Small business owners live and breathe what they do. It takes effort and passion to go from “just an idea” into something that has legs all its own, but what about once your business is up and running? How do you pull back on some of the reins, so you’re not constantly stuck with your head in the weeds and actually have the bandwidth to grow your business?
Let’s offer some tips.
For property managers, part of our work certainly is in the weeds. Inherent to our job responsibilities is taking care of details like accounting, lease terms and day-to-day management responsibilities.
But we’re also business owners, and we have our own bottom line to think about. If we spend all of our days working in our business and not also dedicating some time to serving our own needs, it will be mighty hard to grow our business.
Here are some ways to strike the right balance:
- Consider hiring more employees – One way to free up more of your time is to pass on some of your responsibilities to an employee. If someone else can do the task just as well or better than you, then by all means, let them!
- Schedule meetings with yourself – Maybe it’s the first 30 minutes of every day or you block the entire morning on just one day, the point is that you make regular time – without distractions – just for yourself to focus on your business.
- Set goals – You likely got where you are today because you set goals and stuck to them, but when life and job responsibilities take over, it can be easy to let this tried-and-true tactic for success slip to the back burner. During those meetings you dedicate to yourself, reflect on your goals and find ways to keep yourself accountable to them.
- Prioritize productivity – You can’t do it all, especially in a single day. So, you must work efficiently in order to accomplish those tasks that will really move the needle on your business. We’re certainly guilty of making mistakes when it comes to prioritizing strategic moves, but it’s a lesson we take to heart. Find a productivity method that works for you and see how much more you can accomplish in less time by working more efficiently on those high-value tasks.
Growing a business is a constant evolution, but there are ways to make it easier. Hopefully these tips will help.
To hear more from us as we discuss the challenges of working on (not in) your small business, listen to episode 10 of our podcast Owner Occupied.
