Peruse any business or entrepreneurial themed social media channel from Twitter to YouTube and you will find some variation on the ‘I get four hours of sleep a night and read twenty books a day and run 10km all before 5AM’ post. While most of these posts are likely clickbait, this kind of ‘rise and grind’ culture is everywhere in the business world. But is just working as much as possible really good for your business? Are you making the most of your time? Are you able to respond agilely and effectively to new opportunities or crises? Here are some tips for making the use of your time.
Look after yourself Often if you’re working long hours, certain things can fall by the wayside in the pursuit of productivity, often counter productively. If you’re not getting enough sleep, not eating well, or not getting enough exercise, your mental fortitude may take a hit that can actually be a net negative on your productivity and the quality of your work. Make sure you’re looking after yourself first, so you’re in the best possible condition for each working day. That doesn’t mean you can’t work long hours or put a lot of time into a project out of passion, but it should come second to making sure you’re working well, rather than working a lot. A refreshed and healthy person will always produce better work.
Streamline your current procedures More practically, if you’re working long hours just to get the day-to-day things done, you’re probably not working efficiently. Take stock of how you’re doing things currently, taking into account all of your work streams. Think about how you go about doing all of your tasks, whether that’s day to day operations or project work, and figure out ways of standardising your processes and doing them more efficiently. Are there any tasks that are unnecessary or ineffective?
Hire more people Once you’ve taken stock of your current workload, if you can’t somehow make your tasks fit in to standard work hours (with some leeway for unexpected complications), then take stock of your staff. Identify the areas which you're struggling with and consider which teams could perhaps take on more of your workload, and which teams could do with another member, and what skills they will require. While it may seem counterproductive to your business’ bottom line to hire more people when the work is currently getting done, it can be beneficial overall and lead to a rise in productivity and effectiveness when you and your employee’s health, both physical and mental, is improved by a reduction in workload. If hiring more people isn’t an option, minc offers a variety of out-sourcing services that can help relieve some of your workload. Find out more here.