Twenty Time Saving Tips ~ vZhai: Info Sharing Blog

Twenty Time Saving Tips

Are you pressed for time?

It’s not at all unusual for a freelancer to run out of day before their work is done. If you’re using an application to track how you use your time, that’s a great start to making better use of your time.

There are other shortcuts and tricks you can apply to maximize your available time. In this post, I’ll share twenty tips to help you make the best use of your time.

My Best Time Saving Tips

Here are my very best time saving tips for work and home. First the tips for your freelancing work:

Use boilerplates–Whenever possible, automate your business processes. If you send out many proposals for work, make a boilerplate and modify it each time rather than creating a new proposal from scratch each time.
Specialize–Specialists have several advantages and one of those advantages is that they can get to know a particular part of their field well, saving project ramp up time.
Outsource–If you find yourself with too much work and too few hours, it may be to your advantage to outsource the lowest paying projects to other freelancers who aren’t as experienced as you are.
Use a VA–A virtual assistant can save you a lot of time by handling your routine tasks such as answering emails, phone calls, and even performing basic research tasks.
Keep regular hours–In general, freelancers who keep set business hours devoted to their work tend to get more done than those who work at a different time each day.
Do your difficult tasks during your peak hours–Each of us has a time of day when we are at our best. Discover your peak productivity time and use that for your most challenging or most creative tasks.
Organize your office–Have you ever spent hours looking for something in your office or on your computer? Get organized so that you can find needed files and papers easily and quickly.
Schedule rest-time–A tired freelancer is a slow freelancer. Taking the time to get enough rest will help ensure that you are always feeling and performing your best.
Put yourself on a social media budget–Social media is a great way to promote your freelancing business, but you can have too much of a good thing. Determine a set amount of time each day for social media.
Back up your files–Lost or damaged work files can take hours, if not days, to recreate. Spare yourself the hassle by choosing and using a good file backup system.

What you do with your personal time at home affects your freelancing business. If you can save time on your personal tasks, it is less likely that these tasks will spill over into your workday and use valuable project time. Now, the time saving tips for your home:

Hire someone to help with time-consuming tasks–Just like outsourcing and delegating tasks can help you in your business, it can also help you at home. Especially if you would earn more working than you would pay someone to do the task.
Combine small trips into one–Do you make multiple trips to run errands? If you do, you can save time (and money) by combining all those small trips into several larger trips.
Make use of your “down time”–All of us spend a certain amount of time waiting, but with mobile computing devices your wait time doesn’t have to be wasted time. Use down time to check email, update your to-do list, etc.
If you watch TV, use a DVR to tape shows and avoid commercials–It’s amazing how much of the average television slot is taken up with commercials. Use a DVR, or similar device, to skip commercials and save time.
Keep some healthy, quick meals on hand. Are you too busy to eat healthy? You won’t be if you keep some handy, but nutritious, meals on hand. Salads, for example, are both easy to fix and good for you.
Organize your home–Just like you can lose files in your home office, you can also lose things you want or need in your home. Keep your home organized and minimize the time you spend looking for lost items.
Spread the load–Don’t try to do everything yourself. Divide your chores between family members. Even children can help with routine tasks around the house.
Use mail order–It’s not always necessary to go to the store to get what you need. You can often order exactly what you need through your computer. Books, clothing, and computer equipment can all be found online.
Practice preventative healthcare–Nothing takes as much time as battling an illness or injury. So, follow your doctor’s advice and avoid any unnecessary medical setbacks.
Prioritize–From time to time, re-examine what you do each day. You may find that your priorities have changed and some of the things you do are no longer needed.