Author: etcwebsite

A strategic alliance is an arrangement between two companies that have decided to share resources to undertake a specific, mutually beneficial project.

Where marketing is concerned, this is generally an agreement to share each other’s details with their client base, or split costs to conduct a joint marketing campaign.

A strategic alliance is less involved and less permanent than a joint venture, and does not usually constitute a legally binding agreement.  It is simply two compatible businesses agreeing to work together for mutual gain.

Some businesses do this very well, but it can be a forgotten avenue of marketing in this tech-led, digital age!

One of my clients that does this very successfully is a wedding boutique who has formed a strategic alliance with a local jeweller. When better to capture brides than at the purchase of the engagement ring?  They have placed a bridal display with a dressed mannequin in the jewellery shop, offering a 10% discount on wedding dresses if they purchase their engagement ring at the jewellers. This is an incentive for the customer to make their purchase with that specific jeweller – and provides the bridal boutique with a new prospect.

There are a number of ways strategic alliances can work for marketing purposes.

Here are a few suggestions.

Reciprocal links on your websites
Include an ‘our trusted partners’ page on your website and list your network of professionals with compatible businesses – in return, ask them to do the same with a link to your website on theirs.

Displays in each other’s shop
As illustrated with the wedding boutique example, an eye-catching display coupled with the right offer can bring fantastic results.

Joint campaigns
Team up with a relevant business to promote a joint campaign.  For example, a hotel could link with a local attraction or two to promote a family deal – bed and breakfast at the hotel plus tickets to the local attractions at a discount price.

Joint flyers
Share design and print costs and produce a double sided leaflet that promotes both businesses.

Joint stand at networking events
Exhibiting at networking events, particularly larger, industry-specific events like the Birmingham NEC’s wedding show, can prove extremely costly.  Splitting the cost of a stand with a compatible partner business can allow you to have a presence without the extortionate price tag.  OK, you halve your space, but it’s better to have some presence than none.

Page advert in a magazine or newspaper
Splitting the space in a magazine or newspaper advert can work in much the same way as exhibition space.  Promotional activity that could otherwise be out of reach due to cost, suddenly becomes a viable option.

So, spend half an hour writing down which businesses might ‘fit’ well with yours and get in touch.  As long as you can offer them something of value in return, why would they say no? It’s worth a go!

If you would like more insights on marketing and growing your business, book a FREE business review with Doug today.

Marketing your business can seem like a gargantuan task.

Google ‘marketing’ and you’ll be deluged with articles, blog posts, books and resources that all claim to know the best way to promote your services or products – as well as lots of companies wanting to do it for you, for a fee.

By all means buy a book, dip into some blogs and drink in the ‘how to’ tips on building a marketing strategy, producing content marketing,  getting results from email marketing, or text marketing etc. Knowledge is always a good thing. You might even cost up outsourcing some, or all, of your marketing – but, before you spend any of your marketing budget, please take a look at my six steps to marketing success. Unless you have these basics in place, whether you’re taking the DIY approach or employing a specialist marketing company, you’ll just be throwing your money away.

First and foremost, however, make sure you understand what marketing actually is!  Marketing is NOT sales. Marketing is the activity you undertake to bring in leads and prospects. Once you have prospects, you can then follow a sales process to get them to buy what you’re offering. It’s important not to get the two mixed up as discussed in a previous post here.

When you’re clear on the distinction, here’s how to succeed at marketing.

1 – Clearly define your product or service

Yes, it may sound simple – but you’d be surprised how many business people I’ve met who attempt to tell me what they do, and I end up with no clue as to what they offer! Often, we can be too close to it ourselves to see it through a customer’s eyes. We live it every day but, what we think is self-explanatory, often isn’t.

If you offer marketing services, for example, don’t just say ‘I do marketing’. Not everyone will understand what exactly you can do for them. Tell people you help promote businesses by creating tailored marketing campaigns that bring in valuable leads and prospects. It’s an introduction that allows you to then move seamlessly into talking about the kinds of campaigns you run and the results you can achieve.

