These days, effective time management and work+life balance can seem like impossible feats, especially when you’re running a business.

Your days are busy as f*ck! With e-mails, content creation, planning launches, nurturing clients, and dozens of other distractions, there’s always more work to do!

It’s exhausting just thinking about it…

This makes time management that much more important for entrepreneurs to master. But I am sure you know this already, and I am sure that (like me) you’ve tried lots of strategies that just didn’t seem to stick…

So I’m sharing 3 time management strategies that have helped me to create more time in my days, so you can balance work+life easier.

Best 3 Time Management Strategies

1. Foster an Time Abundance Mindset

Do any of these thoughts sound familiar??
? “I NEVER have enough time!”
? “I’m ALWAYS running out of time”
? “I feel like I’m WASTING so much time”
? “I just don’t have the TIME to start”

If so, I’d like to introduce you to my old nemesis, Time Anxiety.

Time anxiety is the lingering awful feeling that you never have enough time and/or are not doing enough with the time you do have. For time management, it can be a distraction at best and debilitating at worse.

So how do you overcome it?

We all know that we won’t be around forever. Even with life expectancy increasing and technological advancements promising to keep us alive longer, we still have a limited amount of time on the planet.

However, we don’t HAVE to look at it that way.

What if you could actually CREATE TIME?!?!

Depending on your current biological age, you likely have AT LEAST another 30+ adult years on the planet. That is A LOT of time.

I have a goal of living to be 120 years YOUNG (not OLD!). So I make it a top priority to take care of my mind and my body. This is one way that I am creating more time.

Some other ways I am creating time include fuelling my body to meet all my energy demands, planning effectively, and setting priorities.

?️ How will you create more time?

2. Prioritise & Set Boundaries

What does a REALLY productive day feel like? Is it:
a) Getting all your work tasks done for the day
b) Spending time taking care of things in your personal life
or c) A combination of both?

I’m gonna guess, if you’re like me, it’s C.

This is interesting because when we think about time management and productivity in general, with think about getting more done in less time. Yet, since entrepreneurship comes with a never-ending to-do list, maybe it is time to redefine productivity for us busy entrepreneurs?

I mean, we started our businesses for the FREEDOM they’re supposed to bring. right?

Maybe, for entrepreneurs, true productivity is satisfaction where work and life meet?

What would that mean for your days?

When I was teaching high school I would plan my lessons using Backwards Design, where I would begin with the end in mind, i.e. what I wanted my students to learn.

This also happens to be one of Steven Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and one of my favourite time management strategies.

Here’s what to do:

?️ Grab a piece of paper and write out what your ideal day would look like. Yes, I know it would include getting all your work tasks done, but what else? Going for a walk? Eating a lovely homecooked meal? An energizing morning routine?

?️ Now take the things that you could be doing now, and schedule them as non-negotiable commitments to yourself.

If you want to read 12 books this year, schedule in 30min of reading a day. If you want to get stronger, schedule some time for exercise, if you want to have a more active social life, schedule time to text or call one or two people. By doing this you’re setting a boundary between your work time and your personal time.

Your to-do list will get done. However, these things will likely not if you do not make time for them, and let’s be honest, you can have the most successful biz in the world, but if you aren’t happy with your personal life, it isn’t going to matter.

3. Stop Breaking Your Promises

When someone tells you they are going to do something and they don’t, do you trust their word? Of course not. No.

Likewise, every time you promise yourself you’re going to do something and you do not do it, you learn that you can’t trust yourself.

So it’s time to start building back that trust. Stop being an ass to your future self and start following through, or don’t make the commitment in the first place.

How do you follow through?

Here’s the thing… It does not involve fancy apps or expensive planners. You just do it.

Do NOT give yourself the option to do otherwise. When the option is there, your Bully Brain is going to take it. You have to take out the option. This is arguably the best time management strategy I know.

I will give you an example, I decided in November 2019 that I was going to meditate for a MINIMUM of 10min every day. When I made that decision I cemented it into my identity. I am a person that mediates for at least 10 min a day, NON-NEGOTIABLE. I have not missed a day since.

A curious thing did happen though. For a while, I started to meditate for 20min a day. I like meditating for 20min a day, I can feel the difference the extra 10min makes. However, I struggle to make it happen. See, my MINIMUM is 10min. My IDENTITY is, “I am a person that mediates for at least 10 min a day”. It is not, “I am a person that mediates for at least 20 min a day.”

I give myself the option, 10 min or 20 min? My bully brain LOVES to tell me I’m too busy for 20, and if I am honest, she wins 9 times out of 10.

?️ What priorities did you schedule that you’ve made optional? Do you really want to do them? Why? If they are really important, keep your commitment by removing the option and making it non-negotiable.

Conclusion

When considering time management techniques it is important to remember that, while you may be tempted to navigate straight towards Pomodoro techniques, project management apps, and fancy planners, if you’ve tried all these before and they haven’t worked for you, it’s time to start digging deeper.

Do you have an abundance mindset around time? What are your priorities? Are they in line with the life you want to be living? What options are you giving yourself when it comes to sticking to your commitments?

If you’re ready to dive in deeper and Master Time like the BOSS you are, download your free Time Mastery Guidebook here!