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How to Handle Time Management When They Don’t Work

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Time Management

The internet is full of “time management tips.” Everything from personal blogs to peer-reviewed papers provides tips on how to save stress and increase productivity.

Even though some of these techniques sound great, others aren’t. As a result, the right approach will depend on the type of people, preferences, tasks, and teams involved.

What’s more, the process of learning how to manage your time can be complex and different for every individual. But what if you have tried every time management method under the sun and they have not worked for you? Well, you might want to give these eight time management alternatives a try.

1. Stop trying to actually manage time.

“While this may sound counterproductive, if not unconventional — you can’t actually manage time itself,” says productivity and time management expert John Rampton, co-founder and CEO of Calendar. “As such, it’s futile to even try. Instead, you should be focusing on addressing what you have control over. The only thing you have control over is yourself, so how will you make the most of it?”

So, instead of homing in on time management, work on these items instead:

  • Energy. “Instead of bulldogging through tasks, take a break if you’re drained,” John suggests. It might be necessary for you to do this now and then. It will, however, sap all of your energy reserves if you do it continuously.
  • Priorities. Put your priorities on your calendar before anything else. Make sure they come first. After all, it’s not worth it to waste time on tasks you could have delegated, rescheduled, or deleted.
  • Brain. “Neuroplasticity is the concept that the brain (even the adult brain) can build new pathways,” clarifies Ted Deshane over at the Enterprisers Project. “Each time you train your brain to eat the frog, it gets easier to do next time. That’s because you’re building a pathway and retraining your brain to do something that’s challenging.”
  • Focus. The author of Hyperfocus: How to Be More Productive in a World of Distraction, Chris Bailey, believes it is much more important to manage your focus than managing your time. “You can show up to meetings when you’re supposed to and are fully capable of keeping your calendar on track. Most of us are good at managing our time,” he writes. “What we’re not good at is managing our attention.” Monique Valcour, an executive coach, recommends taking time to reflect on your performance every day. By doing so, you can identify what is working and what isn’t, as well as how to tackle the next day at a more efficient level
  • Emotions. The effects of negative emotions can be both exhausting and distracting. Schedule time for self-care or fun, as both are essential for your health.

2. Not all urgent tasks need to be accomplished first.

It feels good to accomplish simpler, more urgent tasks first because it builds momentum before focusing on what matters most. However, you may miss out on strategic planning and creative thinking opportunities if you succumb to what researchers call the “mere urgency effect.”

Time management requires that you filter and order tasks critically, avoid prioritizing based on what causes the most stress, and set long-term goals.

“If you haven’t clarified your A-item priorities, or if you are trying to take on too much, it’s hard to avoid getting sucked into the black hole,” writes Michael D. Watkins, author of The First 90 Days. Keeping a few clear outcomes in mind will help you stay on top of your game. “Devote some time to clarifying and getting buy-in for them. Write them down. Put them up on the wall. Look at them every day and ask yourself, ‘How does what I’m doing help to advance these?’”

For minimizing stress-based prioritization, rounding up time estimates is one of the best time management tips. “Assuming a project will take between 10% and 25% longer than you expect is typically a good place to start,” notes the University of Texas at Austin professor Art Markman. “It’s basically just a way …to make room for your mental blind spots in the time-management department.”

3. Write a stop-doing list.

There are psychological (and productivity) benefits to keeping a to-do list, and it can help you manage your time better. However, it might not be right for everyone. If you find the structure of a to-do list stifling or uninspiring, or if you can’t stop yourself from writing 20 items, you might want to give it up.

“Some activities benefit from not being reduced to tasks, says communication expert Judith Humphrey. For example, writing down “take a walk.” Now, “that activity would instantly lose its appeal. When the idea of going for a stroll remains in my head, I can look forward to it expectantly–because it’s a choice, not a duty.”

The best thing you can do, however, is to remind yourself to stop buying things that don’t bring you joy or add little to your long-term goals. As a result, you’re less likely to spend a lot of time doing time-sucking, non-rewarding tasks, freeing up your time to focus on the work that has long-term benefits. And you can accomplish this by writing a stop-doing list.

4. Replace decisions with principles.

“Continually facing decisions with important consequences and imperfect information can lead to what scientists call cognitive overload, in which the demands from the mental work we need to do outstrip our abilities to cope,” explains Dane Jensen, CEO of Third Factor. “Cognitive overload both increases the likelihood that you will make errors and contributes significantly to feeling overwhelmed.”

By replacing decisions with absolute principles, you can reduce the cognitive load you are under, he adds. As an example, weight loss science has found that it is much more effective to say, “I will not eat after 7 PM” than “I will limit my snacking after 7 PM.” The latter decision creates an infinite number of further decisions: “Can I have this cup of yogurt?” How about some fruit? By saying no food after 7 PM, the door will be shut permanently. Suddenly, the decisions are gone.

In the words of Tim Ferriss, a successful author and podcaster, this means “finding the one decision that removes 100 decisions.” In his case, this meant not reading any new publications in 2020. With this blanket principle, he was able to free himself from hundreds of book-by-book decisions after being deluged by eager authors and their publicists for years.

“Steve Jobs famously decided to wear the same thing every day to remove the decision fatigue of choosing an outfit every morning,” states Jensen. It was Jon Mackey, the managing director of Heidrick & Struggles’ Canadian operations, who established the rule of no meetings on Fridays. “After failing to protect time for deep work through individual decisions on which meetings to accept or reject, he created a day a week in which he can focus.”

5. Go with the flowtime technique.

You can use the Pomodoro Technique to get through chores that you do not enjoy or require little thought. It can also enhance your sense of value, improve your planning, and break your multitasking habit. Additionally, it can assist you in dealing with distractions, maintaining motivation, and overcoming fatigue.

There is a problem with the times because they are far too brief.

In order to get into our deep work zone, where our best work occurs, we need to spend 23 minutes on average. Just as you enter deep work mode, you take a break with the Pomodoro Technique. Additionally, your brain is not allowed to recover from the microbreaks of the allotted time.

Moreover, some find the Pomodoro Technique to be too rigid.

With that said, you might find the Flowtime Technique to be a more effective alternative.

This technique “measures your productivity habits and your focus with a timed system,” explains Albert Costill in a previous Calendar article. “As a result, multitasking is discouraged in favor of solo work, where you stay focused on one task until it’s complete.”

“This method has become popular as an alternative to the Pomodoro Method, which consists of a fixed amount of work followed by breaks,” he adds. “However, although many have found the Pomodoro Technique highly effective, the time intervals can feel restrictive and stressful.”

The Flowtime Technique eliminates these time constraints. Therefore, a timer will not distract you from your focus.

6. Rather than crossing off tasks, think about outcomes.

Making a to-do list before you start your day is a tried-and-true time management trick. Although some find the act of keeping a list of to-do’s soothing and useful, others may find the rigidity of routines overwhelming.

A to-do list helps us stay on top of things and feels satisfying when we check things off. It is possible, though, that focusing on accomplishments and prioritizing productivity could limit our creativity. Often, to-do lists are effective because they provide a clear path to a certain outcome — do A, then B, then C -– but Wisconsin School of Business research shows that giving people clear problems with clear solutions can restrict their creativity.

For me — I say, “Who cares about creativity when I just want to quickly get a list done. And when someone has spent their valuable time finding a solution, I’m thrilled not to waste my valuable time trying to find a different way. I don’t invent the wheel — I just hurry and accomplish the task!”

Rather than focusing on tasks, try focusing on outcomes for a more flexible approach to time management. “This approach focuses people and teams on a concrete result, not the process required to achieve it,” says Jennifer Robison, a senior editor at the Gallup Business Journal. “Employees, then, have a high degree of autonomy to use their own unique talents to reach goals their own way.”