Getting this initial definition correct is so crucial because, why will people buy if they’re not sure what they’ll be getting?

The best solution is to try and explain it as you would to a 14-year-old. Be descriptive, but don’t lose them in the detail. Keep it simple, jargon free and succinct. When you’ve got your definition together, try it out on a few people. Tell them what you’re selling and see if they can understand and relay it back to you.

2 – Understand who you’re marketing to

A really important thing to remember with any marketing activity is, the more tailored you can make it to a specific audience, the more successful you will be. Try and promote to ‘everyone’, and you’ll find you’re promoting to no-one!

Once you can easily and clearly describe your product, think about who will want to buy it.  Are you aiming to capture the imagination of the trendy teens, or pitching at a more mature audience? Are you looking for families with young children, or affluent couples with greater disposable income? If you’re offering a business-to-business service, are there specific industries you need to focus on? Paint a picture in your mind of the person you’re aiming your marketing at. Refine it as much as possible. For individuals, think about age, gender, profession, family situation and geographical area. For businesses, focus on relevant industries, the contact you require within the company and geographical area.

3 – Find out where your target audience shops

Once you know who you want to contact, it’s much easier to figure out the best way to do that. Are they always online? Are they regular users of specific social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram or Linked In? Will they read newspapers, magazines or industry publications? Do they go to networking events? Do they shop in certain high street shops? Could you consider a strategic alliance with another business?

Give some real thought to the best places to get in front of your target market and it will help you determine the best marketing activities to focus on.

4 – Now to take action!

You’re now ready to market yourself. You know what you’re marketing, who you’re marketing to and the best ways to reach your target audience. Now might be the best time to research your chosen marketing activity a little deeper and pick up tips on how to do it well. If you’ve decided you need to be promoting yourself and advertising on Facebook, find out how to do this professionally and effectively by reading some articles on it, or booking onto a local training workshop.

Here’s the biggy, though – whatever marketing methods you use, it’s vital to keep that activity going regardless of how busy you get! You might find you bring in loads of leads in the first month and are so busy following up and doing the work, that you don’t think it’s important to do more marketing. This is a big mistake. You’ll just have to start from scratch again when those initial leads and work dry up.  Marketing should continue constantly in the background, producing a steady flow of prospects. This is where outsourcing can really pay dividends. Consider employing a marketing company to keep churning out the content for you.

5 – Remember your call to action

How frustrating would it be if you received a leaflet about a workshop, you’re really interested in attending, but there are no details included on how to book? Believe it or not, this does happen!

Before sending anything out – proofread it (or even better, get someone else to look over it and see if they can spot anything you’ve missed) and make sure it has a call to action, and contact details!

Think about what you want to achieve. Do you want visits to your website? For people to call you? Or bookings onto an event? Whatever the outcome you’re hoping for, make sure your marketing material makes this clear and gives the audience everything they need to complete that action.

6 – Measure and adjust

Whenever you undertake any marketing activity, especially if you’re allocating budget to it, you want to  make sure it’s performing as you hoped and is worthy of the spend. There are lots of ways of monitoring and measuring your marketing and, again, there are plenty of resources available that will tell you exactly how to do it.  Measuring your marketing’s effectiveness is the only way you can hope to ensure a return on investment, and work towards improving your activity in the future. One client, for example, was paying £1,000s on an annual Yellow Pages display advert.  When they started asking leads where they had found their details, however, not one had come from Yellow Pages!  Time for a re-think, me thinks!

Keep a record of how many leads each marketing activity brings in and measure the quality of these leads.  How many turn into paid work? Don’t be afraid to experiment with different marketing methods to see which brings the greater return. You should constantly question and adjust your marketing methods – don’t just do what you’ve always done.

Marketing and getting your message right are addressed in more detail in my book, ‘Getting Down to Business’.  You can order your copy here.

