There is absolutely no denying that sometimes, running a trade business can be ‘busy’ work…
It can feel like there are a million things to do on any given day and not enough hours to actually get them done...
But this can create a vicious cycle.
Many trade business owners become so flat our working IN their business, that they get stuck on that hamster wheel with the same problems, frustrations, and lack of growth, with little changing month on month, or year by year…
The problem?
Well this has many flow on effects, one of which being, a distinct lack of natural progression and growth.
So how do we avoid this?
Simple.
Start making the conscious decision to actually ALLOCATE time to work on your business!
Start allocating the time to focus on the RIGHT things in your business!
The things that require immediate focus, attention AND give back the greatest leverage – those bottlenecks where if they were JUST solved… it could quite literally bring about breakthrough results for you and your business.
I promise you, there is a MASSIVE difference between 'just working hard' and working hard on the right things!
You are always going to be busy… and there will always be ‘things’ to do. You're always going to FIND things to do...
So, if you don’t actually allocate the time every week to work on your business, it will simply never happen.
Did you get into business to be busy?
I would hope not.
So, try getting clear on your short- and long-term goals, building a list of what needs to be done to achieve them (get specific) and start blocking out the necessary 3-4 hours a week to work ON the business, and get them done!
This is going to require you to be prioritising and executing!
When people always say that they’re too busy, it’s bullshit.
Everyone has 24 hours in a day… It just comes down to how you use each of those hours and what you prioritise.
For example, if your sibling was in a car accident, no matter how busy you are, you’d make the time to rush to the hospital. You’re prioritising what you’re doing based off what’s most important to you.
When working with 1-on-1 weekly clients, if they don’t do something because they’re “too busy”, we’ll say “oh, so you don’t prioritise marketing in your business?” for example…
You can’t do everything… but you do have a choice on what you actually do. When you look at your choices like this, it will usually become fairly obvious what you need to spend your time on.
This usually starts with asking yourself “what can I stop doing?”
Process of elimination.
Get really clear on what you should NOT be wasting your time on, before understanding what you need to be focusing your time on.
This is starting to free up time for yourself so you can actually begin to start focusing on and prioritising the right activities.
Now, when you stop doing certain tasks, it doesn’t mean they always just go away. Sometimes they will be things that still need to get done.
That’s why you need to create leverage! Whether that’s through hiring new people, outsourcing to service providers, implementing automation-based technology or creating systems for current employees.
These are all key points of leverage. This is all about multiplying your efforts through other people and things.
A lot of people who claim to be 'busy', simply waste time.
This discipline and focus will allow you to get more done in 6 months than some ever will in 6 years.
If you're an electrician, plumber, painter, carpenter, or any other trade business owner who is looking to take your business to the next level, click here to learn more about how our team can help!
