What Are The 10 Biggest Small Business Time-Wasters?

There’s no denying that small businesses have a lot on their plate. But sometimes, it’s the little things that can end up taking up the most time – and becoming the biggest time-wasters of all.

Whether you own  a Pool Service Company, Home Watch Service Company, Lawn Care Company, or a similar type of business, chances are you’re familiar with a few (or all!) of these small business time-wasters:

1. Meetings:
2. They always seem to take longer than they need to, and often they could have been an email or chat instead. If you do need to have a meeting, make sure you have a clear agenda and stick to it.

2. Email:
3. It’s the bane of every small business owner’s existence. You can spend hours upon hours sorting through emails, and often they’re not even that important. If you can, set aside some time each day to answer email, and try to batch them together so you’re not doing it all the time.

3. Chatting:
4. This one is especially true if you have a remote team. It’s easy to get caught up in chatting all day long, when you could be getting actual work done. Try to limit yourself to set chat times or use a tool like Slack that lets you see when people are available, so you know when to reach out.

4. Social Media:
5. It’s tempting to spend all day scrolling through Twitter or Facebook, but social media can be a huge time-suck. If you’re using it for business, make sure you’re being strategic about it and not just wasting time.

5. Procrastination:
6. We all do it, but it’s important to try to avoid it as much as possible. If you find yourself putting off tasks, try to break them down into smaller steps so they seem more manageable. And if all else fails, set a timer, and force yourself to work for a certain amount of time.

6. Multitasking:
7. Trying to do too many things at once is a recipe for disaster. You’ll end up taking longer to do everything, and chances are you’ll make more mistakes. When you’re working on a task, focus on that one thing and see it through to the end before moving on to something else.

7. Perfectionism:
8. We all want our work to be perfect but striving for perfection can hold us back. If you find yourself spending too much time on small details, try to take a step back and focus on the big picture.

8. Distractions:
9. There are always going to be distractions, whether it’s your phone ringing or someone stopping by your desk. But if you can learn to tune them out, you’ll be able to get more work done.

9. Not Delegating:
10. As a small business owner, you probably feel like you must do everything yourself. But that’s not true! If you want to be successful, you need to learn to delegate tasks to other people.

10. Being Disorganized:
11. This goes together with not delegating. If you’re disorganized, it’ll take you longer to find things and get work done. So, take some time to organize your workspace and create a system that works for you.

Small businesses have a lot on their plate but sometimes it’s the little things that can end up taking the most time – and becoming the biggest time-wasters of all. Do you recognize any of these small business time-wasters in yourself?

If the answer is yes, you can benefit from utilizing the latest technology! Forbes points out that, “Technology can be a beautiful thing. When you take advantage of technological tools, you don’t need to do everything by hand. Use technology to streamline tedious tasks and other small business owner responsibilities.”

To learn more about how to make your small business a success, contact us at 239-349-9400 or email hello@provalet.io. Provalet.io is a powerful and simple software that helps you run your field service company. Designed with the independent small business in mind, ProValet.io automates business management and elevates customer service to an entirely new level in a simple, easy to use format. With its user-friendly interface, you can manage your business without relying on pens, paper, or binders. Keep your business organized and running like a pro with Provalet.io.

This ProValet.io Blog Post is Part of a Series Designed to Help Small Business Owners
Manage Their  Field Service Software, Field Service App, and Mobile Field Service App
and Keep Their Business Running Like a Pro