Time management is challenging and even more so when raising capital with a safe note. You should start utilizing a planner if you want to be effective at time management. This might be a weekly using a computer software program, depending on your preferences.

It should ideally include a calendar application so you can more efficiently organize your time and remind yourself of key appointments and chores. Don’t plan activities for every hour of the day; this will lead to frustration. You’ll need time blocks for breaks and when the unexpected happens.

Lists

Lists might be daunting, but they can also be a useful tool for getting started on all of your projects. Create a checklist and cross off all the things you’ve accomplished; ticking off items on your lists will give you a sense of achievement.

Additionally, making a list helps ensure that you do not overlook any important responsibilities. You can use the priority approach to finish your list, or you can start with lifting the heavy rocks first and then work your way through the list in order of difficulty.

By creating lists, you can expect:

• A sense of accomplishment
• Breaks goals into action points
• Helps to prioritize
• Better time management
• Improve memory
• Strategic scheduling

Goals

You need to create goals, whether at the start of the year or monthly. To measure your performance, it’s critical to create goals and maintain track of them. Make short and long-term goals and objectives, and make sure you’re working towards them.

When you’re getting organized, it’s vital to have a goal in mind so you know where you’re going. Creating small business goals is crucial, particularly for having a feeling of direction.

Once you’ve decided what you want, check that your goal satisfies the SMART criteria:

• Specific
• Measurable
• Attainable
• Realistic
• Time-bound

Calendar

It’s important for company owners to keep a calendar. A calendar will be one of your best organizational tools, from marking tax dates to employee holidays. Make a list of all the important dates you’ll need to remember at the start of the year. It will also help if you have all of your important dates on one single calendar.

You have the choice of using an online calendar, a desktop calendar, or a calendar app. Android and iOS have a mobile app that provides comprehensive scheduling and task management tools, as well as easy integration with other applications used by your company.

A calendar app can be beneficial for a several reasons:

• Productivity
• Access your calendar from anywhere
• Organization
• Balance professional and personal commitments
• Set recurring meetings or appointments
• Assists in prioritization
• Scheduling

Regularly Declutter

The way you organize your office can have positive psychological effects on you. Learning how to organize your workplace desk can lead to positive outcomes. A crowded workplace may induce stress, reduce productivity, and make activities much more difficult.

Taking the time to declutter your desk can make a huge difference in your daily work life. A clean workstation could improve your self-esteem and motivate you to be more productive at work.

Some of the benefits of decluttering your workspace include :

• Improved health
• Improved comfortability
• Boosted confidence
• Improved impressions
• Decrease your stress and anxiety 
• Better collaboration
• Use of time and improved efficiency

Communicate

Communication is a simple way to keep your business running smoothly. This does not just mean  telling others what to do and when they should do it. Communication means making sure that all your staff know what is going on and why it is going on. If you receive a large contract, tell them so that they can prepare for additional work.

Communication is a two-way street, and if you keep your employees up to date, they will feel more comfortable communicating with you. This allows them to tell you if a certain working practice could be changed to make your company more efficient.

Your business will be more organized and efficient if everyone knows what is going on and what is expected of them. Google Drive is particularly handy if you operate with a remote team or have many offices.

Keep Track Of Your Finances

Most businesses will hire a bookkeeper to maintain their books, which is a smart idea unless you’re a one-man show. Keeping track of your finances allows you to evaluate how well your business is performing and can give you an idea of how well organized it is.

You can design a marketing campaign if you don’t make as much profit as you’d like, but you can’t do that if you don’t know what’s going on financially. 

We’ve found that utilizing software like Xero and Quickbooks to manage your accounts online is easier, and your accountant can obtain access to keep you on track. This can also reduce your tax preparation and bookkeeping costs when you do use outside professionals. 

It can also be pivotal when it comes to raising funding or selling your business.

Store Your Knowledge

Insufficient information sharing is a typical organizational problem among startups. Too often, important information is held private, whether in our heads or in unshared files. It’s likely that this information will be lost while that person is away – or if they choose to leave the job. That is why a content management system is required (CMS).

There are numerous CMS packages available, and many of them double as customer relationship management (CRM), which is an important aspect of running a business.

Some of the top CRMs include:

• Agile
• Zoho CRM
• PipeDrive
• Hubspot CRM
• Insightly
• Streak CRM
• Freshworks CRM

Use Templates 

Designing templates is another great approach to help you get organized. If you can, do this for almost every task you do. You can begin with email answers, social media captions, or blog posts. 

A nice feature of the Asana team collaboration platform is the ability to quickly build task and project templates. Not only that, but they’ve also produced standard templates that you may use and customize to your own requirements.

Conclusion

You can increase your chances of success by putting systems in place and properly structuring your business. The more organized you are in your business, the more revenue you will rake in. Organization is certainly worth the investment.

Author Bio

Alejandro Cremades is a serial entrepreneur and the author of The Art of Startup Fundraising. With a foreword by ‘Shark Tank‘ star Barbara Corcoran, and published by John Wiley & Sons, the book was named one of the best books for entrepreneurs. The book offers a step-by-step guide to today‘s way of raising money for entrepreneurs.

Most recently, Alejandro built and exited CoFoundersLab which is one of the largest communities of founders online.

Prior to CoFoundersLab, Alejandro worked as a lawyer at King & Spalding where he was involved in one of the biggest investment arbitration cases in history ($113 billion at stake).

Alejandro is an active speaker and has given guest lectures at the Wharton School of Business, Columbia Business School, and NYU Stern School of Business.