“Time is what we want most, but what we use worst.”
William Penn
Time is always flowing in abundance, but when you become an entrepreneur, it seems like you can't get enough of it. As I reflect on my journey, I learned the importance of time and more importantly what that looks like for me. Because let's be honest you can read and listen to podcast episodes all day about time management but until you become a full-time creative and experience it that knowledge will only get you so far. So, I wrote three lessons I learned first-hand that I wanted to share to hopefully help all of my readers who are currently on their personal journey in life. I hope these words will touch and inspire you in the best way possible.
Design Structure
Stress and anxiety can stem from various things, but at the end of the day, it merely comes from not knowing what to do next. In life when we find our purpose, we become motivated and then become stagnant because we’re too busy watching other people living their life while ignoring our own. That results in us wasting time which creates stress and anxiety. The simplest way to combat this is to give structure to your time. This philosophy is simple, but for most new entrepreneurs it's complicated. For the longest time, we had structured lives before becoming self-employed. If you worked a corporate 9-5 than you know that most companies have already established the work structure for you to adapt to. What time you clock-in, leave for lunch, and clock-out has already been pre-determined. Unfortunately, as entrepreneurs we aren't that fortunate when we venture out on our own so, we have to create structure ourselves. Blocking time out to get work done and creating a morning and night routine helps create the balance and structure we desperately need. I promise if you learn and figure this part out first the next two lessons will fall in line.
Be open and flexible.
Another lesson I learned fairly quickly when launching my company is no two days are alike. In my mind I can already have a planned schedule but, in an instant, a single phone call can change my entire day! At any given moment clients can request an urgent meeting, or a project can end up taking longer than its projected date that can throw everything completely off. This alone can be a deal breaker for those who love consistency as I do and to be honest, it's something I still struggle with, but I learned to embrace it. Time is valuable and creating a schedule helps you maximize your time but don't let your daily routine compromise your work to fulfill a checklist. Somedays you will get 100 things done and other days you may only get 5 and both are okay. Learn to treat both accomplishments with the same level of respect and love they deserve.
Now, that you're the boss your work hours depend solely on you, so you don't have to stick to a traditional 9-5 work schedule. Sometimes I switch my hours from 12-8 instead of 9-6 to take care of personal appointments, to run errands or to just catch up on rest. Other weeks I become nocturnal and work through the night and rest during the day. The biggest attraction of working for yourself is having a flexible work schedule, and it can be the hardest thing to adapt to at first. Finding the "prime time" for work will definitely take some trial and error so never be afraid to switch it up.
Schedule days off
I know this may sound silly but scheduling days to do nothing is super critical. This philosophy definitely goes against the "I can sleep when I die" culture that we millennials have adopted but I'm here to tell you burn-out is real! And this can happen even when you're doing something you love. The same way we schedule, plan and prep for a vacation is the same way we have to plan time off to disconnect, refocus and regroup. At first, you may think I'm wasting valuable time I could be getting ahead at work, but it's really the opposite. The more time you indulge in work without taking a break the less productive you are. So, start by scheduling one day out the week to have off and relish that time. Use the day to re-inspire yourself if you need inspiration and remind yourself why you’re doing what you’re doing in the first place.
Time-management will look different for everybody, and our structure and process will never be written in stone. As our work and life evolve so will our time management principals so always embrace change. I hope you got something from this and feel free to share this with a friend if you have the time. No pun intended. Well, maybe so.