Most entrepreneurs and business owners have this misconception that the harder they works, the more successful they might be. Working hard and long hours is the thing of the past. Times have changed and also the way we do business. In order to achieve goals (long term and short term), one must work smart and always remember the importance of efficiency and time management.

Here are 5 easy ways to get organized and work smart:

Remove the clutter

The less you have around you, the better you think. Too many things around you always act as distractions and can hinder focused thinking. This could be hard but try to avoid the urge to browse the Internet, or keeping looking at your smartphone, make personal phone calls, run personal errands during the workday, or allow other distractions to get in the way of competing important work related tasks. The other important element is to keep work at work and personal stuff at home. That way you’re more likely to accomplish what needs to get done during your work hours, and this will make your personal time at home more relaxing and enjoyable.

Create a routine

This is the most fundamental aspect of smart working. It is highly recommended that we prepare a routine and try to stick to it. This is where time management and prioritization comes into place. Schedule errands, meetings, and appointments in such a way that that you aren’t venturing out of the office multiple times a day. Get more organized and incorporate your breaks into this period, and you can lay out exactly how much time you are going to spend on each project daily.

Create a to-do list

In addition to your daily or monthly routine, it is important to highlight the most important tasks that need to be finished. Make a note of the most important things that need to be done each month, and then assign the tasks needed to complete them to specific weeks and days on your to-do list. This is the most effective way to be sure that a huge project won’t get overlooked and that your time is being used as effectively as possible. In a project based environment, you could also highlight project milestones and important deliverable for the complete month and/or year.

Delegate and/or Outsource

You can never be good at everything and delegating and outsourcing is the key to smart working. Don’t let yourself be held back from tackling the important things by mundane work. Look in-house first–are there other people on your team who can take these jobs off of your hands? If not, there are many websites available, such as Fancy Hands or Odesk, that offer relatively cheap services for monotonous day-to-day tasks, and they are more than happy to take your work.

Keep your emails short and simple

Yes, it is always better to keep it short and to the point. There is no need to send a paragraph convey an important message when one sentence will do. Not only does it waste your and the recipient’s time, but people tend to respond more quickly to email messages that are direct and concise. Not to mention, always be polite and courteous.

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