If you surveyed 100 business owners about what keeps them up at night, chances are, 99 would say they’re worried about money. With families to house and feed and employees to pay, there’s good reason mullah is always top of mind.
But it shouldn’t be, says Glen Stansberry, co-founder of Gentlemint. The focus, instead, should be on time.
“Time is the only resource we need that can’t be manufactured—it can’t be earned, traded for or even stolen,” Stansberry says in a recent article for American Express’ Open Forum.
Recognizing time’s value can have an amazing payoff for a business’s efficiency and its owner’s peace of mind.
“If time is your most valuable resource, then the way you spend your time reflects what’s truly important to you and your business,” Stansberry says.
Owners who focus on time itemize and account for what they do with the same scrutiny that others put into their operating budgets.
Working Hard or Hardly Working?
How do most employees spend their days? From a business owner’s standpoint, it’s not pretty. Based on research findings from the University of California, Microsoft, Verizon (and others), software development firm Atlassian created an alarming infographic about time wasted at work. It shows that the average American worker checks email 36 times an hour, sits in 31 hours worth of unproductive meetings a month, and spends two hours per day recovering from distractions.
“Ask any marketing manager the ROI they receive on their ad campaigns, and they’ll quickly rattle off dollar amounts,” Stansberry says. “But ask a business owner the ROI they achieve on the employee hours worked, and you’ll likely get a blank stare.”
Rehabilitate Your Relationship With Time
“It’s not that people don’t understand the benefit of time management,” Stansberry says. “Because we know we should be making the most of our time, the time management industry is absolutely huge: There's time-tracking software, calendars, books, daily planners, time management seminars, and on and on—not to mention all the books and tools that help you manage your time.”
The problem, as he sees it, is that businesses view time management as an individual responsibility. Employees know what needs to get done and learn how to do just that. But if owners and managers emphasized productivity and tracked it as intensely as they do expenses, then employees would find a way to work faster and smarter.
For your sales staff, or any others who spend most of their day at a computer, Stansberry recommends RescueTime, software that tracks workers online activity, as well as time spent in meetings and on calls. RescueTime’s detailed reports will give you insights into where your team’s time goes so you can tweak it to improve your bottom line.
Join the conversation: How do you measure your employees' time management?
But it shouldn’t be, says Glen Stansberry, co-founder of Gentlemint. The focus, instead, should be on time.
“Time is the only resource we need that can’t be manufactured—it can’t be earned, traded for or even stolen,” Stansberry says in a recent article for American Express’ Open Forum.
Recognizing time’s value can have an amazing payoff for a business’s efficiency and its owner’s peace of mind.
“If time is your most valuable resource, then the way you spend your time reflects what’s truly important to you and your business,” Stansberry says.
Owners who focus on time itemize and account for what they do with the same scrutiny that others put into their operating budgets.
Working Hard or Hardly Working?
How do most employees spend their days? From a business owner’s standpoint, it’s not pretty. Based on research findings from the University of California, Microsoft, Verizon (and others), software development firm Atlassian created an alarming infographic about time wasted at work. It shows that the average American worker checks email 36 times an hour, sits in 31 hours worth of unproductive meetings a month, and spends two hours per day recovering from distractions.
“Ask any marketing manager the ROI they receive on their ad campaigns, and they’ll quickly rattle off dollar amounts,” Stansberry says. “But ask a business owner the ROI they achieve on the employee hours worked, and you’ll likely get a blank stare.”
Rehabilitate Your Relationship With Time
“It’s not that people don’t understand the benefit of time management,” Stansberry says. “Because we know we should be making the most of our time, the time management industry is absolutely huge: There's time-tracking software, calendars, books, daily planners, time management seminars, and on and on—not to mention all the books and tools that help you manage your time.”
The problem, as he sees it, is that businesses view time management as an individual responsibility. Employees know what needs to get done and learn how to do just that. But if owners and managers emphasized productivity and tracked it as intensely as they do expenses, then employees would find a way to work faster and smarter.
For your sales staff, or any others who spend most of their day at a computer, Stansberry recommends RescueTime, software that tracks workers online activity, as well as time spent in meetings and on calls. RescueTime’s detailed reports will give you insights into where your team’s time goes so you can tweak it to improve your bottom line.
Join the conversation: How do you measure your employees' time management?