It also forms part of my business mentoring programmes.  If you feel you could benefit from my support with any aspect of growing your business and becoming more profitable, book a FREE business review here.

Do you know what personality type you fall into?  Have you ever tried to classify who you are, what motivates you or aggravates you, what job might suit you best?

For a manager, it’s a good thing to know about yourself, but even more important is having that information about your staff.  In fact, it’s vital to running a successful company.

Ensuring you have the right personalities in your business is as important as having the right skills and experience – and has to be a consideration at recruitment stage.

It’s no good having a business full of creative, idea-generators if there’s no-one with a logical and practical personality to think about the workability of their grand ideas.

And you can’t cram a team full of studious introverts who are great at getting the work done but won’t say boo to a goose, because who’s going to go out and network and sell your product or service?

To have a profitable and successful business, you have to get the mix just right.

Placing the right people in the right position can make or break a company, whether it’s a receptionist with a sunny disposition who is unflappable and able to multi-task or a gregarious salesperson with an uncanny knack of reading people and situations.

Finding someone with the right personality traits has to be high on the list when searching for fresh talent.

Some managers are brilliant at personality profiling, simply from having a conversation with someone.  If you find that more difficult, you might want to consider psychometric testing as part of your interview process.

It can help determine whether a person is suited to their role, who they would work best with, how you can motivate them to achieve their potential and how you can develop them within the company.

If you haven’t recruited with personality in mind, it could be the reason you’re experiencing staff tensions, which can lead to operational dysfunction.

The good news is, it’s never too late! Personality profiling can be a really useful team building exercise.  Take an afternoon out and get your workforce taking the Briggs Myers test, or DISC profiling.

Learning more about what makes each other tick could help resolve existing issues, and prevent future friction.

You might find it even leads to a staff re-shuffle, matching the right people with the right tasks and teams according to their personality could have a huge, positive impact on your productivity.

If you would like further advice and guidance on recruitment issues, or successfully managing a team, call ETC and book a free business review.

Managing staff is definitely not a one size fits all.  Knowing how to manage different personalities is a skill managers need to grasp if their business is to really flourish.

You may have pulled together an amazing team, recruiting individuals that suit their specific role to a tee, but unless you know how to draw the best out of each one of them, and get the different personalities working together, it can still be a recipe for disaster.

What motivates one person may have another running for the hills, and asking two clashing personalities to work together can disrupt your whole operation!

This is why it’s so important to understand what makes your staff tick, and work that to your advantage so the mix of personalities benefit, not bankrupt the company.

Take the two opposing ends of the scale, extroverts and introverts, for example.

An extrovert might be comfortable expressing their views and offering suggestions in an open forum or meeting, but an introvert certainly wouldn’t.  So, if this is the only means staff have to put forward opinions and ideas, you could be missing out on some really important input from the less outspoken members of the team.

An extrovert would probably thrive on being centre of attention if acknowledged publically for some great work, but this could negatively impact an introvert’s confidence and productivity.  They may give a little less, for fear of being embarrassed again with a public commendation.

Can you see how, on a daily basis, the way you interact with and manage staff can have a huge impact on morale and productivity?

It’s a tricky area.  People are complex beings.  Even their different moods can alter how they might react to a situation from day to day.

Whether you use formal profiling, or just pay close attention to your team members as you work together, to successfully manage you need to be aware of personalities and know how to act and react appropriately with them.

If you fail to correctly tailor your management practices with individual personalities in mind, you may find yourself struggling with a high staff turnover, or a disgruntled and under-performing team.

ETC’s business growth and mentoring programmes include expert advice and training on all aspects of leadership and management. For further advice and guidance on getting the most out of your workforce, call Doug on 01384 355444 and book a free business review.

One of the biggest business owners’ bug-bears is having to work over each night, because there aren’t enough hours in the day to get everything done!

Well, there are certain things in life you simply can’t be late for, like catching a plane. So how is it we can make these deadlines and not others?

The simple answer is, we plan for it. Plan effectively and you can achieve anything – including getting home on time.

