In this episode, Mike Abramowitz from Better Than Rich shares insights on how entrepreneurs can achieve time freedom and work-life balance. He introduces the Time Rich Six framework consisting of boundaries, communication, systems, playbooks, team, and technology.

Highlights
Business is a vehicle for your life, not your entire life.
Understand what season your business is in and be intentional with your actions.
Conduct a time audit to determine the value of your time and delegate tasks below that value.
Delegate administrative tasks first, then focus on marketing, fulfillment, sales, and leadership.
Use the Time Audit Workbook to identify low and high-value activities and receive a free 90-day delegation planning session.

Website: https://www.betterthanrich.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/betterthanrich

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/betterthanrich

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/betterthan_rich/

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/BetterThanRich

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/betterthanrichshow

Twitter: https://twitter.com/betterthan_rich

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@betterthanrich

Free Workbook: https://www.betterthanrich.com/90dayplan

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Can you believe that have the year is over? Six months of 2018 are gone!

What are you doing? What did you do? What did you accomplish? What did you not accomplish?

I am sitting in a Starbucks that is located in an old bank. I am actually sitting in the bank vault, which made me think of finances and then planning. I am here to plan out the remaining six months of my year. It is important to plan often.

Without a plan, you will go through the year not knowing or not measuring how successful you have been, what challenges you have, and what changes you need to make so be successful.

Sit down and look at your results, successes, and challenges. Write out a plan and find an accountability coach to help keep you honest.

The year is half over. Get to it!

[youtube] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=38xu_Kn3npc[/youtube]

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Josh Dodson is my guest today. He is the Director of Research and integrated Marketing at VisionPoint Marketing.

We discussed marketing strategy vs. tactics. Strategy is a guiding principle for the tactics you use in marketing. Tactics are the specific thing you are doing with marketing. It could be Facebook ads or maybe Google Adwords. It is when you get into the weeds. Strategy helps guide you toward your goal.

First, start with a goal, then develop a plan to reach that goal. Next, use the tools at your exposal to execute the plan. If you follow a plan, it will be more effective and reduce mistakes.

There are times when you can do something out of scope, like an Instagram Story post or tweet. An example from Josh’s article is targeting alumni; you need to define parameters to help you target your audience better. Then once you are in the moment, you can decide if you should execute an unplanned post. One thing is that your message needs to tie into what you are saying, how you are saying it, and who you are saying it to.

Targeting is important. Making sure to send the content to the right person, at the right time. It will help with effectiveness.

Josh talks about statistical significance. It is crucial to be able to identify what element of your marketing is working and what is not. Use tracking parameters (Google Analytics, UTM), to help learn about what is happening on your website. When you add that on the front end, you can see what is happening on the backend. In other words, you will be able to analyze the customer journey.

By learning what your website visitors are doing, you can tweak your plan and adjust your goals.

Josh concluded, by saying there is a temptation to do the exciting things without planning, but you need to establish your guiding principles to make your job and results easier in the long run. Plan for success and execute for conversions.

Visit VisionPoint Marketing’s website: www.visionpointmarketing.com

Josh on Twitter: @joshuaDDodson

[youtube] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vXUJ8QBK0nk[/youtube]

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Attending conferences can be informative and educational. Today, I am going to talk about how I prepare for a conference.

Here are the things that I do to prepare for a conference.

Here is a list of items that I bring to a conference

That covers what I do to prepare for a conference. If you are looking for an email service provider, use code HMBT for a $30 account credit with iContact. While I am speaking today, I am offering my book, The ABCs of the Customer Journey: A Beginner’s Guide to Automation, Branding, and Customer Service, free on Amazon.

[youtube] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S4-NhL5sASA[/youtube]

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I am joined today by Barbara Hemphill, owner of Barbara Hemphill LLC, to discuss productivity

The average employee spends 19% of their time looking for what they need to do their work. It you take a company that has 20 employees at an average wage of $15 an hour, that represents a loss productivity cost of $115k dollars a year. Research shows that 80% of what we keep we never use, and the more we keep the less we use. The reason people are wasting time is that they are always looking for things.

Barbara likes to help people declutter. We talk about ho digital clutter can become overwhelming and I talk about how I use a variety of services to hold digital files.

Barbara tells us that clutter is postponed decisions. Organization by itself has no value. It needs to be something you use to get something done. Use the acronym, SYSTEM (Saving You Space, Time, Energy, and Money). You need to have a system to be organized. Barbara has a five-step process called the Productive Environment Process. Barbara also heads up The Productive Environment Institute.

A productive environment is an intentional setting were people can accomplish their work and enjoy their lives. Your environment is your desk, your brain, your computer desk, and anywhere you need to get things done.

Productive Environment Process

1. State your vision

While discussing number 3, we had a sidebar on having people help you and the GTY (Greater Than Yourself) mentality. Barbara said the phrase “together we are better”. Research shows that we are 76% more likely to accomplish a task if you have an accountability partner.

Practice makes permanent. Make sure to go through the PEP process and try to make it habitual.

I talk about how I use both digital and analog to-do lists and how I am trying to move to using one mechanism. Barbara talks about to-do lists and how many people keep it in their head. She has never met anyone that was comfortable with their productivity that had not resolved the issue of paper vs digital calendars. You can have anything you want, but not everything.

There are so many tools out there and you need to come up with your own system. Barbara uses a planner pad and a digital calendar. Develop a system and make it become a habit.

I developed my own planner page that has all the elements that are important to me. What I need to get done, what I am grateful for, how much water I drank through the day and if I exercised, and more. Check it out here. On the digital side, I use iOS tasks to track small items.

Sometimes it is the little things. Some people plan the night before and others in the morning. Barbara tells us a story about how she would try to clean up at night before going to bed, but one morning she decided to clean in the morning instead. She said that it was more enjoyable, especially with coffee and music.

When you have a task to complete, try to get it done as quickly as you can to get it out of the way. I mention the book Eat that Frog. For me in my role, I feel that my mantra is “organized chaos” and that I am all over the place. Barbara said that she thinks that I am productive. She is too kind.

If something has been on your list for too long, you need to do an analysis. What is the worse thing that can happen if you do not do something or throw away a piece of paper on your desk? That can help you clean up your to-do list. Also, how can you make your task easier so that you can complete it?

Barbara said that 80% of people feel like they have a book in them. The problem is getting it on paper. I mention that people that have not written a book come up to me and try to tell me how I should have written my book. But they have not written a book! Both of us encourage you to write a book. You can start by writing articles and also find people to help you. A book will help you develop creditability. Barbara’s latest book is Less Clutter, More Life. Check it out here.

Parting thoughts: When people hire someone (consultant), they always ask how long is this going to take and how much is it going to cost? The longer you wait, the longer it will take and the more it will cost.

www.barbarahemphill.com

Get a $30 iContact account credit by using the code HMBT

[youtube] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-hBWb1vEuNg[/youtube]

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