Running a small business is not a joke because you have a lot of areas to work on almost at the same time. You also have a lot of bills to pay, even the littlest of things may drive you nuts and want you to change your mind about running the business.
However, if you know your way around and you know how to plan, you will see your business growing and breaking even. There are many ways to improve productivity/efficiency as a small business. These include;
- Do one task at a time
- Communicate effectively
- Partner with a reliable logistics company
- Have an organised and efficient workflow
- Do not encourage interruptions
- Do one task at a time: As a small business, when you focus on one task at a time, it increases productivity.
According to Christopher Westra, the quickest way to do many things is to do one thing at a time. Doing one task at a time is also known as single-tasking, when you single-task, you conserve more energy, resources and time.
Nowadays, a lot of people say they can multitask but it is not as easy as it sounds. Multi-tasking takes a lot of your energy, time resources and attention span.
If you want your business to succeed, you must take a step at a time. When you prioritise your activities according to their importance and you will see how effective and productive you can be.
When you single-task, you become more focused, committed and at the end of the day, you are able to improve productivity.
- Communicate effectively: Communication is very important for all small businesses.
A lot of your achievements as a small business owner depends on how you communicate with your team, that includes the logistics company you use, your clients, the people that work with/for you (if you have any, since it’s a small business) and many other people you may encounter during the course of your business.
You also have to be able to communicate effectively, say what you mean and mean exactly what you say. Don’t say something and hope they will understand it in another way. Say it exactly the way you want people to interpret it.
- Partner with a reliable logistics company: In a way, your business depends on the logistics company you use especially if you run your small business online.
Your customers expect you to get their products to them once they pay you for it. it is now left to you to decide if you want to partner with a logistics company such as Kwik so you can get your customers’ products across to them in real-time and have a high customer return rate.
If your delivery or logistics company delivers on time, you won’t have to waste time on how to get your customers’ product to them but instead focus on your most important activities.
- Have an organised and efficient workflow: Write out your plans daily and work according to what you have written out.
If possible, include the time frame in your daily plans so you can know what to do and when to do it. This might not be easy at first but when you stick to it, you will get used to it.
Make sure you assess your daily task list from time to time so you can know what’s next on your list. You will be more productive and effective when you do that often.
- Do not encourage interruptions: One of the things that affect the efficiency and productivity of a small business is interruptions/distractions. Truth is, there will always be distractions but you must always try to avoid or limit them as much as you can.
If there is anything you have to do, let it be part of your daily task. If it’s too late, schedule it for the next day. You can also automate some tasks instead of doing everything manually.
As a small business, it is very important to strive to be efficient and productive if you want your business to grow and be around forever.