What exactly do we mean when we talk about time management in business? We can’t ‘manage’ time, it keeps rolling along whether we like it or not. What we can manage, however, is how we plan our time, how we prioritise what we do and make active decisions about when we do it.

Use the example of planning for a trip abroad, and make your departure time from your working day as much a priority as catching a plane, and you might suddenly find time management is manageable after all…

It’s a simple three step process:

1 – Know your deadline

Catching a plane has a distinct date and time allocated to it, so ensure you set your departure date and time in the same way. For some, this may be already set in stone – if they have to be at the school gates to pick up children, for example – but if you don’t have this time in mind, it’s all too easy to just keep working. A deadline adds a degree of urgency, which can force us to be more productive. Rather than pushing tasks aside thinking, ‘I’ll get to that later’, the mindset becomes ‘Let’s do it now as I have to be away by…’.

2 – Set it as a priority

Everyone knows catching a plane is a priority, but we don’t always set the same importance on home time. Why not? My previous blog here explains why burning the midnight oil can be counter-productive. Time away from the workplace is essential, and looking forward to that time away can give you the incentive you need to be more focused at your desk.

3 – Plan what you need to do and when

When you plan a trip away, there are a set number of things you need to do before you go. Book flights, book accommodation, arrange travel insurance, arrange transfers or car hire, make sure your passport is in date, pack etc. You’ll probably make a list, and there’s no question as to whether you tick everything off the list – you simply have to – so you make sure you set aside time to do these things.

When you plan for home time, you need to do the same. Make a list in the morning of what has to be done before departure. Prioritise the list and be realistic about what can be achieved in the time you have. If there are a number of things that could wait until the next day, put these at the end of the list as ‘will try to dos’ rather than ‘to dos’. Allocate times to the tasks, so you know your first hour is for phone calls, for example, and your second hour is to write up that urgent report… Now, this is the important bit, no procrastinating! There simply isn’t time! Stick to your timetable and stay focused on that deadline.

Sometimes, all it needs is a change in attitude and approach and you can achieve what you thought was impossible – effective time management that allows you to jet home each evening and enjoy some much needed rest and recuperation.

For further support and advice with managing time and workload, and making your business more profitable, contact Doug and request a free business review.

School may be a distant memory to some of us, but it might be worth recalling one aspect of your school days for a moment, to see if it can help you in your business.

I’m not talking about what you studied here, but how you studied…

Have you ever considered what a momentous task it is to get thousands of children through the school system, teaching them everything they need to know on the set curriculum of the day, sticking fastidiously to the same working hours each week?

When you stop and think about it, you realise how crucial timetabling is to a school’s success – and this is where we should take a leaf from the school book!

We may call it scheduling in the workplace, rather than timetabling, but it amounts to the same thing. If you have a lot of work to get through, setting out a regimented timetable and following it to the letter really can help you manage your time effectively.

More importantly, it can give you that all important start and end time to your working day, keeping you productive when you need to be so you can stop and enjoy home time when you want to!

Here are my ideas on how you can adapt the school timetabling system to help manage your workload and time more efficiently in your business:

Physically draw out your timetable

Whether you do this on paper or online, make sure you have your working week represented in diary format, where you can mark up allocated chunks of time to specific jobs. Having something visible is essential to make this work, don’t just vaguely set times in your head. You might need to work a timetable over a fortnight, or month, to fit everything in. Think about how this can work best for your workload.

List the different aspects of your work

I don’t mean the smaller daily and weekly tasks here. Think about this like writing a job description for everything you have to cover in your working month. It may include things like administration, accounts, operational duties, client meetings, sales activity, marketing etc. Try and keep it as generic as possible, so you can work your timetable into a recurring pattern.

Allocate times to your listed jobs

As accurately as you can, allocate time-spans to this list of jobs. You may know, for example, that you are currently spending your first hour every day on administration – checking and responding to emails, tying up paperwork etc. – so, allocate 5 hours per week to administration. You may set yourself the target of spending two hours per week on sales calls – so write this down under sales activity. This is a fantastic way to also see if your job list is achievable! If your tasks add up to a 60 hour working week, for example, more needs addressing than scheduling your time.

