However, never having time to complete certain activities can have a negative impact in the longer term.
According to our recent SME survey*, when asked what tasks they were most likely to put off, completing tax forms and legislation materials came top with 29% of the vote, opening a business savings account was second (19%) and marketing to new clients third (18%), with time pressures cited as the main reasons.
This got me thinking about my working day and how quickly the hours can slip away while I am dealing with issues, reading emails or attending meetings and how all of us could sometimes better manage our time.
Here are a few time management hints and tips that could help us better plan our working day and help ensure we get around to those activities that can help our businesses in the longer run, such as shopping around for and opening a business savings account.
- Get organised – try writing a to-do list first thing in the morning of the tasks you want to accomplish, allocating a set amount of time to spend on each.
- Prioritise tasks – set a limit on the amount of items on your to-do list for that day, ensuring you prioritise time critical activities and set realistic goals for other tasks.
- Manage messages – consider limiting the amount of times you check your emails or mobile each day, try allocating set times to read through your inbox and consider turning your emails and mobile off for periods of time if appropriate.
- Limit distractions – if it’s appropriate why not block out time in your diary to complete certain activities, let your colleagues know you should not be disturbed unless urgent or find a quiet space to work where you cannot be disturbed.
Hopefully, if we manage our time better then we will be more able to get around to the activities we have been putting off.
Find out more about our Business Savings and Personal Savings accounts.
Stuart Hulme
Director of Savings and Marketing
*Hampshire Trust Bank commissioned research in partnership with Opinium Research. As part of the research, which took place in December 2017, Opinium Research conducted online interviews with 500 UK SMEs, defined as businesses that have 250 employees or less.