“I wish I had more hours in the day” is a common refrain I hear with the creative entrepreneurs I work with. In fact, it’s been a hot topic these days in my CEO Mastermind group. But this isn’t just a phrase people are throwing around — feeling like you don’t have enough time is a serious issue that can affect our lives and our businesses, especially as CEOs.

Let me explain. As humans, we only have a finite amount of hours in our day. Yet, we entrepreneurs sometimes oftentimes think we’re superhuman and that our power is beating time. Now, I think that entrepreneurs are superheroes in many other ways because we get to improve people’s lives. However, manipulating time is definitely not one of our superpowers. (Sorry!)

That’s all to say that there are ways we can feel more productive with the time we’re given. If you feel like your day is never-ending because of all the tasks that pile up on your to-do list, and you’re constantly trying to beat the clock, this post is for you!

In this post, we’ll explore three time-saving hacks that will help you be more effective with your work hours and help you make the most of your schedule!

Time-Saving Hack 1: Set a time to get to your desk every morning

The first tip to save time is to set a specific time that you’ll get to your desk in the morning. Yes, I know that we left our nine to five to get away from the strict corporate schedule, but don’t worry — you can give yourself some grace here. The hours you want to dedicate to your business are completely up to you!

That being said, we still have to set our own hours because working from home can bring an influx of potential distractions. From chores to family to social media to pretty much anything under the sun, there are a plethora of things just begging for your attention. It takes some discipline to give yourself a set amount of hours to focus on work and not let anything else take your attention away.

Not to mention, if you’re not disciplined with your work hours, it’s going to feel like you’re constantly working! And this brings me to my next point.

Time-Saving Hack 2: Set an end time to log off

It’s not uncommon for creative entrepreneurs to feel like they’re running from task to task, struggling to get everything on their to-do list done in one day. This is why I also suggest having a specific time you log off for the day.

This is beneficial for several reasons.

The first: just like we hinted in the previous time-saving hack, setting your log-off hour will mitigate that feeling of working constantly. It will put much-needed boundaries in place so that you don’t run yourself to the ground and end up burning out.

The second benefit: you can have time in your day to do what matters most to you that’s not work-related! Whether that’s spending time with your family, hanging out with your partner, or practicing your favorite hobby, a goal end time can help make time for those things that enrich your life. 

Now, here’s the caveat. As creative entrepreneurs, sometimes we have to work on projects that require relatively more of our time. And that’s totally fine! It’s expected. On these days, you can work a bit later if you need to, but I also recommend communicating with whoever needs to know. For example, if I know I’m going to be working late on specific days, I’ll share that with my family so they don’t expect me to log off at my usual hour. On the flip side, I let them know the days I’ll be done early so we can have some extra family time!

Time-Saving Hack 3: Don’t take client-facing meetings on Monday

My last time to save time in your day? Don’t, for any reason, take client-facing meetings on Mondays — especially if you’re in the wedding industry.

To speak to those in the wedding industry here’s why I don’t want you to take client-facing anything on Mondays: we usually work all day Friday and Saturday on weddings and events. If you schedule a client-facing meeting on Monday, you’re going to take all day Sunday to try and get ahead for the week. Or at least worrying about getting ahead.

Instead of doing that (and developing the Sunday Scaries), don’t take client-facing meetings on Mondays and make it more of an admin day so you can rest and have time to yourself and your family on the last day of the weekend.

I usually take Mondays to catch up on my inbox from the weekend, finish projects from the week before, and time block the rest of my week. You can hear more about how I structure my Mondays by listening to this podcast episode with Meghan Gillikin about preventing squirrel brain with time blocking!

Even if you’re not in the wedding industry, I believe every entrepreneur in the creative field should use Monday as their day to do what most do on Sundays. By doing this, I promise you’ll feel so much more refreshed and motivated to tackle the week!

Save time starting today!

I know that even with these tips, it can still feel like your to-do list is overwhelming. That’s why I encourage all business owners to switch to time blocking.

I created a fun and short video course, Time Block Your Business, that will take you through how to time block your business so you can craft a schedule that works for you. I guarantee it will help you increase your productivity and mental health like it has for so many other entrepreneurs! Click here to purchase the course!