Think about working productively and efficiently

Before you start marking up your timetable, look at the list you’ve made and evaluate the time you’re currently spending on certain activities. See if you can streamline any of your tasks. The idea of this exercise is not to document how you do things now, but to work it to your advantage so you can be more productive and effective. Perhaps, for example, you might get more done in a day if you didn’t spend your first hour on administration. Setting aside a 3-hour block at the beginning or end of the week to focus on administrative tasks, so that the remainder of your week can be free for other work activity, might be more advantageous.

Chunk your time

After evaluating and amending your job list, start to fill in your timetable by chunking time slots for specific tasks. Start with repeating tasks that you know have to be completed by a specific time – like month end accounts. Block out the time on your schedule when this needs to be done. Work your way down your list. If you know you always have a certain amount of client meetings each week, set aside Tuesday and Thursday afternoons for meetings etc.

Don’t let others dictate your timetable!

Once you’ve drawn up your timetable – stick to it! One of the biggest mistakes businesses make is, they let others dictate their timetable. Change your mindset! Don’t ask what availability your client has for a meeting, tell them ‘I’m available Tuesday afternoon or Thursday afternoon for a meeting’. Next time a client calls to ask for a job to be completed, tell them ‘I can set aside Wednesday morning to complete this for you’. Time management is often about managing expectations, so you’re not setting yourself unrealistic deadlines then burning the midnight oil trying to reach them.

It may seem simplistic, but it’s a proven, successful model. Schools offer us the perfect operational example! Try it for a month and see if the timetable can work for you.

Timetabling is one of the exercises I often do with my clients to help them define their working week, allocate time to jobs and schedule their workload more effectively. If you would like advice or support on helping you manage time within your business, give ETC a call on 01384 355 444.

I recently discussed the importance of delegation in my blog post “Why do we find delegating so difficult?” – but I thought it was important to expand on that by outlining what I feel the secrets are to successful delegation.

The biggest stumbling block, I find, to effective delegation is – you have to place your trust in someone else to complete work to your standard.

But the solution really is simple – put steps in place to ensure employees or agencies can do the job the way you want it done!

Here’s my easy three-step guide to successful delegation:

Explain the task thoroughly

No-one can undertake an assignment without a proper brief. Often, managers assume they are the only one who can undertake certain tasks because all the knowledge about how to complete it is in their head. I don’t mean to over-simplify here, but get those details out of your head and structure them on paper into a ‘how to’ guide. Go through this with the individual you are delegating to and make sure they understand what is expected of them.

Ensure robust systems and procedures are in place

To complete any task satisfactorily, you need the right tools for the job. With many administrative tasks, the right tools are the systems and procedures that underpin what you do. Make sure documents you need are easily accessible, anything that needs to be recorded has a file ready and waiting and there is an easy-to-follow process to complete the task.

Deliver tailored in-house training

Never assume a person should know how things are done in your organisation. Even if they have extensive industry knowledge and have undertaken similar tasks for other companies, you will have your own way of doing things – and this needs explaining. Even when outsourcing to an agency or service supplier, delivering job-specific training to show them how you want things done is imperative.

Follow these three steps and you are setting employees up for success. Have confidence in them and let them try.

For more business insights and top tips, sign up to receive Doug’s monthly email newsletter on his website.

Some people appear to be masters of delegation – handing out tasks left, right and centre – but generally, in the companies I’ve worked with, I find managers can be hesitant to delegate.

Why is this such an important issue to raise? Put simply, failure to delegate is a recipe for chaos.

Tasks pile up and things start to get missed. This not only creates issues with clients, if deadlines are not met or communication channels fail, but it creates a stressful environment and puts unnecessary pressure on you as a manager.

