3 Steps to Time Blocking So You Can Make More Money This Week
- Lindsay Johnson
- Dec 16, 2023
- 6 min read
Updated: Feb 10
Ugh. Don't you hate when your to-do list is never-ending and you don't know where to start?
You've got big goals, a great big BOLD vision for your business and you're ready to take some brave steps forward.
There's just one little problem ... you've got so much you to do that end up starting each day overwhelmed, unsure where to start, and making to-do list after to-do (after to-do list) and it's killing your motivation.
Don't even get me started on executive dysfunction and decision paralysis that kicks in for ADHD entrepreneurs.
"We get so focused on all the things we can be doing, we get distracted from what we need to do!"
I'm going to show you 3 Steps to Time Blocking So You Can Make More Money This Week!
It's not uncommon for me to get multiple messages from first-time entrepreneurs asking for help on time management and prioritizing their to-do lists. You're not the only one raring to go and feeling a tad lost and overwhelmed on where to start!
The first thing I get entrepreneurs to do is to make a list of all the projects they are working on and then break down what they do in an average week.
It becomes obvious pretty flipping quickly that we are all trying to do way too much in way too short a time. The pressure quickly builds, deadlines are missed, and self-defeat starts kicking in.
"We overestimate what we can accomplish in one year and underestimate what we can accomplish in three!"
Your first step? You need to start viewing your business in terms of years ... not months!
Story Time...
I recently came across some old business planners of mine from the tearly 00's and as I took a trip down memory lane I was cracking up at the innocence of baby-entrepreneur Lindsay and her ambitious goals.
"I'm going to quit my job in 6 months and do my business full time" (I had just started my first business in leadership development and training) "I'm going to make $100,000 in training revenue" (Again, I was months into my new business and still working full time.) "I'm going to record a leadership development program on CD and make a complimentary workbook" (This was early internet days, friends ... and pre-social media.) I had lofty goals and a great big vision for my business and I was working my buns off - between shifts running my family restaurant - to make it happen. And here's the thing ... I DID do all that... But not in 6 months ... in 3 years! Here's the reality:
Building a business takes time, practice, and experience
We are all limited by the amount of time and money we have to dedicate to learning and working our businesses
We need to do a lot of things wrong before we figure out how to do things right in our business which means it will always take longer than we think
It didn't take me long to realize that it was going to take a lot longer to LEARN how to build a business ... and to actually BUILD that business ... than the six months I had imagined.
Huh.
"You can't make time! We all have the same 24 hours each day. It's about being intentional with the time you have."
The other realization that became glaringly obvious is that we can't make time.
You know you've said it ... we've all said it.
"I'll just have to make time to do X"
Ha!
Friends, we can't "make" time. Time is finite. We all have the same 24 hours each day as everyone else. It's about how you use that time!
Here are 3 Steps to Time Blocking So You Can Make More Money This Week:
Start by getting out your calendar or day planner so you can fill out the following activities.
I find having a paper planner with the entire month or week laid out in front of me is easiest.
1. Start by blocking off the activities that are standing and can't be moved.
This could be school drop-off and pick-up for your kids. Doctors appointments. Date night with your partner. Brunch with the girls. Your day job. Whatever you already know is scheduled and can't (or won't) be moved.
2. Next schedule blocks of time in your calendar where you will take care of your Essential Busy Work.
This is all that juicy admin you need to do to stay in business. Think, bookkeeping, invoicing, working with clients, delivering client projects, etc.
3. Finally, schedule in blocks of time to do all those fab RGAs that will bring in the dough and grow your business.
Revenue Generating Activities, or RGAs, are the business activities you do that directly generate new revenue in your business.
Here's what my typical time-blocked weeks look like:
Mondays are my day to work behind the scenes on my scaling projects
Tuesdays and Wednesdays are for working with clients, doing workshops, or guest speaking for others' podcasts, lives, etc.
Thursdays are for my standing weekly call with my assistant where I assign the essential busy work tasks she can take off my plate. We send voice memos or quick texts throughout the week for questions
Thursday and Friday are my business development days (RGA days!)
Saturdays I watch a little Netflix, do household chores, and catch up with friends over long, luxurious calls.
Sunday mornings I do my bookkeeping, goal setting, and planning over a cup of tea and whatever I'm currently obsessed with on Spotify. Then I play for the rest of the day and do whatever the heck I want to do!
Tip: Schedule yourself like you'd schedule an employee.
There are times when you're wearing your employee hat and times when you're wearing your business owner hat.
"Being your own boss means that you are also your own employee!"
You need to schedule yourself accordingly.
Generally speaking, when you are working on RGAs you are wearing your employee hat; when you are working on Essential Busy Work you are wearing your boss hat ...
... when you are working on Nonessential Busy Work you are wearing your sad hat because you won't be growing your business or making money.
We don't want to wear that hat. We want to throw that hat in the back of the closet and leave it there to think about what it's done.
Hint: In the first three years of your business you want to spend about 80% of your business activities on RGAs. Find your RGA percentage here
Boss Tip for a better night's sleep ...
Want to sleep soundly tonight and wake up knowing exactly what to do tomorrow morning?
Before you end your workday today, make a list of the 3 most important tasks you MUST get done tomorrow.
This super simple activity will help you wind down after a day of good work and set you up for an effective and successful tomorrow.
Plus, goodbye tossing and turning at night thinking about aaall the things you need to do.
TL;DR
By implementing these 3 Steps to Time Blocking So You Can Make More Money This Week (including my bonus tips) you'll take charge of your hectic schedule and get intentional about your to-do lists.
1. Start by blocking off the activities that are standing and can't be moved like your 9-5 day job or picking the kids up from school.
2. Next schedule blocks of time in your calendar where you will take care of your Essential Busy Work.
3. Finally, schedule in blocks of time to do all those fab RGAs that will bring in the dough and grow your business.
Bonus tips:
You need to start viewing your business in terms of years ... not months!
You can't make time! We all have the same 24 hours each day. It's about being intentional with the time you have.
Being your own boss means that you are also your own employee! Schedule yourself like you'd schedule an employee.
In the first three years of your business, you want to spend about 80% of your business activities on RGAs. Find your RGA percentage here
Sleep better tonight by making a list of the 3 most important tasks you MUST get done tomorrow
Happy Time Blocking!
Lindsay Johnson, aka The Radical Connector, is a sales & visibility coach for misfit entrepreneurs building their business to the beat of their own drum and radical enough to believe they can change the world!
Lindsay’s passion for showing entrepreneurs how to use entrepreneurship as a tool to liberate themselves and others from systems of oppression and lead an impactful life shines through in everything they do.
After 20+ years of teaching entrepreneurs how to make money in a way that feels good, Lindsay’s message is clear: you matter, the work you do is important, and you need to make excellent money so you can change the freaking world!
