Better learn to juggle!

If we are in the same boat, you work either completely on your own, or a couple of people that you rely on to do certain tasks. Being able to juggle a number of project, who’s doing what, who’s been billed, who’s paid, and so on, is a lot to worry about. Not to mention the fact that while you’re doing ALL of this, you still have to find new projects.  It’s VERY easy to let something fall through the cracks.

So what are some good ways to stay organized and on top of things? I have a number of little tricks that I use to help me manage my business without going insane.

1. First things first, if you’re like me, you’re a visual person. Having things laid out in front of you helps you not loose track of what’s going on. When I had 10 or 15 active projects, a staff, and clients to manage,  I used a white board.  On there, I cut out pictures of my staff and would tape their picture to what they were doing. I could easily and quickly glance at the board to see who was covering what. Then I’d write in with a marker what they were doing, what our deadlines were, what we needed, and so on.  Anything that related to the project could easily be seen at a glance.
2. Don’t forget about new business. Just cause you’re busy, you still need to be cultivating new business. Set aside a few hours each week to keep working on bringing in new business.  The biggest problem with getting busy is that when you’ve finished the work, sometimes you hear crickets. You have been so immersed in finishing the work in front of you, you’re not looking ahead. The roller coaster can really kill you if you’re not careful.
3. If you get covered up, pass it along. Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for biting off more than you can chew, but if you take too big of a bite, you’ll choke on it.  Leaving your client pissed and chances are you won’t get a second chance.
4. Schedule. Make sure that you are honest with your schedule. You never know when a project will be changed at the last minute, a printer will be slowed down, or a programmer will run into an issue that takes them a week longer to finish then expected.  Be honest when you schedule something. I tend to add a little, then add a little longer.  That way you’ve got enough wiggle room to be safe.
5. Use a CALENDAR. If I were speaking to you, I’d say the word CALENDAR very loudly and very S L O W L Y. Keep track of all sorts of things. Make sure you put deadlines, and also reminders ahead of time about deadlines. Put waypoint dates in there as well to make sure you’re on track. Working without a calendar is like sex without a condom, no wait, it’s like weed eating without eye protection, no, it’s like drinking and driving….shit, these are no good.  Point is, you can probably get away with it most of the time, but at some point, it WILL catch you when you least expected it. I have done it before, and you get that phone call “hey, I’m here, where are you?” You have to play it off like you knew about it, but ran into something…..long story short….it SUCKS!  USE A CALENDAR!

Ok, that’s all for tonight class.  Hopefully these little tips will help you better manage your work. Now, time to watch lost.  Anyone else as confused as I am?