How do you balance client matters, sales outreach, follow-up, client work, billing the client, and everything else that comes with running an agency?
It must be easy for those big agencies…
I mean, they have plenty of resources to get all this done while the owner sips piña coladas on the beach! Meanwhile, you’re struggling as a small agency to get it all done!
Sucks, right?
Ok, let’s end the pity party and focus on something that you can control.
Today, my agency has the resources, systems, and people to run without me (and no, I’m not drinking on the beach – I don’t drink – and I’m here following my absolute passion for coaching agencies.) BUT understand that my agency didn’t always have these resources.
I used to joke, “I build the websites, sweep the floors, and everything in between!”
So how do you make that transformation happen?
There’s a lot that goes into it, but I’ve boiled it down to 5 simple schedule hacks that are foundational to making these kinds of shifts in your agency.
#1 Know When You’re At Peak Performance
Athletes know how to get into peak performance states. They train to get and stay at their best. But each of us already has times of day where we are at our best. For me, I know that my best thinking is done before noon. That’s why I schedule things that take the most energy and brain power for the mornings. I’ll try to schedule other meetings where I might be a participant or just listening for the afternoons.
#2 Block Schedule Your Time
Reserve time on your calendar for the types of activities that are important to your business. Other than the obvious of just reserving time for things like sales, client management, billing or other tasks… the main benefit of time blocking is that it helps you avoid switching gears. Going back and forth between different tasks is costly. It takes a lot of time to get back into the zone. Multitasking is a myth.
#3 Don’t Skip Important Tasks
If you have to change your priorities, that’s OK. Just make sure you find another place on your calendar to get the important things done. I’ve committed to getting to the gym 4 days a week. If I miss my scheduled day and time, I aim to fit it into my schedule at another time, not just skip it. Treat the important time blocks on your calendar the same way.
#4 Schedule Flex Time
If your calendar is so packed that you don't have any available time, you won’t be able to reschedule your important tasks when priorities shift. Include time blocks that are open or flexible where you can move things.
#5 Don’t Assume All Client Needs are Urgent
I’ve been very guilty of this over the years. Whatever a client wants and whoever calls or emails me had the ability to instantly change my priorities. Need a website update? Sure, let me bang that out real quick! That kind of stuff killed my productivity. By making the client’s priority your own means that what’s important to you doesn’t get done. I get it, sometimes there are some things that are urgent, but don’t treat every request as “code red.”
BONUS: Keep A Clean Calendar
My pet peeve is having a messy calendar. Overlapping appointments, outdated recurring meetings, unaccepted meeting invitations. These little things have a big impact on your ability to maintain a schedule. Clean up your calendar and keep it organized. Let your calendar be an accurate reflection of what happened in your day as well as something you can use to predict what your day will look like.
How you manage your time is foundational to success. Doing this right puts you on the pathway to having an agency that you OWN as opposed to having an agency that owns YOU. Because, after all, when you own your agency, you own your life.
If you want to learn more about how to manage your schedule and be more productive, I encourage you to apply for a call with our director of coaching. We'd be happy to help you take control of your schedule!
