Be Proactive with Your Time Management

Over the course of the last few months, I’ve been chatting with several successful full time artists and one common theme I’ve found when I ask them how they manage their time is that they really focus on planning out their schedules and designating certain days of the week to accomplish particular tasks.  Crystalyn Kae discussed this proactive approach in her interview for Meylah’s Twelve Days of Christmas promotion this past year.  Typically, this is how Crystalyn maps out her work week:

• Monday: Customer service & email
• Tuesday: Marketing, website updating, & photography
• Wednesday & Thursday: Creating products & building up stock
• Friday: Creative day, spent working on new designs

I love this approach because it really allows you to get into a rhythm, where you are making sure to pay attention to all aspects of your business.  Of course, there will be certain activities that need to be addressed on a daily basis, such as checking your email and processing any orders that come in, but having a general framework and focus for each day is a great start in managing your business proactively and ensuring that you are prepared to be reactive when it counts.

Here are some added suggestions for a day-to-day approach which will help you get ahead of the curve:

Create 'To Do' Lists

Whether on paper or electronically, outlining what you need to accomplish is a great habit to get into as you will have a constant reference point for keeping you on track.  Free online resources such as Remember The Milk or even a basic Excel spreadsheet can be an excellent tool to manage your to-do lists, but no matter what method you’ve selected, use it consistently.  Your lists should range from broad goals to daily activities.

Set Your Priorities

Review your lists and prioritize your tasks.  People have a natural tendency to gravitate toward accomplishing the tasks they enjoy the most or that they are good at, but by prioritizing, it forces individuals to focus their energy on the tasks that need attention the most.

Schedule Your Time

Once you have your to-do’s identified and prioritized, map out specific times for when you are going to work on accomplishing them and create deadlines for when they will be complete.  Also, identify a starting and ending point for each day, especially if you are working from home, otherwise 8 hour days turn into 15 hour days and your productivity weakens as you lose focus.  Google Calendar is a free resource to manage your schedule online as well as Jiffle, an innovative and free scheduling resource that's simple, works great and even syncs with Google Calendar and Microsoft Outlook.

Build A Routine

Finally, build in routine within your schedule.  Select a daily time for you to review emails, return phone calls, and manage your social media presence.  Stick with those times and avoid distractions.  If you catch yourself straying from the task at hand, reset and get back on track.

If you're looking for further insights on managing your time effectively, I highly recommend the book, Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity by David Allen.  It is filled cover-to-cover with valuable pointers on how to manage everything from phone calls to emails to your work space.  Many of these tips may seem like common sense, but putting them into practice is the kicker! 

If you have any great time management tips of your own, please share them with us!