Innovation and engagement in an organization can be increased when leaders adopt an outcome-based company culture. Consider an alternative to individualized task management if focusing solely on outcomes is not feasible for you and your team. Identify priorities every day, ask your team to check in asynchronously online, or work with a project manager to create a task management system.

7. Be pessimistic.

Time management consultant Laura Vanderkam says that “good time management means planning a resilient schedule, not a perfect one.”

In her experience, even those who plan ahead often forget to specify the time for unforeseen circumstances. When everything goes according to plan, they are successful at time management. The downside is that they may have to give up hobbies, self-growth, or family time if something unexpected happens.

As a backup approach, Laura suggests an approach that is more “pessimistic.”

In this situation, you don’t plan on keeping the schedule minute by minute. Rather, you set aside extra time in the week for work tasks. Although it can be challenging with a busy schedule, it allows you to stay on top of everything.

8. Practice anti-time management.

Richie Norton, author of Anti-Time Management: Reclaim Your Time and Revolutionize Your Results with the Power of Time Tipping, explains how traditional time management tools measure every single drop of sweat, blood, and tears from workers.

“[They were] never designed for freedom,” he says. “The question is, ‘Who manages my time under time management?’ Traditionally, it is about control. Your employer controls your time. They create your schedule. They tell you what to do, when, and where. And, if you want to get crazy, they determine that you only have two weeks out of the year for vacation and when you get to retire.”

Rather than being the opposite of time management or the opposite of time management, Norton proposes embracing “anti-time management.” “You control your time,” Norton asserts. “You decide what you want to do, when and where. You decide if you want to create space or not.”

If you want to practice anti-time management, start by identifying what Norton calls “final causes.” “It’s a term from Aristotle,” says Norton. “The idea is [that] an acorn becomes an oak tree. But in real life, a lot of us are planting seeds thinking they’re going to be an oak when they never will. Why not just plant an oak tree from the start?”

A “final cause” is the reason why something is done. Rather than the goal itself, it’s the success that follows. “Once you realize the final cause, you can change the decision tree around who you want to be and what you really want to do and set up from the dream instead of working endlessly toward it,” says Norton.

How to Handle Time Management When They Don’t Work was originally published on Calendar.com on Oct. 19, 2022, by Howie Jones. Featured Image: Eugene Shelestov; Pexels.com. Thank you!

5 Innovative and Strategic Solutions for Improving Business Performance

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Innovative Business Performance

Productivity is essential in evaluating business performance. However, it is also worth noting that productivity isn’t the same as busyness. Productivity often goes hand in hand with efficiency. When people can get more done with less effort, they’re productive. It’s the classic “work smarter, not harder” mindset.

One of the best ways to boost productivity is by finding innovative tools and methods to streamline existing tasks. Unfortunately, there is no shortfall of creative options in the modern, entrepreneurially-focused, tech-driven world. That said, here are some unique strategic solutions that can help improve business performance.

1. Simplify (and unify) marketing solutions.

Software solutions are powerful business tools. They can do an endless number of tasks, from collecting and analyzing data to automating mundane activities.

For all of the benefits, though, software solutions can be a two-edged sword. As a company utilizes more third-party tools, its tech stack grows. When that happens, it’s easy to become inundated with information and notifications.

Fortunately, it’s possible to find the solution within the problem itself. An entirely new generation of tools is starting to emerge that work to reduce complexities associated with technology. In other words, they streamline tech-stack management.

For instance, outsourcing CMO and marketing agency Hawke Media recently released its Hawke AI marketing and analytics solution. The tool provides a dashboard where a brand can funnel data from multiple digital marketing platforms. From there, the software organizes the information into a single view that reveals critical analysis and insights. In addition, the AI tool tracks performance against goals and even utilizes machine learning for predictive analysis of future trends.

Tools like this can help condense the complexities of data and analytics — especially in areas like marketing, where too much dense stat-crunching can hurt creative output. In addition, organizing analytics into a single location avoids wasting time chasing down numbers and creating statistical takeaways. It also avoids the issue of leaving important data unused and lost in a backwater databank on the back end of a company’s tech infrastructure.

2. Control SaaS spend and Shadow IT.

The growing use of tech stacks also leads to many underutilized applications. Each of these is a recurring cost for an organization, regardless of whether they’re optimized.

As companies incorporate a growing number of software solutions into their internal operations, keeping tabs on everything is important. It’s easy to leave applications unused or for one team to use them but not another.

Torii is a startup developing a suite of tools to address SaaS management. Its creators designed the software solution to help businesses get the most out of their tech stack by understanding how each third-party software tool or platform is helping their operation.

For instance, the application addresses Shadow IT by discovering unknown or hidden apps (that aren’t on IT’s radar) within a company’s infrastructure and bringing them into the light. It also tracks SaaS spending and ensures that companies optimize each app for maximum utility. The tool even identifies if a SaaS solution is sufficiently helping an organization or if it can remove the item from its tech stack — and consequently its budget, too.

3. Improve data observability.

Another way to address inefficiencies created by data infrastructure is by improving data observability. Data observability platforms provide key insights into how a company’s internal applications are interacting.

The goal of data observability is to identify blind spots like data silos. These can lead to lower performance, reliability, and data quality — all while increasing cost.

Tools like Databand provide comprehensive data observability even for intricate internal networks. This keeps systems operating smoothly and provides an intimate knowledge of what is happening behind the scenes regarding a company’s data.

In addition, the software solution monitors for risks like data drift and bottlenecks. This allows companies to stay ahead of potential threats. As a result, they can operate from a proactive and preventative position rather than reacting to data concerns when an issue has already developed into a crisis.

Gaining and maintaining control over a company’s data can be challenging. However, suppose a business can use a software solution to restore a sense of control. In that case, it can naturally improve data efficiency, sharpen informed decision-making, and boost productivity in the process.

4. Invest in team building.

In the post-pandemic era, talent is at a premium, and retention is in the spotlight. In response, everyone is talking about upskilling and reskilling existing workers to meet the needs of a company from within. And these are undoubtedly critical aspects of long-term retention.

However, there are other elements of retention that deserve consideration. For example, one of the most overlooked items of the post-pandemic era is team building.

As remote work has taken a foothold in the modern business model, teams are becoming increasingly isolated and disconnected. No matter how skilled an individual may be, it can be challenging to be effective if they aren’t connected to their coworkers.

Companies like Gomada have created solutions that bridge the team-building gap created by online and hybrid work environments. For example, the innovative team-bonding platform provides remote-friendly activities that can help bring teams together.

Some of these focus on general fun and getting to know one another from afar. Others address more significant concerns, like providing support during layoffs or improving communication.

Whatever a business’s work environment may be, leaders must look for ways to bring their teams together. Team building, whether it’s in person or on a computer, improves coworker interactions. It can keep a group on the same page and help them boost productivity on a daily basis.

5. Create standards and guidelines.

As companies operate in a more decentralized manner, the need for organization and oversight is becoming more important. Yet, at the same time, it’s too easy for managers to squelch business performance through micromanaging.

One way to improve productivity without overseeing every activity is by instating clear standards and guidelines to guide an organization. Standards, in this case, refer to quality control, communication protocols, and other rules and regulations that set the tone for a company’s operation. By creating these, a leader can set expectations for behavioral activity without the need to shadow every employee.

Creating guidelines for specific areas of business activity is also a good idea. For instance, if a marketing department has a lot of personnel or works with contractors, a CMO may want to create brand guidelines. This can create consistency throughout the content creation process.

