If there’s anyone in this world who understands the need for good time management, it’s a mom entrepreneur! However, using Action Scheduling helps. Moms who fail with tried-and-true time management techniques can succeed in life and business.
Mom Entrepreneurs are holding (at least) two jobs at once – managing their household and their business – and both are all about getting things done. Just keeping track of all those tasks is challenging, but actually doing them is another story entirely.
That’s why just about every publication you pick up these days includes tips for getting things done.
Surprisingly, though, some of the most common “rules” you read about don’t work very well for most people. Here are the top 3 Time Mantras that can be super hard for mom entrepreneurs to implement realistically. Although some days are better than others, these can be consistently hard to do.
Myth 1. Plan your day the night before
Yeah right… Although this is a great planning approach, unfortunately, it’s way too late to identify potential scheduling conflicts. The project that’s due on Tuesday? Sunday evening is no time to realize you won’t have enough time to work on it because you’re chaperoning a field trip on Monday!
Myth 2. Complete 3 high-priority tasks every day
Ah – the Big Three! If only it was possible to do it every day. On the contrary, some days are light; others are heavy. And when you’re managing a family AND a business, unexpected issues always pop up. So you may end up changing plans at the last minute, or working until all hours, or realizing some things can’t get done at all. This is stress you don’t need.
Myth 3. Keep a to-do list
Everybody has them, but some people know they don’t work! If they did, you wouldn’t have items on there right now that have gone undone for weeks (or longer). For that very reason, they’re quickly outdated. They’re also too long – way too many things to ever complete! Plus, there’s nothing to alert you to how much time each task will take. But worst of all, your to-do list is mostly an afterthought, only consulted when you run out of things that need to be done right now. How often does that happen?
So how do you handle these time management rules if they don’t fit for you?
Action Scheduling Helps Break Old Time Rules
Action Scheduling™ requires you to make a decision. For tasks that However, using Action Scheduling – do them now.
Instead of just adding a new task to a never-ending list, you immediately choose a specific date and time when you will actually DO it! Let’s face it, writing something on a list doesn’t get it done. The only way it gets done is for you to set aside time to do it. It’s just that simple.
How To Incorporate Action Scheduling
If you want to try Action Scheduling, first, enter all your recurring appointments and commitments into your calendar. It’s important to use only one calendar for both your business and personal schedules.
Then, when a new task presents itself, immediately make an appointment with yourself to do it.
- Take note of whatever deadlines or due dates must be met.
- Break complex tasks into individual steps if need be.
- Estimate how long each step will take.
- Find an open slot, or slots, in your calendar that fit the time and deadline requirements.
- Block those times and schedule the actions you will take.
- When the time comes, just do it! Don’t give yourself permission to put it off just because you’re not in the mood.
Why Action Scheduling works
- Since you don’t have to figure out each morning what you should do you save time. With Action Scheduling, your days automatically schedule themselves. You don’t have to re-prioritize a to-do list over and over.
- You know you won’t forget something important because everything’s already in your calendar. You don’t have to constantly check a to-do list to remind yourself what needs to be done.
- You won’t feel the pressure of looking at a long list and feeling like you should be doing it all right NOW. You know you’ve got all your tasks accounted for somewhere in your calendar. That means once you’ve completed everything on the schedule for a particular day, you can relax without guilt, knowing you’re on track. OR if you’re on a roll, you can look ahead to see if there’s something you want to do now to free up a bit of time later!
- The other side of that coin is you won’t over-schedule yourself. It will become obvious when your day is full. After that, just say no.
- If your schedule unexpectedly changes, you can always move tasks to another day without losing track of them. If you find you’re repeatedly rescheduling certain things, think about whether you need to do them at all. If not, delete them!
Imagine waking up every day feeling in control of your tasks and your time. With Action Scheduling, you’ll get much more done with much less stress!
