How Successful Entrepreneurs Structure Their Day
Being a successful entrepreneur demands self-confidence, hard work, and discipline with the last of these being possibly the most important. Not only must an entrepreneur have the inner strength to do the hard things, they have to form creative solutions to the many unique problems that come with operating a money-making endeavor. With numerous tasks that must be handled efficiently and effectively, a personal system must be in place in order to avoid failure. If someone chooses to venture into the business world without a plan, they are likely to come up frustrated and empty handed. After all, the beauty of being an entrepreneur is that they are in charge of their destiny. Failure and success come as a result of decisions made and actions performed. Motivational author and speaker Tony Robbins summed up this point well, “In essence, if we want to direct our lives, we must take control of our consistent actions. It’s not what we do that shapes our lives, but what we do consistently.”
This begs the question of, how do successful entrepreneurs structure their day? We connected with ten different business experts to understand their perspectives on this question.
Routine
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Michael Fischer is the Founder of Elite HRT, a brand offering years of medical expertise and a proven approach for patients looking to receive quality medical care without boundaries. He believes establishing a pattern of behavior throughout the day is one of the best ways to manage time.
“I’m a habit based person just as most people are. We thrive on routine because it is familiar and comfortable. This tendency can be used to our advantage. With increased exposure to a task comes increased awareness and efficiency. If you know what’s ahead of you in your day, you’re able to be better prepared physically and mentally. Certain schedules or activities work better for some than others. Be sure to find what works for every aspect of your day and stick to it so long as it’s furthering your day.”
Planning
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Audacia Home specializes in luxury home goods. Their President and CEO, Brook Hiddink, suggests taking the time to create a schedule to avoid stress and gain perspective on the next day.
“Everyone can benefit from being more organized and planning out your days or weeks is one of the best ways of doing so. Not only does it make you far more cognitively aware of what’s in front of you, it will keep you from missing appointments or important tasks. With a plan in place, getting your day started also becomes much easier as you know where you have to start. While it may sound daunting to write down all that you have to do in a given time period, it’s a fairly quick process once you’ve done it a couple times.”
Reflect
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There are times when there is so much work to be done, it can be hard to think about anything other than the next responsibility. However, it is important to take stock of what has happened during the day. Diamond Mansion is a business providing high-quality jewelry and handcrafted engagement rings. Their CEO and Founder, Omid Semino, considers this practice wise.
“I very much understand that there may not be much ‘free time’ in the day of an entrepreneur but they will do well to find at least a few minutes or more. Reflecting on the events of the day is beneficial for a couple of reasons. First, it’s a wonderful way of realizing just how much you’ve accomplished. Don’t get a big head here. My point is that encouraging yourself is a healthy behavior. Second, if things didn’t go as planned or a poor decision may have been made, analyze the situation so you can learn from it.”
Creative productivity
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Jayme Muller is the Brand Manager at RTA Outdoor Living, a brand offering custom outdoor kitchen products. She advises others to seek unique ways of getting things done in order to maximize efficiency.
“No two people are the same and so, each person has their own individual ways of being productive. For example, did you know that Winston Churchill began most mornings working in his bed? This is where he found himself to be most effective with his time. Some people are morning people and are ready to face the day the second their eyes open. Others accomplish a lot more after the sun has set. Try some new things that have the possibility of increasing your productivity and you might just find your new favorite way to work.”
Read
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Dermasteel specializes in male leak protection products. Their Founder, Ian Heyman, believes setting time aside to gain information is one of the most impactful efforts an entrepreneur can make.
“Many of us haven’t been dedicated readers since we were in school. Life is busy and finding time to read can be difficult regardless of circumstances. But entrepreneurs should work to change this habit because there are some advantages. Primarily, is the learning that comes with reading. It’s likely the industry you work in goes through changes or innovations. Staying aware of such things will allow better decision making. Secondarily, stepping away from a busy mindset is always a good thing. Brains weren’t meant to always be going as fast as possible.”
Set goals
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Objectives set for oneself do not have to be reserved for big picture planning. Daily objectives can lend themself to organization and inner drive. Hoist is a business providing an expert business coach to help reach your growth goals. Their CEO, John Jacob, suggested incorporating these into a daily regime.
“For me, a necessary part of my day is putting together a list of things that I want to take care of before it’s over. This has allowed me to be much more focused on what I need to do in order to move forward steadily. It’s almost like a road map for the day – you know where you need to be at the end and there’s a guided path to get there.”
Priorities
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Dr. Michael Green, is the Chief Medical Officer at Winona, a brand offering anti-aging and wellness centers for women. He advises others to give dedicated attention to projects of higher importance so as to avoid getting sidetracked.
“If you want to be a successful entrepreneur, it will behoove you to prioritize time for focusing on work that has the most impact. What is preventing your company from growing? Is there a big event on the horizon? Answers to these types of questions should show you what needs to be your area of focus. While most of this work will probably be the most challenging kind, it will also prove itself to be the most rewarding.”
Start early
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Mommy Care Kit specializes in helping expecting moms have safe, comfortable, pain free pregnancies without more pills. Their Partner, Temoer Terry, considers the first part of the day to be the most influential for gaining favorable business outcomes.
“No matter how you slice it, there are not enough hours in the day for an entrepreneur. This means that you must make the most of the time you have available. If you’re able to start your day early, you can get the ball rolling more forcefully. From emailing to planning to research and even just fully waking up, there’s plenty of things you can do to structure your day for success. Don’t waste your morning slogging through or scrambling around, get ahead of the world.”
Themes
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Some entrepreneurs have found it beneficial to give each work day a theme to focus on during that day. By doing so, they are able to stay on target for their goals. Mycube Safe is a business providing security systems related products. Their CEO, Scott Annan, believes this approach is astute.
“Jumping around between responsibilities can become overwhelming even during a down period. Some business people have found a way around this by dedicating responsibilities to specific days. Essentially, each day would have a theme that you would focus on. Mondays could be product development while Tuesdays cover recruiting and so on. With this method, interruptions become far less derailing than they were in the past because if you know what day of the week it is, you know what you should be doing.”
Exercise
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Andrew Chen is the Chief Product Officer at Videeo.live, a brand offering enterprise retailers the ability to go live everywhere by streaming shoppable videos. He advises entrepreneurs to save time in their day for physical activity as the benefits are outstanding.
“Regularly exercising is like giving yourself a continuous power up in certain areas. Not only will your body begin to feel better over time, your brain will begin to change as well. Exercise has been shown to have a positive impact on functions such as memory, hand-eye coordination, and creativity. You’ll also have more energy than you did prior to exercising frequently. It might be painful getting back into the swing of things, but in the long run it will be fruitful.”
Just as a person decides to pursue an entrepreneurial endeavor, they must also decide to do things which will lead to success. Introducing and maintaining mindful patterns to be more productive and efficient is a surefire way to go about this. Keynote speaker and author Darren Hardy put it best, “Choices are at the root of every one of your results. Each choice starts a behavior that over time becomes a habit.”