Dropshipping app Oblero points out that good brand guidelines should include basic elements, like logos, typography, and a color palette. It should also provide information about a brand’s voice and tone. That way, whenever someone, either inside a company or out of it, creates something, they can maintain consistency and save time they would have spent asking questions and making edits.

Maintaining peak business performance takes continual effort. So it’s important for leaders to remain aware of the tools they can use to ensure that their enterprises are both efficient and productive. Then, use the solutions above to find ways to improve your business’s performance — all while working smarter, not harder.

5 Innovative and Strategic Solutions for Improving Business Performance was originally published on Calendar.com on Sept. 19, 2022, by Deanna Ritchie. Featured Image Credit: Startup Stock Photos; Pexels.com. Thank you!

Calendar Full? 5 Ways To Maximize Your Meetings

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Calendar Full? 5 Ways To Maximize Your Meetings

No company operates in a vacuum, and very few businesses are one-person operations. Even if you’re a solopreneur, you’ll likely need to coordinate with clients. In short, business means collaboration. Working with others translates to the necessity of meetings. And meetings can either be a drain for your schedule and productivity. Or, when you maximize meetings, a chance to ensure you’re on the same page with your collaborators, work out kinks and develop actionable plans for your projects.

Most of us have experienced those meetings that we know by the “could have been an email” trope. They’re the ones that seem to have no clear direction, in which the group collectively spins its wheels. This might be due to participants getting sidetracked or simply because the content of the meeting is redundant.

It’s not a great feeling to sit through an entire hour while silently stressing about the tasks we could be doing instead. Packed calendars are ubiquitous; no one wants or deserves a time-wasting meeting. If you’re in charge of periodic or regular check-ins with your team or clients, everyone involved will thank you for running smooth and effective meetings that support their tasks.

A great meeting should help participants resolve stuck points, get team members on the same page, clarify project next steps and generally save time and energy. Carefully planning your meetings and sticking to the plan will help the members of your team get the most out of face-to-face time.

Remember that time is money and budget meeting time accordingly.

It’s important to periodically evaluate the frequency and time demands of your team’s meeting schedule. Ask yourself:

Do you need a weekly or bi-weekly face-to-face to stay on track?

Can some meetings be skipped if no pressing concerns need to be addressed?

How will holding a meeting impact your team’s productivity: will it enhance it by alleviating stuck points, or will it hinder it by pulling people out of their zones?

Evaluate whether your team requires standing meetings.

Try not to get stuck in the mindset that meetings, especially standing meetings, are necessary to keep everyone moving forward together. Sometimes, it really can be an email. Being thoughtful about when and how you conduct your meetings could translate into significant cost savings for your business. Remember, you’re paying for everyone’s time during that meeting. You’re also potentially losing productive time on tasks if you’re meeting unnecessarily. It might be enlightening to get out a calculator and run the numbers for your company’s spend on weekly meeting time.

Have a clear meeting agenda and stay on task.

When you and your team have determined that a gathering is warranted, whether virtual or in-person, it’s vital to have a clear action plan. Before each meeting, clearly identify what you want to accomplish, who needs to be involved and how you will organize the time. Try not to require attendance from teammates if you don’t need to take up their time. It’s essential to create and share an agenda for each meeting – and stick to it.

“If I don’t have an agenda in front of me, I walk out,” Annette Catino, chief executive of the QualCare Alliance Network, told the New York Times. “Give me an agenda or else I’m not going to sit there, because if I don’t know why we’re in the meeting, and you don’t know why we’re there, then there’s no reason for a meeting.”

Tips for Maximizing Your Meetings

Developing a plan ahead of time will help everyone involved know what to expect, keep discussions corralled and save everyone time.

Here are five tips you can implement today to help you and your team ensure efficiency and that you all get the most out of your collaborative time.

1. Have a meeting agenda available for your team before you get together.

A well-thought-out meeting agenda is the heart and soul of effective team collaboration. Think of it as a playbill for success, a guide that sets the stage for smooth performance. Your agenda should include the essential who, why, what, and how information.

Your team should know who is attending. Communicate expectations to each attendee for their contribution to the conversation. You should also have a clear goal established, even for standing meetings. What are your team’s pain points and how will you address them during this time? If you can’t answer the big “W” questions, you may want to back up. Assess whether your team needs to meet at all.

The agenda does not need to be a fully fleshed-out document, with paragraphs of explanations or instructions. Instead, simply identify the items that need to be dealt with, in an order that makes sense, and note who is invited to contribute to each point. You may end up going off script at times, but having a clear outline will go a long way to keeping everyone on task.

2. Use your meeting agenda to stay on task and ensure efficiency.

To help maximize any meeting, it’s vital for every participant to receive a copy of the agenda beforehand. If possible, allow enough time for feedback and questions. You might find your team helps you improve on your plan beforehand.

If you’re a traditional brick-and-mortar operation, you could distribute hard copies of your agenda before you meet. But that isn’t a viable option for hybrid or remote gatherings. Emailing an agenda document to everyone is a possible solution. Or, you might consider tech tools that can help organize the process from start to finish.

One tech tool option to maximize your meetings is Fellow. Fellow’s software includes meeting templates, so you don’t have to start with a blank page when organizing your agenda. The agendas also allow you to keep your team accountable and informed about key decisions. Having a multi-feature tool for your team is one way to keep everyone on the same page and keep track of needs and progress at a glance.

3. Stay on task and cut down on distractions.

Depending on your culture, you may want to spice up your meetings a little to keep your team engaged. But if you do, it’s a good idea to keep everyone otherwise focused and on task. Make sure everyone has the space to contribute and you’re working to help with pain points or sticking points.

If you’re running the meeting, strive to serve as its moderator. Foster open communication. Be ready to step in when it’s time to redirect or move the meeting along to the next agenda item. As you tick down the list, stick to a rhythm of communication, brainstorming, and settling.

Talk about where you’re stuck or what needs to be addressed about a particular point. Allow the team a reasonable amount of time (given your schedule and the meeting length) to discuss approaches and then commit to a strategy to address it before moving on. If something doesn’t work, you can revisit it later.

4. Encourage note-taking and active listening.

Meetings can be rich opportunities for teams to work through roadblocks collaboratively. If you plan them out thoughtfully, stick to the plan and allow participants to bring their challenges and solutions to the table, you can accomplish workplace miracles.

Coaching your team on active listening (listening to understand vs. listening to respond), and good note-taking will help participants maximize the benefits they reap from each face-to-face meeting.

Some form of note-taking, whether by hand or with a digital device, will help team members remember next steps and other action items. If you meet online, you might consider creating a digital recording of important meetings. Attendees can review details asynchronously later.

5. Go forth and turn those bullet points into action.

You want your time to be used to maximum efficiency when you gather your team. As a result, make sure your meeting allows for planning and the next steps. You could have a recap at the end of each session, quickly summarizing each relevant topic, outlining how the team will address the issue, and clarifying who is responsible for what.

To maximize your meetings, you could also work this into each agenda item as you move through the meeting itself. Everyone should leave the table (whether it’s in your meeting room or virtual meeting space) with a clear understanding of actions they will take to move forward. If each attendee leaves the meeting empowered with the knowledge of what and how to do next, you can save significant time and energy as a project progresses.

Whether you and your team operate in person, remote or hybrid, meetings are likely a staple of your weekly or monthly scheduling. You need to collaborate, and sometimes face-to-face is the best way to do that. These steps can help you ensure a smooth and productive meeting online or in person, and help you avoid wasting your and your team members’ time.

In short, great meetings involve a lot of clear communication, from beginning to end. Start by evaluating whether you should have a meeting and who is essential to the process. Clearly outline points to be addressed in a succinct meeting agenda. Keep the meeting flowing on task. Ensure everyone walks out knowing what to do next. A little extra planning and preparation will save your team a healthy amount of time, cost and stress.

