Mastering Time Management: Unlocking Uninterrupted Time for Entrepreneurial Growth
This week’s blog is all about time blocking. Because “where we’re going, we don’t need roads.” - Doc. Brown. If you guess the movie correctly, you’re probably like me and can remember all the quotes from all the movies, but can’t remember what you had for lunch yesterday🤪.
The mental load of feeling behind or feeling like you don’t have enough time in the day was something I heard in just about every single interview I did for my research this past semester. When I asked the female founders about how they manage their time, many of them gave me strategies or tools they used…..some gave me none because they couldn’t seem to figure out how to manage it at all!
What was even more interesting as I found patterns and grouped certain segments of female founders together, I noticed that each of them dealt with time in a much more complex way.
FINDINGS:
GROUP ONE: The first group considered “uninterrupted time” more as a dream and less as a potential reality. If they got it, they didn’t realize it was there, wouldn’t use it, or wouldn’t actually work on what they said they would. This group wasn’t necessarily any “busier” than the others, it’s just that they had less support, whether it be personally or professionally. Their lives and businesses seemed chaotic and extra time was only for fairy tales.
GROUP FOUR: The fourth group knew exactly what they would do with “uninterrupted time” because they’d had it before. The fourth group was all about growth, and each time they were able to acquire uninterrupted time, they used it to grow their business. Whether it was putting in new operating procedures, learning about new software, or learning how to draw housing plans more efficiently. Their uninterrupted time was a reality and it was used for growth.
Groups 2 and 3 did not have distinct definitive details of uninterrupted time as Groups 1 and 4. However, Groups 2 and 3 did have more strategies of time management in place to help with their schedules.
The single most talked about strategy for using their time wisely (besides putting everything in Google Calendar, duh) was to use a technique called “Time Blocking.”
Story Time: When the yoga studio was co-owned for the first two years we split CEO responsibilities. I did more “front of house” work - things like employee onboarding, client management, and branding/marketing/social media, etc. The other founder did more “back of house” work - like payroll, bookkeeping, etc. Then, I realized when I took over 100% I also just doubled my workload. How was I supposed to double my workload in the same amount of time that I was only able to give each day? …Ding ding ding…Time Blocking.
A study from the University of California, Irvine found that it can take up to 23 minutes to refocus when transitioning between tasks, and the use of time blocking helped minimize those transitions. It was also reported in the Journal of Cognitive Psychology that structuring tasks limits distractions, and enhances creativity and problem-solving. That last study doesn’t surprise me, because you’re focusing on only one thing. It’s applying the method and creating the habits that’s the hard part.
Sometimes these concepts seem a lot like Group 1’s “Uninterrupted Time”….”It was all a dream” as Notorious B.I.G would say. Almost like a theory - does this “uninterrupted time” actually exist? Does where we are going even have a road!??!?! (Insert dramatic pause……)
First, let’s define “Time-Blocking.”
There are many ways that the women I interviewed worked with time-blocking, so I dug more into it’s definition post interviews. The three most popular time-blocking methods were:
Batching - This method pairs similar tasks together at the same time. For example, instead of dealing with your email every 30 minutes, have designated times in the day to focus only on viewing and responding to emails. One of the founders I interviewed even has this as part of her email signature: I check my email at 11am & 3pm ET during the week. I am unavailable over the weekend. While that doesn’t work for all entrepreneurs and business owners, it’s a great example of batching.
Daily Themes - This method dedicates days of the week to certain task groups. Let’s jump back to how I went from half the work to all the work, with the same amount of time in the day. I slowly integrated “Time Blocking” into my schedule by doing just this. I started with Social Media Mondays and Finance Fridays. These days were dedicated to anything that had to do with those items. Because our payroll is run on Fridays, it was a great way to go through bookkeeping, monthly account reconciliations, and bill-paying. Anything money was always handled on Fridays (still is!)
Time Boxing - This, in my opinion, is what most people think of when they think of “Time Blocking.” This method sets strict time limits on activities. Something like: work for 25 minutes, new task for 10 minutes, back to work on thing again for 25 minutes, etc. This gives a very strict deadline to get things done. For example, an architect might give themselves 30 minutes to sketch as much as they can, or an author might make themselves write as much as they can for an hour.
Have you tried time blocking before, but found yourself stuck or overwhelmed because…
You don’t complete your task within the amount of time you blocked because you underestimated the amount of time you need
You’re not doing the main priority first
You don’t know when you’re most productive
You’re thinking of projects as one big task tasks, and not breaking things down - projects are comprised of MANY tasks.
You’re not minimizing distractions
You’re being too scheduled and rigid with your time
You’re now allowing yourself breaks
If you really want to time-block effectively, but you’re struggling with some of the above…I got you. I put together two different time machines, I mean Time Tracking Tools, to help you keep track, plus a bonus tool from the team.
Time Tracking with TOD (DOWNLOAD HERE) - This is exactly what it sounds like, TRACKING not scheduling. This tool helps you track when you’re working on certain tasks during the time of day (TOD.) Using my Sunday example in the spreadsheet, you’ll keep track of your batched tasks and can color-code them as I have done. This will help you realize when you are working on certain categories during the day, and when you start to schedule ahead you’ll be able to place those batched categories in times that actually work for you and your productivity.
Time Tracking with Tasks (Download HERE) - Whether you decide to batch, block, or box, this spreadsheet will help you realize the actual amount of time you work on a particular task each day. This will help you stop underestimating how long it takes you to work on a specific task throughout the week, so you can plan your next week ahead. You’ll edit the task name, and note each day how long that task takes to complete. This method can also help you prioritize the tasks that take up most of your time.
Team BFD of Erin Runs An Empire suggests trying Toggl to help track different activities if spreadsheets stress you the f*ck out.
We’re going to take a Reality Inventory directly from my book, The Possibility Project.
If you’ve used my journal, you know this section is from Truth. Don’t forget to give yourself grace and don’t be hard on yourself. It’s all data - pivoting isn’t failure, it’s feedback. (Hmmm, that sounds familiar, is there an echo?) If you’ve answered these questions in my journal, I’ve thrown a few extra in for you!
Answer the following questions about your schedule and how it actually works for you.
I am the most productive during the hours of…..
I am the most creative during the hours of….
My body feels best when I move during the hours of….
I need rest during the hours of….(This isn’t just about sleep, notice when you are bored, tired, or unable to focus - this would even be a great place for active rest.)
What’s working in my schedule?
What’s not working in my schedule?
What is a shift I need to make in my habits or calendar?
Does this all align with my vision and what I actually want?
Understanding where you are spending your ACTUAL - not just ideal - time is a great way to understand what needs to be prioritized and maybe what needs to be off-loaded. By checking in with your task time, your time machine can keep you more organized and ultimately give you back the uninterrupted time you maybe only dreamed about.
Don’t forget to acknowledge when the machines you’re using hit overload; go back to what works. The goal is to unburden yourself from the feeling of being crushed by all the time you don’t have. Make “uninterrupted time” your lived reality so you can make room for growth and give yourself space back in your brain.
As we start to wind down the month of May with Mental Health as the theme, if there are any other topics or tools you’d like more information about please reply to this email and I’d love to dive in.
Don’t forget to be courageous in your commitments, capable in your decision-making, and strong in your belief in yourself.
PS The answer is Back to the Future.