10 Time Saving Tips for Small Business Owners

Practically every business leader can increase their personal productivity by managing their time better. There are many ways to be more productive, but here are 10 I’ve seen that can make a big impact. Put these to work, and you can increase your personal productivity too.

1. Control Your Email

The first tip is to take control of your email by reducing its volume. Recent reports suggest that the typical business owner gets 100-200 emails per day. If you spend just 2 minutes per email, that adds up quickly. Start saving time by reducing the volume of email you receive. Unsubscribe from lists that clutter your inbox. Mark other unwanted emails as “spam” or “junk” so they get filtered out of your inbox.

Services like Unroll.me can unsubscribe you from email lists in bulk, then group your subscriptions into one daily email. Maybe you can use your phone more.

You can reduce your email volume by as much as 50% with some of these strategies. And most importantly, touch email only once!

2. Improve the Quality of Your Emails

Start using shorter, more efficient emails. When you email multiple people at once, if possible, ask them not to “reply all.” This will help others reduce their email volume too. If you want to receive subscriptions but don’t have time to get to them right away, use filters so they go directly into designated folders to review later. When possible, simply put your message in the subject line and leave the body blank. This practice alone will significantly improve email efficiency.

3. Use a Filing System

Most inbox programs let you create folders. Use this. Put important emails that you want to keep in a folder where it will be easily retrievable. Most have powerful search capabilities, so consider using only 1 folder for all of your processed email instead of many different folders. Then you can search for what you need instead of wasting time digging through the folders you created. This will save you time, too.

4. Limit Your Time Online

Enough said, right? Especially on social media. Tools and apps can block social media sites and other distractions on your computer for set periods. If you don’t have the self-control to do it yourself, consider using one.

5. Process Your “Stuff” Immediately

Every day we get bombarded with “stuff.” It just comes our way, and we often don’t know what to do with it. Use the 4-D system for processing your “stuff”:

• Do it. If it will take you less than 2 minutes, don’t put it off and just do it right then.

If it will take you longer than 2 minutes, do one of these 3 things:

• Delay it. Put it on your calendar or to-do list for later.
• Delegate it. Can someone else take care of this? Delegate it to them.
• Delete it. Often, we keep things around when they can be deleted or discarded. Think about it…what will happen if I do absolutely nothing about this “thing”? If it’s negligible, then delete it.

6. Stop Attending (or Creating) Low-Impact Meetings

Learn how to run more effective meetings and stop wasting time in those meetings that produce very little. Think about it. Would the information in your meeting be better put in an email? A memo?

7. Close Your Door

An “open-door” policy can severely reduce productivity. Consider having a closed door for parts of the day when your employees and co-workers know you can’t be bothered.

8. Batch Tasks

Don’t check email constantly throughout the day (unless, of course, that’s your sales desk). Instead, “batch” your emails into 2 or 3 time slots a day. Those will be the only times you check email during the day. Use the same idea for other things you can batch together for efficiency.

9. “Eat the Frog,” First

Brian Tracy tells the story of “eating the frog.” The frog represents the item or task you are most inclined to procrastinate on. Decide to address that task before you do anything else. In other words, eat the frog first. Your day will only look up after that!

10. Take Time to Plan

Get your day organized and stay organized. Once a day and once a week, take time to plan. Use the Daily Process that I’ve talked about. By investing a little time in planning and organization, you will save a ton of time down the road.