Calendar Full? 5 Ways To Maximize Your Meetings was originally published on Calendar.com by Deanna Ritchie. Featured Image Credit: Christina Morillo; Pexels.com. Thank you!

4 Ways to Ensure Your Software Offers Exceptional Customer Experience

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4 Ways to Ensure Your Software Offers Exceptional Customer Experience

In today’s digital age, customers have thousands of companies at their fingertips. Consequently, if you want people to choose your business over that of your competitors, providing an exceptional customer experience (CX) is essential.

For many businesses, this starts with their customer-facing software. Customer-facing software refers to digital solutions designed to create a positive user experience. As a result, these solutions have the power to ease common pain points and turn casual customers into loyal patrons.

Not sure whether your customer-facing software is up to snuff? Don’t fret. There are simple steps you can take to improve your digital customer service. Outlined below are four strategies to ensure your customer-facing software exceeds user expectations.

1. Use an appointment scheduler.

If you’re in the service industry, your company likely relies on customer appointments. Unfortunately, many businesses don’t understand the importance of accessible appointment scheduling. Complicated scheduling processes and old-school telephone calls frustrate customers. Therefore, outdated tech is driving them to competitors that are more convenient to book with.

Stop losing clients by making it easy for them to book appointments online. Digital appointment schedulers allow customers to schedule appointments without ever needing to call your company.

These software solutions are available 24/7, so customers can schedule appointments at any time of day. For example, do customers need to cancel? No worries; digital appointment schedulers provide options for people to reschedule and edit appointments.

When choosing your appointment booking software, look for one with calendar integration.

While most schedulers have a built-in calendar, some don’t integrate with other calendaring solutions. Consequently, this can cause you to miss appointments if you don’t check your appointment scheduler regularly. Instead, find a solution that instantly updates all of your calendars when an appointment is booked.

2. Have a mobile-friendly website.

Nowadays, people are glued to their smartphones.

A 2021 survey assessed that almost 50% of the people surveyed spend at least five–if not, six hours on their phones every day. As a result, this means there’s a 50/50 chance that customers will pull up your website on their mobile devices.

If your site isn’t optimized for mobile, it may be challenging for people to navigate from their phones.

Mobile-friendly websites now use a responsive design. Therefore, this means your site automatically displays properly, no matter what device users are on. Without responsive design, mobile users will just see a smaller version of your desktop website. These are often hard to navigate from mobile devices and can leave customers frustrated.

In order to implement a responsive design, your site must use a fluid grid. This grid style appropriately sizes elements based on what device customers are using. Website developers can implement a fluid grid by editing your site’s CSS. But if that feels too technical, many simple website builders offer basic templates for mobile-friendly sites.

3. Provide self-help options.

When customers encounter a problem or have a question, they don’t want to get on the phone and wait to speak to a representative. Instead, they’d rather quickly discover the answers they’re looking for themselves.

Providing self-service options gives customers the tools they need to solve their own problems. As a result, this leads to faster resolutions and allows your customer service team to focus their energy on other tasks.

There are many ways to add customer self-service to your website. Two popular options are company knowledge bases and chatbots. A knowledge base is a portion of your site that houses information to help customers learn about your service. This section of the site may include blogs, guides, and a FAQ page.

Chatbots are AI-driven computer programs that process and simulate human conversation. They’re often used to answer basic customer questions like “What is your pricing?” or “Can I reschedule my appointment?” Chatbots can find information for customers more quickly than humans and tailor content based on the conversation. Therefore, this helps customers find answers faster than if they were speaking with an employee.

4. Collect customer feedback.

You’ve simplified scheduling, created a mobile-friendly website, provided self-help options, and sought at all turns to provide an exceptional customer experience. But how do you know if the changes you’ve made have impacted your customers’ experience?

You ask them.

Companies that provide a quality CX understand the importance of feedback. This information can be used to gauge customer satisfaction and make improvements to your service. Additionally, asking for and implementing feedback signals to customers that you value their insights.

Customer satisfaction surveys are a simple way to gather answers to specific customer service questions. Deploy feedback surveys after a service has been provided to better understand the customer experience. If you notice a negative feedback trend, make a plan to address the highlighted issues. Then share this plan with your customers so they know you take their opinions seriously.

Start Improving Your CX Today

Your customers have more options today than ever before. If you want to stand out from the competition, it’s critical that you provide an exceptional customer experience. This starts with your customer-facing software.

Featured Image Credit: Andrea Piacquadio; Pexels.com. Thank you!

Level Up Customer Service: 3 Methods for Your Business

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Level Up Customer Service: 3 Methods for Your Business

Businesses may refer to them as customers, clients, patrons, shoppers, consumers, purchasers, or something different. Whatever name they choose, it describes the people they need for their business to survive…and the ongoing need to level up customer service.

All other things being equal, such as product, quality, and price point, customer service is what sets competitors apart. Consequently, it takes great customer service to bring people in, entice them back, and keep them loyal. That’s the stuff successful enterprises are made of.

Businesses that believe their customer service is delivering everything they can should beware of complacency. This is one part of doing business that requires constant feeding and attention. Customer desires are always changing, and businesses need to keep pace at a minimum — and set the pace if possible.

Even businesses that think they’re at the top of their customer service game should be looking for ways to level up. Here’s how they can serve their customers even better.

1. Adopt a continuous improvement model.

Customer service is a long game. It’s also one that touches every single internal business process, from setting prices through service after the transaction. That means it touches every tool used along the way.

Businesses should continuously assess their online scheduling software, customer data collection and management systems, and automated phone systems. And they should do so through a customer-centric lens. Does the business put the customer first in everything it does?

There’s a reason why this model is called “continuous” as opposed to “continual.” The former is uninterrupted while the latter occurs periodically.

Businesses tend to look at these systems only in annual reviews or while planning, when they should be business as usual. If a customer calls with a problem and it’s resolved, that experience should inform the next one. The information about the issue and the resolution needs to be shared with all staff to level up customer service across the organization.

Continuous improvement across the board, from appointment scheduling to payment systems, is vital to customer satisfaction. A business stands to lose 63% of customers who think they had a poor experience. Put the customer first everywhere in the business, without interruption, and improve service every day, all the time.

2. Make customer service training systematic.

There are a couple of key factors in stellar customer service. One is that everyone in the business should know how to deliver it and focus on doing so. Second is that customer service practice is always changing, which means the people delivering it need ongoing training.

Require customer service training to some degree in every employee position, from front of the house to back.

Often, individual employees are working on their own with their own customers. How is individual input shared routinely among all employees so they can all improve how they deliver their services?

Great customer service isn’t as easy as just being polite and accommodating. Solving customer complaints and issues involves asking the right questions, which not everyone knows how to do. Companies can’t count on the customer being able to express a problem, which makes questioning crucial to a good experience.

Businesses should provide ongoing, routine training on the mechanics of customer service. At the same time, they need to systematically use real customer service issues to continuously improve delivery. Managers must devote time to coaching, mentoring, and rewarding good practices.

Making customer service training systematic in a business supports that customer-centric focus. There are myriad customer service training tools even the smallest businesses can use to teach their employees how to build relationships. Use the right ones often and deliberately. Doing so will move customer satisfaction in the right direction.

3. Make the business more accessible to more customers.

Making a business more accessible to more customers means opening the doors to a much larger pool of prospects. However, accessibility goes far beyond making those doors wider or constructing wheelchair curb transitions. It also involves more than a business’s physical space.

