by Lyn Dee

Created on: April 20, 2008

Whatever your ambitions, if you set up a home business you will have one valuable asset in common with every other entrepreneur on the planet. Time. We each have exactly twenty four hours in a day. No more, no less. It's how you choose to use your time that will make the difference between success and failure.

The problem with time is that once it's gone it can't be replaced. If your time management skills are weak you can't get out of trouble by borrowing more hours or days. Yet how many people put as much importance on learning to spend their time wisely as they do on their financial planning?

Setting your own working hours can be a huge advantage. It's great to have the flexibility of fitting your work around other commitments. If you're an early riser there's nothing to stop you being at your desk at dawn. Others might find they work best in the evening.

On the downside, without a boss telling you what to do and when, it's all too easy to slip into one of two traps - working too little, or too much. Either extreme can damage your business, your confidence and enthusiasm, and even your health.

So how do you make the most of your time? Here are a few tips to get you started.

1. Be realistic. Running your own business is exciting, but don't allow your enthusiasm to set unreachable goals. Continually failing to tick off all the items on your to do' lists is very disheartening. Break large projects into a series of smaller steps. Try estimating how long a task will take and then note how long it actually takes. The reality may surprise you.

2. Routine is good. If your business involves keeping appointments and meeting deadlines make sure these fixed times are clearly marked in your diary and fit other less urgent tasks around them. If your timetable is more flexible, try to get into the habit of doing certain things at the same time each day or week.

3. Worst things first. Whatever kind of business you have there will be some tasks you find easier or more enjoyable than others. The temptation is to postpone the difficult things, but the longer you leave them the harder they will seem. Tackling your least favorite job as soon as possible means you won't have to keep worrying about it, you'll enjoy a sense of achievement, and you may discover that it wasn't as bad as you had feared!

4. Take breaks. Whether your work is physical or mental you cannot keep going at the same high rate for long stretches of time. You lose concentration, slow down or make mistakes. Regular short breaks are not a waste of time if they restore your energy.

5. Have fun. Bored with doing a repetitive task? Time yourself working at your normal speed and then do it again faster. Give yourself a small reward when you break your record. Try working to music something lively and uplifting. Brainstorm to find short cuts and new ways of working more efficiently. It's your business so make the rules that suit you!

6. Go home. A home business owner's work is never done. If, at the end of what should be your working day, you are only halfway through a task you may see nothing wrong with spending another hour on it. The risk is that one hour can easily stretch into two, three or more. Stop and ask yourself if working all day, every day was one of the advantages you envisaged when you decided to work at home. You are the boss. You should run the business. Don't allow it to run you. Learn to switch off the computer, leave your desk, and enjoy what else is good in your life.

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