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Issue 1 > Are you managing your time?

Are you managing your time?

Jeffrey Zbar suggests how to how to make better use of your work-at-home day.

What are you doing—right now? Sure, you're reading an article, but is this the best use of your time right this minute? If you're like many home-based business owners, time management may be your Achilles' heel in growing a more profitable business.

'Day mapping'—or tracking the highest, most efficient use of the day—is one exercise home-based owners and workers can perform to ensure that they're operating at peak efficiency. Business owners working out of their homes must think of ways to squeeze more time out of an otherwise static workday.

What are your peaks and valleys? Too often, home-based business owners don't give time a second's thought. They mosey through their day, do their tasks when they're so inclined, and react when clients call or crises erupt.

But we all need to know when our personal performance peaks and valleys—or circadian rhythms—come, so we can make sure we're doing the right tasks at the right time.

A University of North Carolina study asked 4,000 retired executives what they would change if they had it to do over again. The majority said they would like to have realized earlier that time is a non-renewable asset, and made better use of the time they were given.

Realizing this early-on can result in improved productivity—and increased billings for your home business. Start by evaluating your time to ensure that it's being spent wisely. Experts note that saving time starts with a shift in priorities.

Consider these three Ps:

• Plan. Sketch out your day and week early to avoid wasting time along the way. Prioritize important projects and set realistic deadlines for them—knowing all the while that other projects will arise to find their lace around them.
• Prioritize. Ask yourself: 'What is the most valuable use of my time?'. What should you be doing that will give you the greatest return for your business?
• Perform. Stick to your assessment. Don't squeeze in more 'important' projects, knowing you'll have to scramble to meet deadlines, or possibly beg an extension.

Over the next week, map your workdays and chart your time usage, frequently stopping to ask yourself if what you're doing at that moment is the best use of your time.

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