Physical space considerations include button-activated doors, braille and audio wayfinding systems, and consistent flooring. Although laws prohibit most denials of service animals, businesses can go further. They can provide water, snacks, and relief areas for these animal helpers as well.

Customers who tend to be accompanied by children will appreciate kid-friendly spaces. Those who find children disruptive appreciate it when common spaces are designed to keep kids from disturbing them. As a result, when done cleverly, businesses can make customers in both camps happy.

Businesses should provide print and online forms and information in more than one language. Employing bilingual employees or subscribing to language translation services will likewise improve service to non-native speakers of English. To better accommodate the visually impaired, employees could learn how to use WhatsApp and its accessibility features.

Differently abled people make up a significant portion of our population. Being differently abled doesn’t mean they aren’t consumers…with money to spend! Businesses that accommodate those differences may find themselves opening their automatic doors to future loyalists.

We can always do better!

Regardless of what a business is doing right now to serve customers, it can do better.

Unless a business is the only one of its type in town, it’s going to need to find ways to be competitive. Going above and beyond in its customer service efforts will distinguish it from the others. And that will make all the difference.

Why Is Time Management Considered a Soft Skill?

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Why Is Time Management Considered a Soft Skill?

Optimizing your resume is vital when applying for a job, asking for a raise, or seeking a promotion. Obviously, factors like your education and experience play a role. However, it’s also true for the hard skills you possess, such as the specific knowledge and skills required to perform well at a job.

However, increasingly, soft skills are playing a significant role.

“93% of employers say soft skills play a critical role in their decision about whom they want to hire,” says Ian Siegel, co-founder and CEO of ZipRecruiter. “Those soft skills include showing up on time, willingness to learn, enthusiasm, and a can-do attitude. So when you don’t have work experience to sell, remember that you can still sell yourself.”

The term “soft skills” encompasses a wide range of abilities. However, due to people working in very different situations, hybrid situations, communication is very high on the list right now. ZipRecruiter listed communication as the most in-demand soft skill that employers are looking for. This was followed by customer service, scheduling, time management, project management, analytical thinking, and the ability to work independently.

But what exactly are soft skills? How does time management fit into the concept of “soft skills?” And, in what ways does it allow you to thrive at work?

Well, let’s answer those questions, and more, in the following article.

What are soft skills?

Often, time management is referred to as a soft skill. But what does that mean exactly? Essentially, a soft skill is a desirable trait for employers.

The soft skills you possess determine your work style and your interaction with your co-workers. The difference between hard skills and soft skills is that hard skills are technical and job-specific. In contrast, soft skills relate to professionalism, timeliness, and other essential, intangible qualities that complement the practical skills required for the job, making you an attractive candidate.

Although these skills are crucial to success at work and in your personal life, many people never learn them. Some of the most common soft skills include:

  • communication;
  • collaboration;
  • emotional Intelligence;
  • analytical and problem-solving skills;
  • creativity;
  • adaptability and flexibility;
  • leadership;
  • learning agility;
  • stress management;
  • ownership; and
  • attention to detail.

As people have gained access to colleges and technical schools, they have developed more advanced hard skills. Yet, despite this, many people lack the soft skills necessary to succeed. And again, the importance of technical or skilled skills cannot be overstated. For example, skills like coding, marketing, or speaking another language will definitely give you an edge.

However, if you have no interpersonal skills or have difficulty managing your work ethic, you will have a tough time succeeding. It is even possible that you could lose your job.

Due to this, soft skills are more important than you may realize. So do not underplay or disregard them during an interview or ask for a raise or promotion. Instead, ensure that potential employers know you are efficient, effective, and able to work with others.

Why is time management considered a soft skill?

Managing time effectively is a soft skill because it cannot be taught in a formal classroom setting. Instead, it requires practice and experience to develop.

But, more specifically, time management is considered a soft skill for the following reasons.

  • Regardless of your profession, it applies to you. Managing your time effectively is important regardless of your industry or position. In fact, unlike hard skills specific to certain industries, time management is a universal skill set.
  • You can transfer it. In addition to the previous point, soft skills can be applied to any career path. Their use is versatile and can be adapted to many different positions and settings.
  • It’s teachable. Although not traditionally taught in a classroom, soft skills like time management can be taught. Most accomplish this through training, coaching, workshops, and external mentoring.
  • Success requires it. As a soft skill, time management is crucial to success. Without time management, you will have difficulty meeting deadlines, completing tasks, and achieving your goals.
  • Soft skills strengthen workplace relationships. The last thing anyone wants to work with is someone who never meets deadlines or disrespects their time. Unfortunately, it is possible to disrupt your co-workers and make life difficult for everyone in your workplace without time management skills. The result can be friction between your co-workers.
  • It’s a life skill. The ability to manage time is not only useful at work. Your personal life can benefit from this as well. Whether completing daily chores, setting and keeping appointments, going to the gym, or spending time with family and friends, time management is an integral part of our lives. Intentionally managing your time will help you make better decisions and maintain a successful work-life balance.

Why is time management an important soft skill?

With a better understanding of soft skills, let’s look at the importance of time management at work.

  • It makes your work experience more enjoyable. You are more likely to deliver a high-quality end product on time (or before) when operating at your highest level. In turn, this boosts your confidence, motivation, and engagement.
  • Goal-setting becomes easier. By setting smarter goals, it will be easier for you to track and achieve them.
  • Provides more opportunities. By being proficient in the basics of your job, you will have more opportunities for training, career growth, promotions, and mentoring in the workplace. In addition, when you learn how to manage your time efficiently, you can gain additional skills that can last your entire career and increase your competitiveness.
  • You can make better decisions. Planning your day strategically and prioritizing the most important tasks first is the key to making wise, practical time management decisions. You will become more productive as you develop this habit and think more creatively and critically about your tasks.
  • You’ll be able to avoid stress and burnout. Allocating specific time windows for being most productive is a critical element of time management. You’ll be less stressed when you utilize these time frames and get your work done efficiently. For example, when you block out time for your priorities, you can avoid waiting until the last minute or letting distractions interrupt your workflow.
  • More personal time. A satisfying work-life balance is something we all strive for. Nevertheless, finding that balance can be difficult when your work and home to-do lists are overwhelming. We can regain our freedom by managing our time well off the clock. We won’t work odd or long hours if we have a deadline. Managing our time allows us to relax, refresh, and reset.

Types of Time Management Skills

While not an extensive list, here are some of the most essential types of time management skills you should consider developing.

Prioritizing

You may be unable to complete every task you are asked to do. And, that’s alright — despite your desire to do everything at once.

You must prioritize your tasks to accomplish what matters most in a logical order. Among the factors to consider when assigning priority are:

  • the timeframe for each task;
  • estimated timeframe;
  • the ways it might be necessary to others in the organization;
  • the consequences of not completing the task;
  • the possibility that a task could be interrupted by a bottleneck; and
  • whether it could it be delegated or outsourced to someone else.

Scheduling

Some tasks must be accomplished at specific times, so scheduling is essential. Schedules affect the flow of your day, your week, your month, and the workflow of others. Due to energy levels and demands of the day, most people are more or less productive at specific times of the day.

Keeping a schedule can also help you avoid procrastination. For example, let’s say that you need to return an important phone call. If it’s not scheduled, you may keep putting it off by saying, “I’ll get around to it.” As a consequence, you never make this important phone call.

Moreover, a schedule ensures you never miss deadlines or meetings. And, it’s pretty handy in breaking larger tasks into more manageable pieces.

Task Management

You can prevent forgetting important tasks by keeping a to-do list (properly prioritized) and integrating it into your schedule. In addition, they help you avoid spending all day thinking about your to-do list.

