If you have made a resolution to ramp up your productivity this year, you aren’t alone! Business owners are constantly faced with having to wear multiple hats, and to do that they must squeeze as much out of each day. The key to making the most of your time is starting with a plan.

Productivity boardYou need to decide what you are going to focus on in your business. What kinds of tasks need your personal attention, and which ones can be delegated to someone else?

Moving from a work-from-home enterprise to a Virtual Office solution is a great option. This type of arrangement allows you to take advantage of services, such as a live Receptionist and Administrative Assistant, to deal with some of the everyday tasks you are handling now. All of these tasks take time out of your day that you could be using to focus on working on your business.

Another way to increase your productivity is to take a good, hard look at yourself to evaluate your strengths and weaknesses. Even if you enjoy doing certain tasks associated with running your business, it doesn’t mean you are the best person to be taking charge of them. Admit to yourself when you should pass the torch to someone who can do something faster or better than you can, and then let him or her get on with it. Focus on areas where you can shine.

Learning how to pace yourself is another good strategy when it comes to learning how to be productive. On the face of it, you would think that going full tilt would be the key to getting a lot done, but people who don’t give themselves time to rest and recharge their batteries will find they are running on empty before too long. Ironically, they will fail to achieve the efficiency they are running after.

A much better strategy is to make wise decisions about the things that are most important to you in your business, and the goals you want to reach. Make a plan for how you are going to achieve those goals, then limit the activities that don’t support that plan.

Don’t ignore new things along the way as you are trying to be productive, though. If you are open to ideas and products, you may find tools and ideas that can help you get things done in less time or show new strategies that can help you in your business or personal life. Some of the best ideas can come from a seemingly random conversation; so don’t discount people you meet in your daily life. It’s not good to get so busy you forget to interact with people altogether in the pursuit of being productive.

You shouldn’t forget to live while you are making a living. The right kind of plan will allow you to do both – and be productive without burning the candle at both ends.

Courtney Ramirez
Research Analyst, Pacific Business Centers (rebranded as Pacific Workplaces)
Courtney’s research focuses on tracking emerging business trends and best practices – with an emphasis on how they affect business operations, technology, and virtual office trends.