When building a business you are faced with a billion decisions to make and conflicting advice everyday. Having variety and the freedom to choose is a fabulous position to be in, but with so many options it can result in poor choices that don’t serve you or your business growth.

Often the choices we make come from an uninformed place. These choices lead to wasting time and money, draining your energy and keeping your business small.

So here I’m sharing 10 healthier business choices to make your business better and help you to work smarter. Tuck in!

1. Plan your weekly schedule instead of winging it

Planning your work week brings with it structure and focus, plus goes a long way to getting your priority actions nailed and achieving what you want long term.

It’s like when you go to the supermarket. If you shop without a list you’re more likely to make random food choices, then when you get home you realise that you’ve forgotten to get what you really need.

Hot Tip:

• Each week on a Friday afternoon or Monday morning, spend 10 minutes planning your week ahead adding your tasks into your diary. And, be realistic about what you can achieve!
• Make sure at least one of those daily tasks will take you step closer to your bigger objectives
• Be specific. Adding ‘work on website’ into your schedule it too broad. Think of the steps you need to take, for instance: ‘write draft About page'; ‘research web designers on O’Desk'; ‘write strategy and timeline for opt-in freebie’

2. Schedule your social media posts instead of ‘on the fly’ posting

When you upload your social media updates to be dripped out at the times you specify automatically it has 3 massive advantages:

• You save loads of time because you do it in one sitting
• You’re less likely to dip in to Facebook when you are looking for a distraction
• Your key messages are being posted frequently so that the time you spend using social media positively impacts your business with leads and sales

Scheduling doesn’t replace the real-time engagement you need to make personal connections but it does keep you visible, expanding your community, plus means you can turn your attention to other business tasks without interruption.

Two tools I use for managing and scheduling my social media updates are Hootsuite and Buffer.

3. Action the smaller steps to reach your objectives instead of just hoping you’ll get there

So you know that you want to build a 6 figure business or have more free time and flexibility. But do you know how you’re going to make it happen?

Knowing your bigger goals is the first step. You then need to understand the micro steps to get there and take actions every day to make them happen.

Hot Tip: Braindump everything you need to do to reach your goals for that year. Then plot those out into quarterly, monthly, weekly and daily actions, and make them happen. It’s not glamorous but if you want to create success in your business and life, it’s the quickest way to get there.

4. Split your time between creating and planning instead of multi tasking

Batching similar tasks and working on them at one time will help you be more productive and efficient, and produce better results because similar tasks require similar skills.

For instance, tasks like writing blog posts or a sales page requires using the creative right part of your brain, but editing requires tapping into the logical and organised functions of your left brain.

Switching between the two simultaneously requires a shift in your thinking and that requires more effort which takes more time.

Some of the tasks you can batch during your day are:

• Email management
• Creative writing
• Follow ups
• Creative editing and formatting
• Content planning

5. Figure out your ideal work schedule instead of letting your work day control you

When I got sick with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, I was forced to change my work schedule to one that served me and my clients fully. I became totally useless in the morning so holding client consultations was not an option for me. They needed my full attention and I had to (and wanted to) show up with my A-game.

So I switched my schedule to one that enabled me to be at my best for my clients while making the most of the time and energy I have.

All my consults now take place on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons, mornings are dedicated to business building and self care, and Mondays are reserved for creative writing.

If you feel that you have to be on call for your clients at all times of the day, everyday, try switching to a model that serves YOU better for a month. You’ll probably find that your clients are just as happy (that’s if they notice at all).

6. Set firm boundaries instead of worrying that no-one will EVER work with you

Long hours, pulling all nighters, responding to emails immediately. Does this sound familiar..?

Many business owners find themselves stuck in a my-job-rules-my-life cycle, rather than what it should be: my job supports my life.

The work we do for our clients and customers is number 1 priority – it’s the lifeblood of our businesses but that doesn’t mean you need to be giving away your all 24/7.

Looking after your health and happiness with the long term in mind will not just benefit you by making you happier in all areas of your life, but your clients too. Because a happier, healthier you means a better service for them too. You’ll be more energised, engaged, creative and enjoying the work and results you create for your clients. Your clients want that too!

7. Show personality online instead of being too personal

It’s common to worry about just how much to share online. And many of my clients struggle with what to say because they feel the pressure to discuss private issues and opinions.

Guess what? You don’t HAVE to!

What we DO want to see is your personality.

Imagine that when you’re writing your online content (whether that’s social media, blog articles or web copy) that you are talking to a very good friend – someone you feel comfortable with (that doesn’t mean someone you share every minutiae about your private life!)

How does it feel? What does that look like? How do you explain things to her? What language do you use? When you have a picture of that in your mind, use that as the foundational energy for your communication online. You’ll feel more relaxed, you’ll find it easier to write engaging content, and that will mean you resonate with more of your perfect clients and prospects.

8. Hire help NOW instead of doing it all alone

Making your first hire can be a scary leap. Many put it off until they’re in desperate need and should have made the move a lot sooner.

When you’re used to doing everything yourself, handing that responsibility to someone else can require a huge level of trust. Especially if those tasks are ones that you are good at. But just because you’re good at them doesn’t mean you have to be the one to do it.

Trusting someone else to do the work for you means freeing up your time to focus on what you’re great at, and is fun and rewarding for you.

Hot Tip: If you’re scared of making the financial commitment of your first hire try looking at it this way:

Think about the time that person will save you and use it to focus on money generating tasks. For instance, if you want to hire a VA for 3 hours a week, use those 3 hours for prospecting, follow ups and creating marketing campaigns that will bring more leads into your business. That way you’ll get your return of investment quicker and consistently.

9. Invest in your business instead of relying on your own knowledge (or lack of it)

From the moment I started working for myself I invested in training to support the parts of business building that I knew nothing about. There was a lot!

I was confident in my skills and how I could make a difference to others but how do I actually run a business, plan my time, find clients and persuade them to work with me?

I had no idea…

Sales processes; systems management and online marketing skills… I wasn’t born knowing how to do this – they are skills I’d never used when I was employed. So, I trained hard and invested money to learn what I needed, and continue to do so.

It’s meant that I’ve achieved more in less time, built a business I love, plus every investment I’ve made has paid off (and I’ve made the investment back because I make it my objective to do so).

10. Know your sales and marketing instead of keeping a ‘build it and they will come’ mentality

Offering a fabulous service and expecting clients to find you is not enough to guarantee regular income. You need a basic understanding of

• marketing so that you can regularly attract customers and inform them of your product or service
• sales so that you can convert your enquiries into paying customers consistently

Using the internet to grow a business is a new, unchartered land for most people. Being comfortable with it right now and getting ahead of the curve will pay off for you now and in the long term. It’s why helping my clients navigate the tools to create a profitable business they love is what I’m most passionate about.

Over to you

Do you have any healthier business choices that have made a difference to how you run your business and life? Share in the comments below to inspire others – we’d love to hear them!