Keeping track of your tasks takes energy, and having to contend with everything that needs to be done throughout the week can be a burden. Keep a daily list of all the tasks you need to accomplish, and you won’t be overwhelmed. Focus on one task at a time.

How you decide to manage your tasks is totally up to you. Some prefer to create daily, weekly, and monthly to-do lists. Others, however, may for techniques like batching, where you arrange your tasks in similar groups—for example, setting aside specific time blocks for email management or scheduling meetings only on Tuesdays.

Workload Management

Even though it may seem odd, pacing your work is a crucial time management skill. Working long hours or skipping breaks may improve productivity in the short term, but you will lose productivity in the long run due to exhaustion. Unless there is an emergency, it is important not to overwork. Your schedule should include necessary breaks and a reasonable end time.

Also, you can avoid burnout by knowing and implementing an optimum workload for yourself.

Minimizing Distractions

When you learn how to manage your time, you can avoid distractions. Experts recommend that you avoid distractions during work hours, such as emails, texts, and social media.

Doing this will allow you to keep your focus and utilize your time efficiently. When working, it can be tempting to let people interrupt you or let your laziness get in the way. For your schedule to run smoothly, though, you must remain focused and organized.

You should be in control of your work time as well. For instance, you should not waste time looking at irrelevant work materials on the web.

Do not lose focus. After all, there’s a reason that you set goals. You will achieve your goals much more quickly if you focus your efforts appropriately.

Delegation

It may be possible for you to delegate some tasks, depending on your line of work. As such, you need to know when to delegate and what to delegate.

At the same time, many people are reluctant to delegate, either because of their desire for control or to save money by not hiring assistants or employees. In the end, both approaches reduce productivity and increase costs.

Despite diligent time management, you may be trying to do too much if you still can’t accomplish everything on your to-do list. Remember, rather than failing at many tasks; it is better to succeed at a few of them.

How to Improve Your Time Management Skills

Are you interested in improving your time management skills? To solve this problem, you can do a few things.

Keeping a time log is a good place to start. As a result, you can audit where your time is currently being spent. Additionally, this can help you discover when you’re most productive and when you’re wasting time.

In the words of psychotherapist and writer Nathaniel Branden, “The first step toward change is awareness.”

After that, you need to be deliberate. After all, time management doesn’t just magically happen. It also involves the following.

  • Setting small blocks of intention, like 30-minutes on an activity that brings you closer to reaching a goal.
  • Use techniques like the Eisenhower Matrix to determine what your priorities are.
  • Evaluating time-wasters, such as the time spent in your inbox.
  • Get comfortable with saying “no” when you’ve packed your calendar.
  • Building a conducive work environment by keeping it clean and organized.
  • Fight back against procrastination by scheduling your most important tasks when you’re most productive.
  • Add white space to your calendar instead of scheduling every minute of your day, like blank spaces for emergencies.
  • Assessing your schedule regularly. Doing so will help you prepare and ensure your time is spent wisely.
  • Tracking the progress of your goals to hold yourself accountable.

In Conclusion

There’s no denying that we’re living in an era of change in the workplace.

Because of that, soft skills are in high demand. More and more employers recognize the importance of soft skills for employee morale and productivity. Having the right opportunities and the right environment can help you develop soft skills.

Because of this, time management is a soft skill that can enhance your career.

Why Is Time Management Considered a Soft Skill? was originally published on Calendar by John Rampton. Featured Image Credit: Ono Kosuki; Pexels. Thank you!

How Can I Better Manage My Time Management Needs

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You can always do better to improve your time management abilities and habits. Manage your time management needs to make your life better.

Signs that you need to improve your time management abilities and habits include the following:

  • your long-term ambitions appear elusive;
  • you are not getting much done; and
  • you miss or move your deadlines.

There is no project manager assigned to your life to manage your time and responsibilities properly. You can take charge of your own time management needs.

Everyone struggles with time management. It is a skill most of us could use some help to improve. However, signs that you need to improve your time management abilities and habits include:

  • your long-term ambitions appear elusive;
  • you often miss or move deadlines;
  • you can’t concentrate and struggle to accomplish chores or projects;
  • your work list is overwhelming;
  • you decide you just cannot do it all;
  • you labor longer than you should on particular tasks;
  • you’re always stressed; and
  • you’re trying hard…but getting nowhere.

If any of the following apply to you, it’s time to grow up a bit and work on your time management.

Finding Out How Time Management Works

1. Set objectives.

We often ignore goals while managing our time.

It’s easy to lose sight of long-term objectives amid everyday duties. As a result, you may struggle to concentrate on the most pressing issues or prioritize your extensive list of responsibilities.

Overwhelmed? Re-evaluate your task list. Will spending time on this specific task help you achieve your goals?

Work from your SMART objectives: Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic/Relevant, and Time-Based. Unrealistic or vague objectives are challenging to monitor and generally unfinished.

2. Plan your time.

Stop letting others schedule your time.

The most effective strategy to acquire time management skills is to be purposeful with your time. You are making time management a habit that may help you achieve long-term objectives while reducing distractions and increasing attention. When planning your time working from home, keep in mind different timetables.

For example, notify your roommates when you don’t want to be disturbed, go to a public place, or make a lot of noise. Establishing expectations ahead of time decreases the possibilities for conflict.

3. Plan time chunks.

Blocking your time is an excellent method to prioritize non-urgent, long-term projects that demand attention and significant labor.

  • It’s generally put on hold when more pressing duties demand your attention.
  • Setting aside time to focus on specific tasks ensures progress.
  • Limiting work time also reduces task fatigue.

A shared calendar at work might help discourage employees from arranging meetings within your time blocks.

4. Find your time management peak hours.

Power hours are when you have the most incredible energy and do the most.

You may already be aware of your power hours. If you’re unsure, monitor your time to find out. Therefore, during your power hours, schedule your most vital and time-consuming chores.

However, schedule monotonous jobs that don’t demand much concentration throughout the day.

5. Use sprints for focus.

It’s not always simple to start a job or work deep. Therefore, the Pomodoro approach works well for task beginning and attention issues.

Schedule brief (15–30 minute) periods of intense concentration on a single activity. Then take a five-minute pause between sprints. Prepare a distraction-free environment before a concentration sprint. Get rid of everything except what you need to complete your task.

For example, enable Do Not Disturb on your devices. Avoid putting up with talkative roommates. Your sprints may be as long or as short as you choose. However, five- and ten-minute sprints with one-minute pauses may be more suitable for you.

6. Set time management priorities.

Our to-do lists may suddenly balloon. Idea generation and idealization are human strengths. Ideas are limitless, but time is limited. Pretending you can manufacture time increases your stress levels. For example, the Eisenhower Matrix is a powerful prioritizing tool.

Even if you don’t use the diagram to prioritize activities, the vocabulary and structure may help you evaluate their worth. For example, tasks that need quick attention.

  • Important: Tasks that help you achieve your objectives. However, they aren’t always urgent, yet failure to do so has significant implications.

The Eisenhower Time Management Matrix divides work into four quadrants. Using this approach will help you prioritize your tasks.

Prioritize these tasks. Next, do these things.

  • Important But Not Urgent: Postpone or assign. Don’t do it! Remove it from your list.

You don’t have to do everything. However, delete tasks that don’t fulfill your aims to save time, especially if you created them. It takes some trial and error to find the right one for you. Nevertheless, it is possible to build good time management skills.

7. Schedule your week and days.

Every day and week, set your aims and priorities. However, planning your calendar offers you a better sense of the future and allows you to prepare for it.

Therefore, checking in on your time management priorities keeps you on track with your objectives and helps you to adjust to new ones.

