Time is a limited resource for most people. As business owners or professionals, we have so many roles – chief marketing and sales officer, team leader, operations manager, parent, spouse, pet owner, and more. What we accomplish is very dependent on how well we plan and prioritize. You can’t manage time – but you can manage yourself and how you choose to spend your time.

When it comes to self management, consider this. There is a big difference between activity, tasks that keep us busy, and productivity, tasks that take us closer to our business and personal goals. Most of us are busy; but are you busy doing the right things? Too often the activities that drive results in business or in life are the ones many people can’t find the time to do.

15 Tips to Improve Your Productivity!

Set Goals and Write Them Down. Sounds simple – but written goals with specific tasks and deadlines provide focus and are a key to prioritizing our time. Without goals, everything seems like a priority.

Know How You Spend Your Time. Begin to track your tasks for a two-week period and be specific. Make a special note of interruptions. Then identify the role (marketing, sales, planner, admin, operations) associated with each task. Which tasks consume the most time? Are you spending a lot of time on operations and administration or growth and team-building activities? Most people find this time study eye-opening. Once you recognize the time wasters, you can take actions to fix them by eliminating some and delegating or outsourcing others.

Get Organized. It is easier to perform tasks when everything is where you need it and out of the way. This means clearing off your desk so you have room to work and eliminate distractions. Everything should be in a file or binder (in a drawer, cabinet or bookshelf). If you need help organizing your space, there are books on this subject or professional organizers who can help.

Create a “To Do List” And Use It. When you identify a task that needs to be completed, put it on the list and give it a priority (low, medium high). When you plan your weekly work, pull tasks from the list and always do the high priority tasks first. Don’t forget to continuously evaluate the priority levels you assigned, time can change some of these.

Plan Your Work. At the end of the week, plan your next week AND at the end of each day, plan the next day. According to Brian Tracy, every minute spent in planning saves as many as 10 minutes in execution. In other words, 10-12 minutes planning can save you 2 hours in wasted time and effort throughout the day. What would you do with an extra 2 hours per day?

Block Off Time To Work On Tasks. The tasks on your To Do List will remain there unless you block off time to work on them. When planning your week, block off chunks of time and assign tasks to them. Don’t work on anything not on your list and don’t try to accomplish everything in one week. Remember to block time for personal activities – hobbies, fitness, family and friends. These are equally important.

Break Down Big Tasks. Big tasks can appear overwhelming so they quickly get put aside. Break them into smaller chunks that are more manageable. Then schedule time to work on them.

Delegate or Outsource. Always look for opportunities to delegate or outsource recurring tasks or low-value activities. Did you know that 50% of time wasted in business is due to lack of trust - the owner doesn’t think others can do it as well or micro-manages the team. Give your team the tools and processes then watch them shine -- and see how much time you gain for more valuable activities.

Use a Follow Up System (or Tickler File). Lose the out of sight, out of mind mentality that drives many business owners to keep files visible. Rely on a tickler or reminder system to insure important deadlines are met.

Match Your Work With Your Energy Level. Each of us has times during the day that are high energy and lower energy. For many, early or mid-morning is most productive; but yours may be different. Work on more complex or high value tasks during your ‘most productive’ times.

Hold Calls (Or Send To Voicemail). If you block time to work on important tasks – hold that time sacred and don’t permit interruptions except from a handful of people such as spouse, boss, children. Block off time to return calls each day at your convenience. You may also find that when you are not so accessible, others will handle the ‘issues’ and some problems will actually resolve themselves.

Handle Mail or Email Once. When you go through the mail – apply the following formula - Delegate, Action (add to “To Do” list), File or Trash. Do not put aside to handle later or you simply end up with piles and piles and piles.

Strive for Excellence, Not Perfection. Results come from taking action. By striving for perfection, you delay taking action or delegating tasks to other team members. This uses up your time and energy – so settle for excellence and take action.

Learn to Say NO. Those two letters are the best productivity tools there are. Before you say ‘yes’ to events, meetings or other time commitments, ask yourself this question, ‘Will it move me closer to my goals?’ If the answer is no, then say NO.

Stop Procrastinating. When something is important and left undone, it drains your energy. William James says it best, ‘Procrastination is attitude’s natural assassin. There’s nothing so fatiguing as an uncompleted task’.

Time is your most valuable asset so invest it wisely. If you are not sure where to start, pick ONE and conquer it. Then move on to the next one. You too can become productive not just busy!