Cut Hours from Your Workweek with this Simple Strategy

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There are lots of ways we get in our own way when it comes to running a business. Although I can't address all of them here, I will share one with you, along with a simple rule of thumb to help you free up your time.

Many business owners are perfectionists. You want to do things “just right.” If perfectionism is a struggle for you, you could be spending excessive time trying to do all kinds of things in your business just right. You also may be having a hard time letting go and delegating tasks if you are focused on the tasks being done just right (ie., “your way”).

To let go of perfectionism, apply the 90% Rule. Consider that if you can do a task to a 90% level of perfection in 4 hours versus a 100% level of perfection in 7 hours, you can save yourself 3 hours. That's a lot of time!

If you recall from college, 90% is still an ‘A.'

What is even better than the 90% Rule? The 70% Rule. 70% is a ‘C'. Recall, that a ‘C' is average.

Not all tasks that you do in a given day require 100% from you. Which tasks can you give 90% on and still be doing an excellent job? Which tasks can you give 70% on and still be doing an average job?

To help you identify where you may be overworking out of perfectionism, consider your Business’ Sweet Spot. Your Business Sweet Spot is what you offer that is unique to your business that serves your Ideal Clients or Customers and is streamlined to be highly profitable. Anything related to your Sweet Spot absolutely should be executed with care and precision. Anything not related to your Sweet Spot does not require perfection from you.

Try this:

1)     Start by identifying your Business’ Sweet Spot.

2)     Next, list out all of your activities over the course of a week. Evaluate which activities directly serve your Business’ Sweet Spot. Put an asterisk by these.

3)     Now notice which activities are not directly related to your Business Sweet Spot.

4)     Find a way to delegate those activities not related to your Business’ Sweet Spot.

5)     Next, get to work on creating systems so that your business systematically delivers an outstanding customer experience around your Business’s Sweet Spot.

Remember, your time as a business owner is best spent innovating and creating systems around your Business’ Sweet Spot so that your business is serving your Ideal Clients or Customers better and better.

By getting clear on which tasks can be done sufficiently with less time and effort, you can cut hours from your workweek. Plus, you’ll free up time to focus on streamlining your Business’ Sweet Spot.

  Dr. Sabrina Schleicher recognizes that employee problems can be one of the biggest stumbling blocks for any business owner. With her background in psychology, and years of coaching small business owners to extraordinary results, Dr. Schleicher knows what it takes to find, keep and get exceptional performance out of your biggest investment–your employees. Access her comprehensive video training 5 Secrets to Exceptional Employee Performance (her gift to you!) at www.tapthepotential.com

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About The Author

Dr. Sabrina Starling, The Business Psychologist and international best-selling author of the How to Hire the Best series and The 4 Week Vacation™, is the founder of Tap the Potential and host of the Profit by Design podcast. At Tap the Potential, we work to free business owners from the constant demands of a growing business.

We believe work supports life, not the other way around. Clients in our Better Business, Better Life coaching program have more time for what matters most and more money in their bank account than they’ve ever had. Next, we send them off on a 4 Week Vacation™ to celebrate their hard-earned journey to take their life back!

Dr. Sabrina and her team at Tap the Potential are on a mission to change the story of entrepreneurship from one of long hours, grinding it out, to one of sustainably profitable businesses that support and enhance life. The Tap the Potential Solution™ and our Tap the Potential Family of Business Owners are disrupting small business as usual. We are on our way to making the Tap the Potential Solution™ the mainstream model for growing business.

By 2023, 150 Tap the Potential clients will have taken 4 Week Vacations. These are the trailblazers, role modeling what’s possible for entrepreneurs. In many entrepreneurial circles, it is becoming more and more common for one entrepreneur to ask another, “Have you taken a 4 Week Vacation™?” (as opposed to asking “How many employees do you have?” or “What is your annual revenue?”). Taking a fully unplugged 4 Week Vacation is rapidly becoming the recognized symbol of entrepreneurial success.

Never one to accept the status quo or back down from a challenge, Dr. Sabrina’s How to Hire the Best series grew from her desire to solve the toughest hiring challenges interfering with her clients’ growth and profitability. What sprang from her experience working with entrepreneurs in rural areas catapulted her into becoming the world’s leading expert in attracting top talent in small businesses—no matter what hiring challenges those businesses are facing—and earned Tap the Potential’s reputation as the go-to resource for entrepreneurs committed to creating Great Places to Work with thriving coaching cultures and highly engaged team members working from strengths.

As The Business Psychologist, and with her years of driving profit in small businesses, Dr. Sabrina knows what it takes to find, keep, and motivate exceptional performance out of your biggest investment—team members.