8. Saying no.

Time is limited. Even in business, boundaries are necessary. You may feel pressured to say yes to every request, but you aren’t.

It’s essential to be aggressive, know your limitations, and avoid over-committing. Breach of obligations erodes confidence in relationships.

9. Feed your brain.

We frequently take our intellect for granted. Focus isn’t only a result of willpower. Our brains must be in tip-top shape.

You are taking pauses, sleeping enough, eating well, exercising regularly, and socializing to help executive function. If you’ve ever felt “hangry” or grumpy after a stormy night’s sleep, you’re not 100%.

However, when you’re irritable, you’re more likely to create problems at work and at home. Therefore, trying to work when you’re not at your best leads to poor work and mental misery.

10. Stop looking for motivation or inspiration.

You won’t get much done if you wait for inspiration to hit. Set a small objective to get started.

Focus sprints might help you finish challenging activities. Starting time management may inspire you even for five minutes. However, don’t ignore social media.

11. No such thing as time management multitasking.

Multitasking is a losing proposition. Constant interruptions degrade attention, reducing work completion.

Instead of jumping from activity to task, make a list of recurring charges and schedule them. However, it’s tough to resist multitasking when you’re not the only one working from home, but setting limits will pay you in the long term. However, always look for new time savers.

12. Plan your message check-ins.

You may believe checking every email, social media direct message, and phone contact are polite. Like multitasking, these random interruptions limit your capacity to accomplish serious work. Instead, schedule time to catch up on mail.

How Can I Better Manage My Time Management Needs was oringinally published on Calendar by Hunter Meine. Featured Image Credit: CottonBro; Pexels. Thank you!

4 Ways Businesses Can Expand Their Payment Options

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Expand Payment Options

Part of catering to customers’ needs is offering flexible and convenient ways to pay. Sometimes the difference between making a sale and not is a payment selection clients can work with. Whether you strictly stick to services or also sell products, increasing your payment options can also expand your customer base.

At the same time, balancing business and client needs is essential. It may not be practical or cost-effective to offer some solutions if setup and maintenance expenses are too high. Frequency of client use, transaction fees, and chargeback risks are considerations every owner should evaluate. Most importantly, payment options must make sense for individual appointment-based business models. Below are four ways to expand customers’ payment choices.

1. Set Up Mobile Payments

Mobile payments can cover everything from digital wallets and peer-to-peer payment services to QR codes. These options make it easier for customers without traditional bank accounts and debit cards to submit payments. With the rise in the gig economy and money management alternatives, mobile payments also offer clients additional flexibility.

Some customers may have conventional checking accounts where they manage part of their income. However, they might also do side work and have supplemental income that goes into peer-to-peer or digital wallet accounts. These clients may prefer to pay for services like haircuts and home repairs with their side income. Online and in-store mobile payments make the process simpler since customers don’t have to move money between accounts.

Survey research shows that 71% of U.S. consumers have used a mobile wallet to make payments in the last year. The convenience of not carrying a physical wallet or purse may be part of the appeal. Other factors that make mobile payments attractive are their contactless nature and enhanced security. Customers don’t have to exchange card details or account information. Businesses, however, have to consider transaction fees and the possibilities of chargebacks.

2. Offer Electronic Invoicing

Electronic invoicing is a way to bill clients after they’ve received a company’s services.

Say your business provides in-home maintenance services related to plumbing or electrical wiring. Customers schedule appointments for these services on your website and receive confirmations with a technician’s details. Often, the extent of the problem and the appropriate fix aren’t known until the day the tech shows up.

Before property owners pay, they want to ensure work is done properly and everything’s working. It may take a few days after the job is done for clients to verify nothing else is wrong. Sending invoices via email after technicians complete the work gives customers that time and lets them submit payments securely.

Customers don’t have to exchange credit card or checking account information directly with someone they may not know. Electronic invoices also save employees time at a customer’s location. Repair technicians don’t have to collect and verify payment details or ensure they have a good cellular data connection. They can inform the customer they’ll receive an invoice in their email and move on to the next job. Business risks include delayed payments and write-offs.

3. Give Recurring or Automatic Payment Options

Repeat customers who come in frequently or purchase ongoing services might prefer recurring or automatic payments. With these options, clients can set up which account they want a business to charge each time they buy something. For example, a pet daycare and boarding facility can offer recurring payments for clients who use the services weekly.

Instead of collecting payment for each visit, the facility can charge the person’s account. The frequency could also be set according to client preferences or business needs. For instance, the facility might apply charges on a rolling 30-day basis. The business might charge for monthly boarding and daycare visits at once, giving customers an easier way to budget.

Recurring or automatic payments can also work well for gyms, dance studios, house cleaning services, and ongoing care facilities. One of the biggest advantages of routine payment options is they’re convenient for the customer and the business. Neither side has to remember to send or collect payment. Yet some of the same risks and costs that occur with manual payments still apply. These include insufficient funds, fees, chargebacks, and fraudulent transactions.

4. Provide Payment Plans

While some services don’t cost much, others do. Significant expenses can make customers delay their purchases and major projects. Others won’t be able to fit these costs into their budgets without ways to make smaller payments over time. Offering payment plans or same-as-cash credit options can help businesses overcome the affordability obstacle.

For instance, a painting service may perform a variety of jobs that vary in cost. Some requests will run a few hundred dollars, while others will go into the thousands. Clients may appreciate options to pay off the work over six months or even a year. Payment plans give customers flexibility and ease the pain of paying for much-needed services.

Some businesses may choose to manage payment plans in-house or work with a service that extends on-demand credit to clients. Either way, working within customers’ budgets can bring in more business and expand market reach. However, payment plans may require more follow-up and some degree of automation. The risks of write-offs and slow payments exist. Credit services might also mean more transaction fees and reduced revenues for businesses.

Expanding Payment Solutions

When businesses offer more payment options, their services are more likely to appeal to a wider customer base. Flexibility, affordability, and security often represent clients’ top needs. Giving customers choices beyond cash and conventional credit and debit cards shows a business is willing to accommodate those desires. Alternatives, such as mobile wallets and payment plans, can give service providers another way to stand out from the competition.

Featured Image Credit: Yan Krukov, Pexels. Thank you!

The Power of Simplicity: Avoiding Workplace Complications

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simplicity

It’s not always easy to achieve simplicity. What does that mean, and why? We make most things in our lives difficult, and they don’t have to be. Life is simple, but we persist in making it complicated. — So said Confucius in 500 B.C.

Firstly, life may be more difficult for you because of the tremendous flood of information and technology. Simplicity has become impossible, especially in businesses. For instance. Try scheduling a Zoom meeting at the last minute — what happens?

How We Complicate It All

Consider the daily barrage of elements: calendar invitations, metrics, measurements, methods to account for things, technology, too many permissions, paperwork, unnecessary tasks, etc. We often generate complication instead of simplicity. We generate it by over-correcting and creating exceptions — and staying in meeting-mania-mode.

Secondly, some people make up for poor performers with crazy workarounds. We frequently over-engineer solutions to make people feel better about participating in a process. Much of it is superfluous — but really, it’s us.

The technique of complicated workarounds has several drawbacks: weariness, lack of results, dissatisfaction, shattered passion, execution expenses, and employees leaving companies.

Or could this be you? Talk for about a half-hour, then send a letter of agreement to finalize the sale.

What is the cost of making that choice in any company? Multiply that amount by all of their choices. And all of their meetings.

Why Simplicity Helps Businesses

Businesses that aim for simplicity have an edge. Here is one lesson learned in the 1990s. The mortgage application procedure was excruciating for prospective customers. Consequently, the banks and lenders just blew up the process, making it more client-friendly, and they were able to see tremendous growth.

