-in. I know, right? Huge time saver!

It's funny how this previously created content can be overlooked. Are you one who likes to go live inside your Facebook Group or Instagram? I sure hope you have all those videos. Put them together into either a video or audio email series. You see your new opt-in doesn't need to be a PDF. It can be an educational email series.

Have you done a live challenge with your audience? This can be turned into an opt-in to your email list.

I sure hope that I have your wheels turning here.

Michele Duwe from Miss Task | Simple Process To Planning and Brainstorming Your Opt-In Freebie

Step Three: Decide On Your Email Opt-In and Create the Outlines

Map out an email journey that leads your subscribers to your paid offer. You're not for everyone, and it is the job of the email series to help them decide if you're the right one.

I understand this is easy to say, but it takes longer to do. You have a list of all your ideas. Which one is the right one? What is most in line with your paid offer? Does one feel easier to create?

Be mindful of the copy you use in your emails. You want it to generate a true connection with your ideal client. It is not all about selling; it is about connecting with the right person. I always think the right people will find you. Personally, the people I gravitate to work with get me. They are the ones who speak my language. You see, this is why marketers talk about interviewing ideal clients when just getting started.

Step three in planning and brainstorming your opt-in is about outlining and gathering. It is the time when you make all the hard decisions. Again, you want all the content to focus on delivering quality and easy action steps. Think about what one thing they can do to get a quick win.

Here is a quick checklist for copy and images:

  • Sales Page
    – Take a look at the current sales page for your paid offer.
    – Does this need any updating?
    – Or is everything still good. 

  • Email Automation Sequence
    – How many emails
    – Don't forget about adding in testimonial
    – Final email is the ask or your sales pitch

  • Landing Page

  • Sign Up Thank You Page
    – After signing up for your lists
    – After signing up for your services

  • Freebie

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Step Four: Creating the Content

Now, it's all about creating the content. You've made all the decisions have an outline, and now is the time to develop your new freebie.

If you've decided to create a workbook, it doesn't need to be very long. If you have downloaded my quarterly planning guide, you know I did not follow this rule because it is around 50 pages. Here is the link if you’re curious: https://misstask.com/free-planning-workbook 

If you're creating a workbook, up to five pages will do.

During the create phrase, you will create it all. You will write your copy, find your images, and follow your outlines to create it all!

Step Five: Setting Up the Automation

For some who are not as techie, this may be the hardest part of the whole process. Before you set up the automation, have all the leg work done ahead of time. You do not want to write your emails while you are setting up the automation. That will be too much task switching, without a doubt, make you exhausted and overwhelmed.

When you task switching, you’ll be doing tasks that are not anything alike. The switching is what makes you feel exhausted and overwhelmed.  

You have your whole plan. It's already laid out for you. Now, you just need to plug that into the automation and you configure your email marketing platform for that automatic delivery. To initiate that follow-up sequence that happens automatically to nurture your  subscribers towards your desired action, which is to sign up for your paid service.

Step Six: Launching and Promoting Your Freebie

Now, step six is actually launching and promoting your new freebie to attract the right people. 

You announce your new freebie and begin talking about it everywhere. You start putting it out so that it can be discovered. You add it to your website. You're doing all the things to leverage your existing list. 

You can handle it as if it were a re-engagement campaign. Your new target list is whoever clicks on the link to download the new freebie, and everyone else gets pruned away.

You're putting the problem of your new opt-in freebie out there to find your people. 

Put it out on your social media channels and create reels. What are all the different things that you can do to promote your new freebie and attract signups? My guess is you have a pretty good handle on promoting your services.

Step Seven: Tracking and Analyzing Metrics

Don't skip step seven. This is when you know what you need to tweak and change so you can identify those key metrics and track the performance of your new opt-in over time. 

When you review metrics, you're able to refine your strategy based on that data and feedback, which gives you a really good look into how it's performing. 

I'm guessing you've already been tracking your metrics because you're looking to change your opt-in because it's not converting. Right? So you have to have some idea of your numbers, at least I'm assuming you do.

Michele Duwe from Miss Task | Simple Process To Planning and Brainstorming Your Opt-In Freebie

Time To Wrap This Up

Those are the seven different steps for planning and brainstorming your new opt-in. I hope that this has given you a really good step-by-step approach. I get that it doesn't include every single step-that would be way to much information for one post—it's more like big buckets of steps. But these are the buckets of steps that make up the are part of an opt-in building process inside a content system. My goal was to help you with the steps needed to create an opt-in that can help boost your conversion rates. 

Focusing on what your audience needs, leveraging those effective strategies, and guiding your subscribers towards your ultimate goal with a carefully planned email series, you're setting the stage for the freebie that's going to connect deeply with your ideal audience.

Thank you so much for your time. I appreciate you. And I hope you have a wonderful week.