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We each have 24 hours in a day, in which we have to fit in eating, sleeping, exercise, working in and on our business, taking care of our family, and the other responsibilities we have in our lives. In every moment we have choices – staying present in the moment and working mindfully based on our values and goals, or tending to the fires that have to be put out throughout the day.

If you have implemented a weekly schedule by putting your big rocks first, as discussed on Day 7 of the Reorganize Your Doula Business Series, you have probably begun to look at your schedule a bit differently by scheduling what’s most important first, and allowing all your other to-dos to fall into place. Here are some questions to ask yourself about the items on your list that never seem to get done.

Write down your answers to the following questions. These can be for your personal or your business life.

1. What tasks on your list stay on your list, day after day, week after week, and never seem to get done? Why are they not getting done?
2. What tasks, when you think about them, drain your energy? Why do they drain your energy?
3. How much time do you spend thinking about doing the tasks that drain your energy or stay on your list each day?
4. What tasks take up a lot of your time that could easily be delegated to someone else in your household?
5. What obligations do you have that you would like to say "no" to? What would you rather do instead?
6. Do you waste time in an effort to avoid doing some of the tasks on your list?
7. What would you say your hourly business rate is?

Once you’ve answered the questions above, take a look at the results. What do you notice about your answers? Are there activities, responsibilities or obligations that you could 1) Delegate, 2) Eliminate, 3) Learn More, or 4) Outsource? Let’s consider these options more closely.

Delegate

If you have children, and some of the tasks on your list include chores around the house, consider delegating some or most of these chores. If you need help, check this list of age-appropriate chores to decide who can do what. There are many resources online that will help you develop systems to organize responsibilities for the family.

If you have older children, some of them may even be able to help with some of your business tasks. This is a great opportunity for them to learn about what you do and how you do it. You can certainly also ask your husband/partner take on more duties within the home in order to give you some relief.

Eliminate

If there are some responsibilities or activities you have that drain a lot of your energy, learn to say NO to them. The easiest way to decide whether to continue volunteer work or duties you have taken on is to check in with yourself and ask, "Does the bring me joy?" If it does, then doing it probably matters to you and is an activity that you value. If, on the other hand, you meet that obligation with dread, ask yourself if it is something you can eliminate from your life.

Learn More

Are there tasks that you do that, if you took some time to learn how to do it well you would easily do it yourself? Do you want to learn how to use Quickbooks or create your own website? Do you want to learn more business skills, or become a better cook? Would a session or two with a professional organizer or some time with FlyLady help you to create better systems to clean and organize your home? How much time and money could you save in the long run to invest in yourself this way?

Outsource

If you don’t have anyone to delegate tasks to, you can’t eliminate it from your list, or you don’t have an interest in learning more about a topic, see what you can outsource. If you came up with an hourly rate for your time, say $50/hour, contemplate this. If you hired someone for $20/hour to do some of your work, that would free up your time to do more moneymaking activities that would enable you to pay for the outsourced service.  This could include hiring a cleaning service for your home, a bookkeeper, virtual assistant, even a mother’s helper or babysitter. You can outsource website and logo design. If you want a blog for your business but don’t like to write, you can even hire someone to write for your blog.

If money is an issue, get creative. Find ways to barter services, see if providers are willing to offer you their services in exchange for referrals, or find college kids who are willing to give you their services in exchange for experience.

The whole point of this exercise is to demonstrate to you that YOU do not have to do it all. Many times, women who run small businesses out of their homes take on all the responsibilities of child rearing and housekeeping in addition to growing their businesses. You must be able to schedule in time for self-care and your relationships. Again, you only have 24 hours in a day. See what you can delegate, eliminate, learn or outsource, and see how much more time you have. It just won’t be the time you save not having to do these tasks, but the time you save in not having to fret and stress and worry about these tasks any longer.

Please contact me with questions or comments. For the next week, we’ll be looking at various ways to market your business and plan your marketing tasks.

Tags: delegation, doula business tips, outsourcing, Time Management

Other Savvy Posts You May Enjoy:

1. Day 2 of Reorganize Your Doula Biz for ‘09 – What Are Your Most Important Values?
2. Day 7 of Reorganize Your Doula Biz for ‘09 – Incorporating the Big Rocks Into Your Life
3. Day 4 of Reorganize Your Doula Biz for ‘09 – What Will It Take To Feel The Fire Within?
4. Day 19 of Reorganize Your Doula Biz – Business Expenses and Taxable Deductions
5. Day 8 of Reorganize Your Doula Biz for ‘09 – Setting Up Your Home Office