There comes a point in a business where the number of tasks on a manager’s plate outweighs the number of hours in a day! Holding on to tasks that could be passed to another member of staff, or outsourced to a specialist agency, is one of the biggest barriers to company growth and success.

There can be a number of reasons why we find delegating so difficult, but the most common I’ve found in my experiences as a business mentor and consultant are these:

“I can’t afford to employ more staff”

In smaller firms, it’s often the case that the business owner does everything. This is often a necessity when first starting out, but as the business starts to grow, the to-do list does as well and owners get stuck in that mindset that it all has to remain with them.

As more work comes in, however, there should be increased income to match. Whilst there may not be enough just yet to take on another member of staff, there are cost-effective ways of outsourcing certain tasks that help free up your time to focus on what’s important (like getting client work completed, or sales activity to bring in even more!).

If you find yourself in this situation, think about the work you do that isn’t your forte, and cost out how much it would be to outsource to an expert. Examples might be book-keeping or marketing. These are tasks that can easily be passed to an outside agency, who will charge you an hourly rate for the work they do. Chances are, they’ll also do it much quicker than you because it’s what they’re trained in, and it may cost less than you think.

This doesn’t just free up time, it helps you play to your strengths, which will make you much happier in your job! There are always tasks we put off because we don’t enjoy them. It’s these you should consider delegating.

“No-one else can do this – I’m the only one that knows how”

Of course there may be aspects of a business that only you can do. If you’re a photographer, for example, clients are paying for you, your name, your portfolio, your proven expertise behind the camera – and it would weaken your brand to delegate or outsource to another photographer. But does that mean you can’t outsource the photo editing process, or find someone who can make sales calls on your behalf, or get a virtual PA to handle your calls and diary?

There are always tasks on your to do list that (and here’s the key), with the correct training and information, someone else could do. Not only could they do it, but they could do it very well!

Equally as well as you, in fact. I know for many this can be a difficult concept to grasp, but at some point you have to let go!

Investing a little time in training someone to fulfil a role to your specifications, ensuring consistency in the standard of work produced, will pay dividends in the long run. You can learn to place your trust in the competency of others and re-focus on what you need to do to make your business bigger, better and more profitable.

So, next time you find yourself stressing over your workload, don’t dither. Delegate!

For more practical, straight-forward advice on growing your business and becoming more profitable, take a look at Doug’s book “Getting Down to Business”.

It can be difficult to recognise when you have job fatigue, because you’re working so hard trying to get through your daily tasks that it simply doesn’t register that things aren’t right.

But take a moment now and ask yourself these questions:

• Does work seem like a hard slog at the moment, like you’re on a treadmill repeating actions day after day without really getting anywhere?
• Do you feel physically and mentally exhausted at the end of your working day?
• Do you feel you’re seeing no rewards for your hard work, in financial terms or through job satisfaction?

If you’ve answered yes to any of these, I can pretty much guarantee you’re suffering from job fatigue.

Unfortunately, this can be a downward spiral that leads to stress, anxiety, and even depression. But, although it may seem like there’s no light at the end of the tunnel at the moment, there is a way to get yourself out of this rut – and it might be simpler than you think.

SET YOURSELF GOALS!

One of the biggest issues I face as a business mentor is getting people to recognise the benefits of setting big goals for themselves – but it is actually a great way of combating job fatigue.

Think about it – if you have nothing to strive for, no direction or aim, wouldn’t you feel like a hamster on a wheel, running but at the same time standing still?

If you can’t say to yourself at the end of the day, I’ve achieved this and I’m now closer to my goal – wouldn’t you feel drained and despondent?

If you don’t feel you’re working to a bigger plan that will bring amazing rewards, there’s nothing to motivate you each day. Wouldn’t that be soul destroying, if the hours you’re putting in feel worthless?

Yet so many people in business still go through the motions without setting goals.

I’ve written at length on how to set goals, and how to work towards achieving them, so I’m not going to expand on that here. What I want to point out is that you need to recognise the importance of having a vision, of dreaming a little of what the future could hold.

