Living a life without a boss is amazing. You get to decide what hours you want to work, where to have your office, and how to spend your time—you have a lot more freedom than a typical employee whose boss dictates those things. However, sometimes self-employment can present some challenges, because it requires that you have enough discipline to generate the income that you need and want.
If you find it’s difficult to stay on task all the time, or you’re not getting as much work done as you would like, try these three productivity hacks.
1: Conduct a Self-SWOT
Many companies conduct SWOT analyses to identify:
- Strengths
- Weaknesses
- Opportunities
- Threats
If you haven’t taken the time to conduct a personal SWOT analysis, now is a great time to do it. This helps you figure out a system to use your strengths to your advantage. In order to do that, you also need to recognize your weaknesses and learn how to overcome or minimize them. It’s really important to be honest with yourself so you can identify specific things you can improve.
For example, if you identify organization as one of your weaknesses setting aside 10 minutes at the start of each day to write a list of the things you need to accomplish could help you stay on track. Or if distractions are a big problem, turn off notifications on your email and smartphone (especially social media), then designate three 15-minute windows each day in the morning, after lunch, and before the end of work to check email and phone messages.
2: Use a Project Management Tool
A great benefit of being self-employed is no boss to tell you what to do and when, but that can also be a drawback if you can’t manage deadlines or projects. Using a project management tool can help you track various projects from start to finish so nothing slips through the cracks. It could be a simple as a written list of tasks broken down by month, week, and day, or you can find plenty of free online toolsto digitally organize tasks and projects.
3: Track Your Time
To know if you’re using time effectively you need to track how you spend your time. Use online tools that allow you to allocate time to specific projects, or just write it down as you go throughout the day. While it will take a little extra time to track what you’re doing (which can seem counterintuitive), this can be very revealing and help you findand eliminate wasted time. If writing it down on a pen and paper or tracking it in a spreadsheet seems difficult, try a free online time tracker that can give you a full report at the end of each week.
Bonus Productivity Hack: Take a Break
Even the hardest workers need a break from time to time. Studies have shown that small breaks every two to four hours throughout the day can rejuvenate you and help you be more productive when you get back to work. So get outside, take a walk, grab a coffee, and then get back to it.
If you’re ready to start your self-employed life, get started today with Life Outside the Boss.
