Ten Top Business Time Management Tips

In today’s fast-paced world, time management is more important than ever.

Here are ten tips to improve your management of your time.

1) Plan goals a week in advance. The key tasks you need to accomplish each week should be worked out in advance so that you know where you need to focus your energies in the coming week.

2) Make sure you have a clean and tidy desk. It has been proven that one of the biggest business time wasters is a desk that has less than 80% of its surface area free from clutter. If you maintain a clear and clutter free desk, you will maintain your productivity at its maximum.

3) Learn to use your email program’s filter system. Set up a priority email folder and have all of the emails from your most important clients and contacts routed to it automatically so you don’t have to wade through a mountain of email manually to get to them.

4) Program in some ‘me’ time into every day. No matter how busy you are you should always make time for yourself to do something entirely non-business related. Recharging your batteries in this way will help you to deal with your work commitments at maximum efficiency.

5) Tackle the task you dislike the most first. Putting this task to the bottom of your to-do list will lead to a lot of wasted time fretting about it. If you get this task out of the way as quickly as possible you will feel such relief that the other tasks on your list will be a breeze.

6) Don’t think you have to be totally accessible all of the time. When you have important tasks to complete try to make sure you switch off your cell phone and stop checking your emails for the duration. This will allow you to make optimal use of your time by focussing entirely on the single task at hand without time-wasting distractions.

7) Allow time in your day for the unexpected. If you give yourself a task list that takes up every second of your day, an unexpected event will throw a complete spanner in the works. But if you allow time for the unexpected, when it occurs you’ll be able to cope.
Have an agenda for each meeting. Make sure that you have a clear list of everything to be discussed at every meeting and that every attendee gets that agenda ahead of time. During the meeting make sure that you keep from becoming sidetracked so that you waste the minimum amount of time.

9) Get used to saying ‘no’. If you get asked to do something that doesn’t fit into your schedule then learn how to refuse to do it. This can be hard to do at first but will get easier when the benefits become apparent.

10) Try to reduce the number of meetings you attend to the absolute minimum. Excessive meetings can be the biggest business time wasters. Try to only attend essential meetings to avoid this drain on your time and energy.

Of course, there are many more time management techniques you can use but the above will be a good starting point to help you manage your time more effectively.

via UK Business Advisors Ltd | UKBA – Ten Top Business Time Management Tips.

Time Management: Keep It Simple

When it comes to time management, many people often over complicate what should be a simple process. By using fancy electronic organizers and the latest software programs, they are actually making the process more complicated, and in the end most people don’t use the electronic organizers and software programs at all.

Many people don’t realize that just using a simple piece of paper as their to do list is far more convenient and easier to use than any electronic organizer. What could be more natural than putting pen to paper?

There is no way an electronic organizer is faster than writing on your to do list manually. Also with your to do list you have access instantly, instead of waiting for your organizer to turn on and then for you to find the right file.

Also, with electronic organizers, you have to worry about recharging it all the time. Another thing is trying to set it up so it is compatible with your computer.

The same goes for using the latest time management software programs. Again, most people won’t even use the program the way it is intended, and then go about stop using it.

The best and the easiest way is to keep your to do list on a simple piece of paper that fits easily in your pocket so you can carry it at all times. This way you have instant access and can update it as thoughts come into your head.

The learning curve on using the latest electronic organizer or software program makes many of them a waste of time. In the end most people spend a lot of money just to keep an electronic to do list.

Lastly, the cost is by far cheaper. Instead of spending hundreds of dollars on time management organizers and software you can simply get a piece of paper. Don’t spend hundreds of dollars on a fancy to do list.

Also with a piece of paper you can organize your thoughts on it anyway you want. You don’t have to lock yourself into having to organize your thoughts the way some computer programmer thought you should.

Time management should be about making your time easier to manage, not making it more complicated. By sticking with a simple sheet of paper you can accomplish all your time management goals. Electronic organizers and time management software often just complicate and add frustration to the situation.

via UK Business Advisors Ltd | UKBA – Time Management: Keep It Simple.

Outsourcing: Identifying Reliable Sources

As a business owner, outsourcing is an important component that you may want to add to your business so that it may continue to grow and not become stagnate. To develop a good outsourcing process, you need to determine who you will use as a resource to fulfill your outsourcing needs. There are different resource pools that you can use to find your outsourcing personnel. Examples of the resource pools are online business resources or local vendors. Whichever way you choose, keep in mind that you want to outsource to someone who is like-minded and have the same business ethics as you.

A case study in a bad outsourcing experience

As a business owner, it is important to trust and know who you are outsourcing your business projects to. If you do not manage the outsource process correctly, you could end up with a bad outsourcing experience. Case in point, you win a bid for a large project that has sections that you want to outsource. You choose to outsource to someone you find online. However, you did not take the time to check their reference and you end up with someone who does not meet with your expectations. Unfortunately, before the project was completed, you realized that the person’s words in writing about their expertise does not equal with the skill set shown on the project. Now you are stuck with a project that has gone bad and a situation where you may have to fire someone from the project.

How to find good outsourcing personnel

To find good outsourcing personnel, you much start with the basics. Make a list of what you need this person to do and then make sure the to do list lines up with the overall project goals. Once you have the list, determine the experience that your outsourcing candidate must have in order for you to consider them for the project. Use a reputable service as a middle-man for your outsourcing personnel search. When the list of outsourcing candidates have been narrowed down to your final list, interview them and check their references.

Sources for finding outsourcing personnel

When searching for outsource personnel, keep in mind that you can use temporary agencies (you want to use one that has a well documented track record of success matching of businesses to candidate). Some local vendors which are temporary agencies may have an online presence and would also be considered online resources for your outsourcing needs.

via UK Business Advisors Ltd | UKBA – Outsourcing: Identifying Reliable Sources.

5 Tips to Improve Customer Service

Good customer service is one of the most important part of your business. It’s essential to get repeat customers, the backbone of most businesses. And unsatisfied customers are always fast to spread their unhappiness. So here are a few tips about customer service:

Be polite and use appropriate style.

This is a must. Your clients will respect you a lot more if you act and sound professional. And many people will take offense at being addressed too familiarly.

The customer is always right.

That is an old saying, but always true. The problem or blame may be on the customer’s side, but you should never tell this outright. If it’s a problem on his side, just tell him the steps to fix it and be understanding. And, if the problem is on your side, do not be afraid to say sorry and explain the problem if the situation warrants it.

Be willing to go the extra mile.

It’s the little things that count. When you can do more than asked do not be afraid to, your customers will love you for it. For example, you can use pictures, screenshots or samples to answer a question instead of simply describing with words, or send a handwritten thank younote with your physical products.

Make your customer feel comfortable asking questions.

Answer all questions you receive promptly and politely. The fact that they may not be taking part in your latest promotion or buying your latest product doesn’t make their question is less important. It may be less profitable for you, but your customer could not care less about these things. Who know, they could be planning a big purchase, or would have if they had been treated well.

Always follow-up if you expect a problem.

You do not need to follow your customers every step of the way. But if you notice a problem, or just answered a particularly complicated request, it’s best to make sure everything is resolved before you move on. Make it easy to contact you if there is still something wrong

via UK Business Advisors Ltd | UKBA – 5 Tips to Improve Customer Service.