Having something to work towards, and a plan of action in place to make it happen, is a hugely constructive thing to do. It will give you a framework for your working day and keep everyone in the office upbeat, knowing that all of their hard work is leading somewhere.

Ticking things off an action plan each day as you work towards a big goal will promote optimism and positivity. No room for job fatigue there! You will be amazed at how differently you can feel about your business and the work you do within it.

So, jump off the treadmill! Get out of the hamster wheel! Set yourself something to strive for and go get ‘em!

For more guidance on how to set goals – and work towards achieving them, here’s some further reading:

Do you know what your goal is?
Targets & Goals: Can You Spot the Difference?
Setting your Goal: The Know How
Goals set, but how can I achieve them effectively?
Help yourself to achieve your goals – Masterminding
Short term goals and long term goals
Business goals and personal goals

This may sound strange to all you workaholics out there, beavering away ‘til the early hours to get a project completed or write up that important report, but you’re not doing you or your business any favours putting in all those extra hours!

We can soon get into the pattern of starting that extra hour earlier, taking work home to finish in the evening, coming in to the office at the weekend. I know, I’ve been there and done that! At the time, it seems like the only way of fitting everything in and getting the job done, there are never enough hours in the normal working day, but this is the road to ruin!

You are damaging your body, your personal life, and your business by not allowing yourself down time.

Working 24/7 is the fastest way to feeling jaded and fatigued in your job – and far from increasing productivity, it will leave you tired, distracted and demoralised.

If you work on getting the balance right, however, you will suddenly find that eight hours in a day is enough to get everything done – because you’re rested, fresh and focused – and you’ll be a happier, more positive employee/employer by enjoying life outside of work!

Here’s my checklist to combating midnight oil syndrome, to redress the balance and ensure your working days are productive, not prolonged!

Stop

Set yourself a cut-off point for finishing your working day – and stick to it! This isn’t a deadline to complete your work, it’s a time when you stop working, regardless of whether a task is completely finished. Whether it’s 5pm, 6pm or 7pm – set a definite time when the working day will end and your personal time will start. Having this end-time in mind has two main benefits.

It helps you stay focused and can stop you procrastinating over tasks and just get stuck in! If you’re always thinking to yourself ‘I can finish it at home later’, or ‘I’ll stay an extra hour to finish it’, it gives you an excuse to drag your feet or put things off. Second, it gives you something to look forward to. If all you can see ahead of you is more work, work, work – you’ll feel disheartened and de-motivated. This is why taking your weekends and holidays off are important too!

Sleep

Your body needs sleep – and it probably needs more than you’re giving it at the moment! How much better would you feel if you allowed yourself the luxury of a good, eight hours sleep before the next working day? Starting the day tired is not a great recipe for success. Sleep deprivation crushes creativity, and positivity.

You’ll feel sapped of energy before you even start, meaning you won’t operate effectively, mentally or physically. It can also heighten anxiety and stress. Small issues that would, under normal circumstances, be dealt with quickly and without fuss, suddenly become mountainous, insurmountable problems. It’s impossible to think clearly with a fuzzy head. Get sleep, and get enough to feel refreshed and ready for anything!

Live!

Remember the old adage – do we live to work, or work to live? It’s essential to have interests, and a life, outside of work! You need something that will distract you and take your mind off of work. Something that you enjoy and makes all that hard work worthwhile! Whether it’s spending time with the family, or finding a hobby you love, make the most of your free time.

Whatever it is you decide to do, immerse yourself in it completely. Don’t allow yourself to think about work. You will find that clearing your mind will give you new energy and focus on returning to a task. It may even open up new avenues of thought that, had you not spent time away, just wouldn’t have occurred to you. Re-invigorate your passion for life because if you lose that, you’ll very quickly lose passion for everything else – including your job.

I cover time management and work/life balance in my free advice sheets. Sign up here to receive more helpful information and support that will help you, and your business, grow and succeed.