If you are not managing your time efficiently, then you are not going to be working to optimal level, which means that you are missing out on making money! It is cliché to say, but time definitely does equal money. But, how are you meant to know whether you have got your time management skills on point or whether you are struggling? Read on to discover signs that you probably fall into the latter category.

You can’t say ‘no’ – There is only one place to begin, and this is with those who cannot say ‘no’ to any clients or any tasks. This is a problem a lot of people face as a business owner. After all, turning money down can seem like the wrong thing to do. However, if you are giving yourself and your workforce too much to handle, you aren’t going to be using your time efficiently. You would be better off determining which clients are the most profitable and worth their while. Most companies are holding onto clients that actually cost them more money than what they make them!

You are putting in more time but getting less done – This is one of the big signs that you are not managing your time efficiently. Do you find that you are putting in more hours because you want to get more done? Yet, despite this, you are not seeing the results you had hoped for? If this is the case, it is a clear sign that you are wasting time. This often happens when people work continuously for hours and do not have any breaks. Regular breaks are vital for positivity because they allow you to refresh your mind so that you go back to work feeling revitalised and ready to get more done.

You don’t track your hours – If you don’t track your hours, you will never know if you are using your time optimally? But, what’s the best way to track work hours for your business? Well, you have a number of different options available to you, but the easiest solution is to simply use one of the work tracking tools that are available, this will save you having to track manually, and it will make it easy for you to assess the hours you put in. You will then be able to determine whether what you are achieving within this time frame is productive or not.

You are indecisive – Ask yourself this; when you have a number of different options, what happens? If you are someone who cannot choose an option, and so you end up going over everything and stressing about what to do, you are wasting your time. It is shocking how much time is wasted on making decisions that aren’t even that important. Most of the time, you can change direction down the road if you need to.

You make frequent excuses – This is another sign that is easy to spot. Do you find yourself making excuses all of the time because you are late with your work or unable to complete a certain task? There are only so many times you can do this without alarm bells ringing. This is a clear sign that you are either doing too much or that you are not making the most of the time that you have available to you. If the latter applies, you need to think about how you handle each task to see if you can improve your work process. Perhaps you need to minimise distractions? If you are continually responding to emails, for instance, this is bound to set you off track. You would be better off assigning yourself a specific hour each day for checking your emails, rather than responding to them as soon as you receive them.

Poor punctuality – If you are the sort of person that is always late for something, your time management is completely off the mark. There are some tips to fix this; relearn the time, give yourself a buffer, get organised, and be comfortable with down time.

If any of the signs mentioned above sound familiar, you probably are not managing your time as effectively as you could be. Use the tips that have been provided to make some changes, and you are bound to notice a difference to the way you work, and consequently, the profits that you make.