Use a Devotion to Simplicity

The evidence backs this up. Heidrick & Struggles studied Fortune 500 “super accelerators” and discovered devotion to simplicity. They incorporate simplicity as a way of living, thinking, and working — and this allows them swiftly identify and reallocate resources to the essential opportunities, the report’s authors wrote. Teams who followed these rules fared better financially. Simplicity pays.

Think: Fast. Simple. Good. Done.

This is the foundation of a “Fast. Simple. Good. Done” mentality with clients and employees and a game-changing mentality that combines these four interconnected components to boost performance. Change to this motto and see the results.

How To Be Simple

Experts frequently tell customers to act as a private equity business. History or connections do not bind customers, so they may make various simple judgments about how they do their tasks. However, this is a liberating and powerful perspective for your work. Moreover, many of us feel the influence of our emotions trickle into our actions and choices.

Think: Simplify now or sink later.

To meet simple, we must think differently. Many experts typically have groups of ten people pass a ball around in a circle, stressing it must contact each person’s hands.

Try this game with your team.

Managers schedule their first round and give them some planning time. Some experts have many groups do this little exercise simultaneously to make it competitive. Then we celebrate the winner. When the advice is to reduce their time in half, the room erupts, and they experiment and typically succeed. Next, some experts instruct the team to double their time.

Now they say the manager (boss) is insane. Finally, the victorious team should join hands and have one person sweep the ball around, touching the hands (this is what you want the team to finally come to.

Think: We must alter our mentality. Simplicity will win, hands down.

How?

1. Take a figurative weed-whacker to your old methods. Be brutal as you simplify.

That is to say, don’t hold back simply because that’s how you’ve always done it.

2. Communicate concisely.

Moreover, say anything you want to say on a bumper sticker.

3. Consider your audience.

The point of reference is usually a bright, retired 95-year-old mother. However, is it basic enough for her to grasp even if she has no prior experience?

4. Simplify all decision-making.

Who is the lowest-level decision-maker?

5. Aim for outcomes. Simplicity goals.

However, time is money, so act appropriately.

6. Define your requirements.

Do we need it? What can we do? How can we speed up? Re-purpose the surplus for good.

7. Get a review of your processes.

Examine it with a neutral party. One who believes in simplicity.

8. Be brave in the scene cuts. No excess talk or processes at work.

Say no to complications.

9. Accept flaws.

The pursuit of perfection is costly. One and done is a good motto. Or, it doesn’t have to be perfect.

10. Lastly, review your to-do list and prioritize chores.

That is to say, remove meetings, reports, etc., and observe whether anybody notices/needs them.

Defend simplicity.

Expert opinion advises that your firm, workers, and shareholders will benefit greatly from shaving down the minutes needed on processes, in meetings, and on perfect projects.

Think: Like a Zen Master.

How simple can you make scheduling a meeting? And then, how can you introduce disruptive simplicity into each meeting? Impossible? Unproductive? UnAmerican? Nonsense. Decide to be one of the greatest business executives — and think like a Zen master.

Think: Like Henry Ford.

For instance, Henry Ford set an egg time in meetings. Ten minutes. When it went off, he left. Anything left undecided or unexplained went to him as a memo. Ford executives were known for the brevity of their meetings. And Henry laughed all the way to the bank. You can do the same.

Image Credit: Anna Nekrashevich; Pexels; Thank you!

The Power Of Simplicity: Avoiding Workplace Complications was originally published on Calendar by Abby Miller.

How to Make Remote Team Meetings Shorter and Better

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remote team meetings

Virtual team meetings are essential for remote team collaboration and productivity: they serve as a venue for aligning on shared goals. And, yes — it’s a venue. The team needs to understand that this virtual meeting spot is your hangout, your space, your place, and your venue. This information tells them — we meet here; we belong here.

It doesn’t take much to undermine the magic when team meetings don’t work.

Meetings with no purpose or organization are not only a waste of time, but they also stifle employee productivity and irritate employees. It’s no surprise that many people find meetings inconvenient, boring, useless, and just too frequent.

Do you want your employees to feel that way about your meetings? You want your team to be happy, productive, and active in their work community.

So here we are, with some practical suggestions for doing shorter, more productive meetings while avoiding the common pitfalls of remote work. You want high performance.

1. Should we meet, or should we not meet?

Nobody likes to waste their time in ineffective meetings; therefore, first and foremost:

Consider if you really need a meeting or whether you can get the same outcome with a different approach.

Is it feasible to send an email or a short video message summarizing the significant points of your meeting?

Can you address your problem at the next meeting if your team has recurring sessions to address any changes or impediments?

Avoid the temptation to “invite everyone just in case” and instead focus on the most critical attendees to the meeting’s success.

2. Hold meetings that will benefit your whole team.

According to recent research, 42% of remote workers felt “more productive” after working uninterrupted for an extended period. Conversely, getting everyone in the exact virtual location without disturbing production might be challenging, especially if you’re working with a remote team that spans many time zones.

Before agreeing on a time for your meeting, check calendars to see what people’s working hours are.

Instead of spreading meetings throughout the day, consider grouping them together to create large windows of uninterrupted work time.

Avoid scheduling a lot of emergencies or unexpected meetings since they may cause an employee’s regular workday to crash.

Encourage members of your team to keep track of their own schedules.

As a consequence, meeting planners will have a better understanding of the best days and times for everyone.

3. Make a thorough team meeting strategy.

Setting a clear agenda for each virtual meeting that includes the following things is critical:

In addition, there is a time restriction for each component and crucial talking points.

Attendants

Each team member participates in the meeting according to your expectations.

Any relevant documents

Aside from questions and answers or debate,

Set a meeting time limit and stick to it — you want your meetings to be as productive as possible!

Everyone can prepare if the plan is shared ahead of time.

4. Keep everyone’s attention.

All of the components we’ve described are necessary for a virtual meeting to take place.

But now comes the tricky part: keeping the team engaged throughout the meeting.

You have to work twice as hard to produce realistic, in-person conversations in a virtual environment since you don’t have all of them in an office setting.

Spend a few minutes at the beginning of the meeting checking in with everyone, keeping up with what is happening, or just discussing the most recent series everyone is talking about.

This will strengthen your team’s culture while also fostering an open and welcoming atmosphere.

Also, remember that remote collaboration may be more difficult or stressful than face-to-face collaboration.

According to studies, Microsoft observed that brainwave indications associated with overwork and stress are much higher in video meetings than in non-meeting work.

In a virtual conference, participants must maintain regular eye contact with the screen to extract essential information and stay engaged. Unfortunately, there are few nonverbal cues to assist them in reading the room or knowing when it’s their turn to speak.

To keep your team’s attention and ensure that everyone on the team has a role, try to break up long meetings with little breaks every thirty minutes.

Passive listeners are prone to be bored or distracted, but giving them a role may help them feel like they’re a part of the action.

Who will be taking notes, for example?

Who is in charge of the follow-up?

5. Have a specific team meeting aim in mind before you leave.

Never leave a meeting without clearly conveying your intention and verifying that your meeting objectives were satisfied.

Everyone should walk away from a meeting knowing all there is to know on the following topics:

  • What are your plans for the future?
  • Who is responsible for each task?
  • When is each assignment due?
  • When will the next meeting be held?

Finally, keep track of your peeps after the meeting so that everyone on your team knows who is working on what and how it is developing.

And — really (bosses) — think about butting out of the meeting at the end and let your virtual team and your office team have a few minutes to chat together — without you sitting there observing.

Featured Image Credit: Photo by Artem Podrez; Pexels; Thank you!

How to Make Remote Team Meetings Shorter and Better was originally published on Calendar by Hunter Meine.

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