There are a thousand things to keep you up at night when you run a small business. Here’s how to take back control.
There are a thousand things to keep you up at night when you run a small business. Here’s how to take back control.
There’s nothing wrong with being a little nervous, says Matt Murphy, director of MPR Accounting and Advisors. In fact, a few nerves may even make you perform better.
Anxiety, on the other hand, is unproductive and potentially debilitating. It affects your sleep, concentration, your health and the health of your business. Murphy offers four tips to keep anxiety in check.
- Assess the reality – what really is the worst case scenario?
There could be a few ‘worst cases’, but there’s usually one that keeps you tossing and turning at night, or gives you that tight feeling in your chest. Find out what that is, says Murphy.
Once you’ve identified your fear, the next step is to take it from the abstract to the solid world. Write it down, suggests Murphy, and then share it with a mentor, colleague or friend that you can trust and that can help give context and objective guidance.
“The very act of externalising your fear rationalises it and can make you realise the actual problem is not actually as bad as it might feel, emotionally.
“Identifying the worst case scenario gives you the opportunity to avoid it. Look at it as reverse engineering your anxiety – it exists for a reason, but you can work backwards to find a way out of it.”
- The to-do list (not the action plan)
Many business owners are unsure of the difference between a to-do list and a project/action plan, says Murphy.
An action plan is the list that’s four pages long; all of your long-term goals, on-going tasks, important but non-urgent jobs. Your to-do list, on the other hand, should have no more than five points.
“The only things that get on the to-do list are the tasks that need to be completed immediately (i.e. today).
“Look over your project/action plan. What tasks do you need to perform in order to avoid your worst case scenario?”
- Assess what is possible
Work out what it is you’re really spending your time on day-to-day, what your workload is and how much time you really have each day to work on your to-do list. Keeping a diary for a couple of weeks is a good way to get a good understanding of this.
“Be realistic with your goal-setting. Many people say they don’t complete things on their to-do list because they get too many distractions.”
- Watch out for time traps
It’s important to be there when your team needs you, but make sure they’re not taking you away from your core tasks for other, less urgent matters.
“Teach them the urgent/important prioritisation of tasks,” suggests Murphy. “Before they request your time they must ask themselves, is this an important task for the business that needs urgent attention? This will stop them badgering you to get something completed immediately without regard to its importance in the bigger picture of the company.”
Matt Murphy originally presented these tips on startupsmart.com.au
