Time management hacks for an entrepreneur entering the New Year

Efficient time management is one of the most essential skills for busy entrepreneurs to ensure the smooth functioning of their businesses as they have a lot on their plates, from planning and executing strategies to managing employees to chairing meetings and gaining new clients. Since entrepreneurs have to wear multiple hats, context switching and multitasking associated with holding various roles pose a big time management challenge but no matter how packed the schedule is, every entrepreneur is in need to allocate the right amount of time to each task.

Digital tools and technology have advanced so much that we can get things done almost in half the time and with extra efficiency using these productivity tools. In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Ar Himani Ahuja, Founder of One Digital, shared, “Using productivity tools is first consideration for optimizing time. For example, opting for software that automates organizational operations and communication can take care of team management by itself. Time management by handling multiple tasks at a time is not always an effective formula; rather it hampers productivity at work and kills a lot of time. The best way to get multiple tasks done is to focus on one task at a time. Creating a simple daily and weekly plan with a focus on listing the key objectives will help in prioritizing and delegating our multiple tasks. Also, a time audit helps identify potential drains of our daily schedule.”

Planning is a crucial part of any business entrepreneur. Kartikeya Batra, Founder of Opulo, asserted, “As a business head, there would be several meetings to attend and numerous other tasks to take care of during the day but it is always critical to not let any random requests, unplanned meetings or teleconferences steal more of your time. A good idea to manage time with such unplanned events is to set a hard stop time. Make sure not to spend more than a specified time on unplanned meetings or unscheduled calls. Therefore, your job is done without having to struggle to make them fit into your schedule.”

As an entrepreneur, you can entirely take control of your work by administering your time management skills. However, better time management is not only about regulating your schedule efficiently but also managing it smartly to get more work done.