Effective time management when running a business is critical to its success. If you don't have some form of schedule you follow, then the days can be chaotic and overwhelming.

To give you some perspective, as of today, I have the following things going on in my day

• Full time Engineer at a Nuclear Plant (with a 45 minute commute to and from everyday)
• Single Mom of three kids aged 3.5 yrs, 2.5 yrs and almost 1 year old. 
• Note I have no family down here where I live and their father is not in the picture so it's 100% me all the time
• Graphic Design for Vinyl Cutters
• Promote my Business
• Create YouTube Tutorials
• Write a Blog

Looking at the above list you're probably thinking "How in the WORLD does she do it?" Well I have motivation to be successful. I also love my full time job, don't want my kids to keel over and die, enjoy helping people be successful, and designing and writing is a stress relief for me. So all of the things above aren't really what someone would consider "work". 

Technology is pretty awesome these days and I do outsource a few different things. One in particular house cleaning. Keep in mind I'm constantly tidying with 3 kids, but I don't have the time to get to the bathrooms and the vaccuum all of the time. I have a cleaner come to the house every 2 weeks for $100 a visit. 

To save me that kind of time its worth it. Also, if I have some large items to take care of in my business (like uploading) I outsource that as well (.50 cents an upload per site so 1.50 cents a listing with about 10-40 a week, doesn't seem like much but adds up and saves you time as well)

Tip 1: Create a Basic Schedule and STICK TO IT

A know pen and paper is pretty archaic these days, but I have a notebook I carry around that I jot design ideas in, blog post ideas, really anything I can think of. I also write down things I need to do that aren't in alignment with my basic schedule. 

A basic schedule should outline important things to make your business successful and continue to grow it. If your business goes stagnant you could get burnt out and lose motivation. I stick to the schedule because it works for me and I see growth every month of 100% or more now that I can track my growth. 

Here is my basic schedule for creation during the week. This won't be the same for everyone and I work generally from 8 PM to 11 PM. 

I urge you to create something similar and keep it with you, load it in your phone, post it on your bathroom mirror, wherever you will be reminded of what you need to do during the day. 

Tip 2: Create a Social Media Posting Schedule

I am not running any posting automators for the below, so I have a basic schedule I use for posting to social media. This only includes Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest. Right now I have only been consistent with Facebook. I am currently in the process of creating Pinterest boards and curating pins with links for my following. Once I have a good amount of pins queued up, I'll be more religious with Pinterest. Pins never die so it's a great source of traffic if the pins take off. Tailwind has been a God Send to me and I suggest you take a look. I can curate it so I am scheduling pins 10 times a day, sharing others content and peppering my own in. The more active you are on there the better off you are to grow and be seen on Pinterest boards.

Read More: How I grew my following over 1000% on Tailwind

Here is my social media sharing schedule

 
These are NOT automated and I do each one myself. I do have automated posts 

Tip 3: Get Involved in your Niche's Community

This is a big one. With all the time time we spend on social media and plugged into our phones it's critical to be active in the community. I limit my phone time so I generally spend 30 minutes in the morning and at night on social media commenting on groups and helping other people out. This will start to place you as an authority figure with certain people and grow your business in the mean time. 

Tip 4: Social Media Automation

As stated before I don't rely on this heavily yet as I am not struggling at this juncture in keeping up with my schedule. The only automation tool I use currently is Tailwind. Tailwind allows me to ensure I am getting 10 pins up at least per day by joining Tribes and sharing other people's content while they share mine. It's a great community of individuals and I have seen my Pinterest growth start picking up the more involved I've gotten. I have also noticed the more I share people's stuff the more prone they are to share mine as well. 

For other platforms like Facebook and Instagram you can schedule posts on your group and pages. 

I have been starting to use that feature quite a bit, but if you're looking for something with a bit more OOMPH you can use Hootsuite or another social media manager.

Tip 5: It's Ok to Take a Break

Just know it is OK to take a break. We all need one. There are some nights where I just simply cannot fathom writing another work, drawing another shape, or posting another design. This is absolutely ok and you should ensure you have time to yourself, if you don't, you will burn out or hit a creative block. 

Here's to hoping you've gotten a few insights from this. Please comment below with different ways you manage your time to help everyone grow. Also, join my Facebook group to get updates when new blogs are posted and tips and tricks. 

If I can do it anyone can!!!

Cheers
Tanya