As the age-old saying goes, “Time waits for no one.” It keeps ticking, whether you want it to or not. You cannot create more of it and you cannot slow it down.
As a business owner, time can feel rather fleeting. Like you never have enough of it and your to-do list is endless. Running a financial advising business is a lot of work, which equates to a lot of time.
Managing a business is closely intertwined with managing your time. And while it might sound drastic and dreary, how you manage your time can make or break your business. In order to stay afloat, you must practice time management skills.
How Financial Advisors Can Practice Time Management
The purpose of incorporating time management techniques into your everyday work and personal life is to accomplish more in less time. It is the practice of using those 24 hours each day efficiently and effectively.
So what can you do to improve how you use your time? Consider following these seven suggestions.
#1 – Create a Plan
Organization is an underlying theme of time management. Your day needs structure. Create a to-do list complete with appointments and deadlines. Failing to plan can turn into wasted time.
#2 – Prioritize Your Tasks
We all have tasks that we must complete or have to finish, and then we have those tasks that we would like to do that are not essential nor urgent. Once you have your tasks listed out, take a minute or two to prioritize those them.
There are several ways to prioritize a to-do list. You can sort by importance, such as high, medium, and low. You can organize by deadlines, such as daily, weekly, and monthly. You can make individual lists for every day, outlined by must-do tasks and would-like-to-do tasks. Select a method that aligns with your personality and how you would naturally compartmentalize a to-do list.
#3 – Categorize Your Time
Now that you know what tasks are most important to complete first, pinpoint a time of day to work on those tasks. Significant tasks that require a lot of brain power should be worked on during a time of day when you feel most alert, aware, and capable of doing your best work. If you are a morning person with a clear mind from the get-go, then tackle those big items right off the bat.
#4 – Create Time Blocks
Set time limits by carving out specific blocks of time to work on certain tasks. Time blocks are meant to keep you accountable.
For example, create a time block to work from 10:30-11:00 AM on Task #2 off your to-do list. Do not cut corners and end 10 minutes early. Do not switch to a different task just because you get tired of the assigned task. Plan to work on Task #2 for 30 minutes. After you’ve given your all during those allotted minutes, reward yourself with a short break.
#5 – Remove Distractions
Time blocking is only effective when you choose to make it effective. Dedicating a particular amount of time to a task does not equate to being productive during that time.
In other words, you must consciously choose to create a distraction-free workspace, where your sole purpose is to only focus on the task at hand during that time period. Your email inbox, your social media accounts, and your text messages can all wait. Choose to remove distractions, then get to work.
#6 – Resist Busyness
Do not fall into the trap of keeping busy – the temptation to feel like you are working productively because you feel busy. Busy and productive are not synonymous. Busy work makes you feel just that – busy. You can interpret that busy feeling as being productive.
Time management is about maximizing your efforts to accomplish more, not just keep occupied. While you might be tempted to fill your time with all those small, tedious, and repetitive tasks in order to be busy and fill your time, that is contrary to the purpose of time management.
#7 – Look to the future
Time management techniques are not just meant to help you in the here and now. When you achieve more in the here and now, you have more time to plan for the future.
Never shortchange yourself. Think long-term. Look to the future as part of your efforts to be more productive. Time management is the gift that keeps on giving. Success is yours to be had.
To learn more about time management, consider joining a financial advisor coaching program and working with a coach for wealth managers. Striving to develop better time management skills is not only an investment to improve your business, but an investment to improve yourself.
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