3 Tips to Help Entrepreneurs Keep Focus on Driving Big Picture Success

Far too often, entrepreneurs accidentally hurt the growth of their businesses through good intentions by focusing too much of their energy on work that does not need it. This work includes many small and menial tasks that entrepreneurs often choose to perform themselves in the name of efficiency and displaying multitalented competence. But while being competent in many fields can be useful to entrepreneurs in getting their businesses off the ground, some of these fields, such as cleaning and repair work, are better suited to somebody else’s time. Those individuals who sit at the heart of a company and make it successful should devote their time to increasing this success, not fetching office supplies or dealing with plumbing problems.

Core Entrepreneurial Work vs. Everything Else

The problem is that entrepreneurs tend to want to be self-sufficient as much as possible. And in the early days of a business, this is entirely rational.  When a company only has three employees it makes sense for each of them to divvy up the tasks to whoever is able to do them.

But once a business moves beyond its initial startup days it is important that business owners keep their jobs and the work thereof in perspective. Entrepreneurs are in charge of tasks that, when done correctly, can bring in significant dollars in profit to the business with each completed instance. This includes things like negotiating and closing contracts and talking with clients about company business. This is the high-level work that entrepreneurs should be focused on, not on tasks that some one else can perform more competently.

3 Tips to Quit Compromising Time Well Spent

1. Load Important Work into a Productive Time Slot

Everybody does his or her best work and is most productive at a certain point in the day; and this time is different for each person. Some people are early risers who work best in the morning at the start of their days. Some are night owls who hit their stride shortly before going to bed. Entrepreneurs are no different.

The key for entrepreneurs, though, is to find this golden time in their day and plan their work accordingly. If you know when you’re going to be at your best then save your most important work, the work that only you as the business owner can do, for that time. Don’t waste it taking out the office trash and organizing your inbox.

2. Outsource Small Jobs by Hiring Help

The high-level work that entrepreneurs should be focusing on can run in value anywhere between $100 and $1,000 an hour. Meanwhile, the smaller jobs that eat up an entrepreneur’s time like cleaning and organizing, are $15 to $20 an hour jobs at best. So rather than devalue the business owner’s time to this level, it makes more sense and ultimately costs less to simply hire on people specifically to perform this lower-level work.

Hire a personal assistant to take care of all of the fetching and organizing work that an entrepreneur may otherwise need to do. Virtual assistants are a cost efficient option and may prove to be a great solution. They can handle many small tasks.  For any repair work, or cleaning, hire a professional – it pays to get the job done right.

3. Quit Dwelling on Efficiency

This may seem counterproductive, but too much of a focus on planning an “efficient” day every day can hurt an entrepreneur’s work in the long run. More often than not business owners try to increase their efficiency by filling every small gap in their schedule with some new task, even if it’s not necessarily worth their attention otherwise. They end up making themselves busier just for the sake of being busier. If you’re busy because you honestly have a lot of important work on your plate, that’s fine, but don’t give yourself more work just because you’re afraid of seeming inefficient.

It’s okay to relax without guilt now and then. It’s okay to have some free time in your workday to clear your mind of stress and psyche yourself up for the next important task. If the work that you do is worth $100 to $1,000 an hour, some empty time in your schedule here or there is permissible. And if it helps you to do that work better, free time is put to better use with relaxation than with adding more unnecessary stress.