As a small business owner, you productivity during the day is key to your success. You need to be on your game to help all of your customers. You may feel like you have no time to do the activities needed to be productive, or maybe you don't know where to start. Don't worry, we have it covered. Below are 5 tips to help you be more productive during the day.
1. Prep The Night Before
One of the most important steps in having a productive morning is going to bed with the right mindset. In order to run your business optimally, planning out goals for the upcoming day makes a tangible impact on your mental capabilities. Think about what you want to accomplish tomorrow and jot down a few goals. These goals can be anything, so don’t feel pressure if they aren’t complicated or high level. Setting these goals will give your day direction; and you will feel a sense of accomplishment and focus when you wake up and know what you have to do.
2. Get A Good Night’s Sleep
Having a productive morning requires a plan, but you have to have energy to execute that plan. Many business owners will stay up late working on improving their business, and sleep between 4-5 hours a night. This is unhealthy. We get it, your business is your baby, and you will do anything to help it grow.
According to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM), sleeping between 7-8 hours is the optimal amount of sleep for an adult. You may be saying, “I already knew this”, but what you may not know is the effects sleeping less than 7 hours can cause to your productivity. In a survey conducted by the AASM, over half of respondents (who sleep less than 7 hours nightly) spoke about having trouble focusing in meetings, lacking creativity to generate new ideas, taking longer to complete tasks, and having difficulty problem solve. While an hour or two of sleep may not seem that impactful, you are actually causing a severe detriment to your focus and productivity.
Spend one night next week catching extra zzzs and see the results at work the next day.
3. Waking Up Right
Look, we all hate the blaring noise that wakes us up every morning. Waking up in the right mindset has a significant impact on how you approach your day. If the piercing sound of your alarm is killing your positive vibe, try some alternatives.
Additionally, you can try and start the day off by doing an activity that makes you feel happy. Something as simple as petting your dog, reading a post from your favorite blogger, or a podcast you enjoy. Start your day enjoying short activities that will help you wake up on the right side of the bed, and ready to run your business.
4. Don’t Skimp On Breakfast
We’ve all heard the phrase,“breakfast is the most important meal of the day” since we were little kids. Running a business is very demanding and energy intensive, and in order to maintain your energy levels throughout the day, you need to eat a healthy breakfast. So instead of grabbing a chewy bar and limping through work until lunch, make the time to cook a well balanced meal. You can even use this time to continue planning out your day.
Eating a well balanced breakfast will not only give you energy and improve concentration, it will help you with your BMI, which is linked to strong performance at work. So, the next time you are feeling hungry in the morning, take the time to cook yourself an omelette rather than a few bites of toast.
5. Exercise
As little as 15 minutes of exercise in the morning can have a dramatic impact on your productivity. Exercising releases neurotransmitters that will help carry you through your long day. Exercise has been touted to do everything from treat depression to improve memory, with the power to cure a host of problems while preventing even more,” researcher MK McGovern says.
Whether you take a short jog, do a few sets of pushups, or do some light stretching, you will feel the impact throughout your day. Building more physical stamina can help you through the exhausting day as a business owner.
