Three Ways To Maximize Your Schedule & Potential Every Day

Have you ever felt like your schedule runs your life?

Never have enough time in the day to cross things off of your to-do list?

Maybe you feel like a drone and time is never on your side?

Many entrepreneurs feel as if they never have control over what’s in front of them when it comes to scheduling time for the things that matter most: getting stuff done.

In order to get stuff done, there has to be time carved out of your busy daily schedule.

That’s why maximizing your schedule potential should be the very first thing on the to-do list every morning. Here are a few steps you can take towards mastering your schedule.   

Prioritize what matters to begin and end the day

Your day might be full of meetings that make you feel unproductive, or you may be traveling for days at a time. No matter what it is that is monopolizing your schedule, the first and last thing that you should do each day is to put what matters–what you’re passionate about, what’s getting you up in the morning–up front in your schedule. This allows for the following:

• You get to start your day with motivation that is sustainable for you and not a meeting that can drain you
• You focus your energy early on in your day on the most important things: product development, customer engagement, or [insert your important stuff here] time
• You start on a positive note that carries you throughout your day

This can mean a myriad of things, from reading to writing or playing an instrument, you should focus on what drives you or fosters a sense of inspiration.

Likewise for the end of the day. You’ll want to close out your daily work doing what is more important to you. Sometimes it’s as simple as reaching out to customers or employees to see how they’re doing or if they’re enjoying their time with your business. This allows you to look at the bigger picture every single day and gives you a perspective that you may not normally get throughout your week.

Build moments of reflection each hour

As unimportant or useless as it may seem to you, it should be mandatory for every entrepreneur to build time for reflection throughout each day.

Why?

Because sometimes taking a step back can help you move forward in ways you’ve never known. It can make all the difference. Consider this: you go from task to task without any breaks and you never take the time to reflect on the accomplishments. What happens next? You begin to lose sight of what you’re doing the work for in the first place.

Spending five to eight minutes every hour to reflect back on the work that is being accomplished by you and your team will give you perspective on the growth of you and your entire team. The best way to tangibly see this is to create a to-done list. It’s simple: spend a few minutes every hour writing down:

1) What you’ve accomplished
2) How you accomplished it
3) What struggles you encountered and
4) What you would do better next time.

Pay attention to where your time is being spent. You’ll never know how you can spend your time more effectively if you don’t first pay attention to how you’re spending it currently.

Quieting your mind can be one of the most productive things that you do during your workday. Figuring out what works best for you during the day will give you the opportunity to maximize your focus on energy.

Energy matters

The worst thing that can happen is a lack of energy to power through the busiest tasks. When this happens, it looks like you’re tired. It looks like you aren’t paying attention to the present. It looks like you’re a bad business owner. That’s not what you want!

In order to maximize your energy, figure what works best for you a do it every single day. The following list may help:

• Exercise. Moving your body early and often can do wonders for your overall energy throughout the day.
• Eat breakfast. This is the fuel for virtually the entire day. It matters. Don’t skip it.
• Take a nap. This will help you reset. Your brain can only take so much before the mental batteries need to be recharged.
• Take a mind dump. Not literally. But for three consecutive minutes, write down everything in your head that you aren’t ready to say out loud. Sometimes writing it down makes it more real.
• Get a good amount of sleep. Some experts say eight hours a day. In reality, anywhere between seven and nine will suffice.
• And always remember: coffee is liquid magic. Drink it early and drink it often.

Conclusion

In conclusion, maximizing your schedule’s potential allows you to feel less drained and more alive. It gives you the opportunity to see the bigger picture more often, and any time that you see your vision come to fruition is time well spent. Be a master of your time, energy, and schedule.