Live Call: 11/20/23
How to maximize your time doing what you want while efficiently doing what you need With the holiday season, a lot of us are trying to figure out how we can spend more time with our families and enjoying the season without sacrificing our profitability While there may be some time-sucking tasks that you should cut out of your daily routine or outsource, there are other areas that could be made more efficient and would save you time (and maybe even money) in the long-run, far past the holiday season For most of us, the hands on tasks of taking care of the horses is the largest time investment of our day. This often leads us to not having as much time for our second biggest time commitment, office/admin tasks. So today we’re going to talk through some simple tasks both in the barn and in the office that could be more efficient. We’ve talked before about a time-audit and getting really clear about how you are spending your time. If you haven’t completed a time audit or if your day-to-day has changed significantly sine you last did one, it’s worth reproaching to get a clear idea of how your time is being allocated. This could also be a time to evaluate if there are more cost effective ways to get your daily tasks done. This is not to tell you to drop your current schedule spend the next 2 weeks researching and price shopping every part of your program! This can be a gradual task that you work on each week Keep in mind: sometimes the long-term efficient option takes more money upfront - that is why we often avoid it and stick it on our “one day when I get around to it” list. For us and our hay example, we had to buy nets and hay rings, not a small upfront investment. But now that we have them, we are on the upside of saving both time and money on our hay. Key point: Don’t let the upfront cost deter you from making the change that is going to save you money and time in the long-run. Replace your broken stuff! Yeah like that manure fork with 4 missing tines or that hose that is leaking in 3 areas making a mess everywhere or the wheelbarrow tire that won’t hold air. - Sometimes we deal with things because we are trying to avoid the COST of fixing it yet oftentimes we’re losing way more than we realize because of how much that broken thing is slowing us down or creating extra work for us. Since we’re on the topic of upfront costs, let’s also talk about buying items that are built to last. This is another area where it may cost you more upfront, but in the long-run you’re going to get more use and not waste time trying to rig it up and repair it when it breaks because you went the cheap route. [...]
Live Call: 4/10/23
Topics Covered: How to set boundaries and stop making other people's priorities your responsibility How we Organize our To-Do Lists to stay on top of everything as best as possible How to decide what to do next when you have a full list of things that feel like they need to be done now How to set boundaries and stop making other people's priorities your responsibility “Productive” looks differently at each stage of your life - give yourself grace if you are in a season that is less "productive" due to other obligations. Find a way to let go of your people-pleasing mindset and worrying about letting them down if you don’t do what they want you to do. Sometimes you have to prioritize yourself, your kids, and your animals and let everyone else fend for themselves If you’re not able to get YOUR list of needs and priorities met, you’re going to feel out of control and sporadic - Which over time leads to resentment. Sometimes getting ahead of this require a short-term grind - earlier mornings, later nights, more time at your computer. *But it’s NOT a long-term solution! What can you simplify or automate to make your obligations outside of work go more smoothly? Snacks / lunches / ingredient prep / freezer meals Household chores - robot vacuum, small load of laundry every day so it doesn’t pile up or outsource it, order groceries for pickup, develop an easy to follow filing system to keep the paper explosion from covering your workspace “If you made the changes that you’re avoiding, you’d have the life that you deserve.” - Mel Robbins Don’t delay achieving your goals bc of someone else’s priorities How to Organize your LIST of To-Do’s for Maximum Efficiency, Productivity and to not feel like your drowning! “Being organized isn’t about getting rid of everything you own or trying to become a different person: it’s about living the way you want to live, but better.” - Andrew Mellen 2 Key Factors can make us feel super STRESSED! Lack of Time Lack of Money Step #1- Write down everything you have to get done. Just get each thing written down. Step #2- Write down when the deadline is that the individual task must be done by. As business owners we oftentimes set our own deadlines. We use the time we HAVE not always the time something takes! Deadlines will tighten up your efficiency & productivity ONLY if you hold yourself accountable! So for example, if you get a training horse inquiry, you could say to yourself oh I got this one on Monday, I’ll just get back to them by the end of the week. Dont do that. Create a deadline within your system. So on your website/application you can include “We will be in touch with you within 1-2 business days of receiving your application.” This sets a deadline for any inquiries you get so that you’re upholding the commitment you’ve made when folks [...]