We are all victims of distraction and dwindling productivity. We could all do with a little more time available for work (and hence for life). Some of us even profit from more time available to get things done. Every professional who bills clients by the hour also knows the exact monetary value of time lost everyday.
Further, everyone talks about how much time email eats away. The huge distraction pit that the Internet is and how much of a time suck social media can be. We forget that choosing the right web-based tools for our business also costs us plenty of time. There ought to be an easier way to choose the tools we want to work with. How do you do it? Let’s explore a few ways:
Know what you want
It’s easy to sway, dance in the moonlight, and do nothing. Business isn’t easy and it’s impossible to stay in business without knowing what you want. The first necessity with respect to any of the web-based tools for any of your business processes is not the actual toolset itself: it’s about what you want for your business. If you are running a micro business, CRM solutions like Salesforce.com or SugarCRM might not be the right fit even though they have plans for small businesses. You can live without all those features you don’t use.
A one-person business also doesn’t require project collaboration software such as Microsoft Project when simpler and much more amenable tools exist as alternatives such as WorkZone. If you are just into business, you won’t need Intacct when freshbooks will do. You’ll not need enterprise accounts of any kind and you’ll still have plenty of options available for free.
The question, at the risk of repeating: what do you want?
Weekends, dedicated emails, and free trials
It’s easy to get sidetracked on the Internet because it’s not like you’d really walk an extra mile while you are browsing. You’d only open a new tab and deep dive into the “one minute sign up” process, which won’t stop at that precious minute. You’d login, check out the tool, and setup your profile. You’d experiment with the features, and tweak with your options. Sacrificing a typical workday for experiments such as these is almost tragic. So, here’s what you are better off doing:
- Dedicate weekends and after-work hours for experimenting with new tools.
- Make sure you have a separate email address for all the web-based tools you’ll experiment with. If you want to experiment with project collaboration software, invite friends over and fiddle with tasks and scheduling.
- Most web-based apps and tools allow you a free trial. Thankfully then, you’ll have a deadline for your experimentation. If you don’t like what you see within the time a free trial ends, that tool or app is not for you.
Be disloyal
Sounds contrary in general, but being nonchalant to your choices or even being disloyal effective way to save your time which would be swallowed by an unforeseen set of events leading to your disenfranchisement with any particular web-based tool.
As a customer, get ready to switch loyalties. You’d often encounter stumbling blocks or complete walls when it comes to certain aspects of a tool. For instance, if you picked a popular tool like Mavenlinks, you’d realize that the tool only works with PayPal or QuickBooks (for integrating your invoicing, accounting, or financial processes). If you are not a QuickBooks user, you’ll need to go look for another one. That’s when you’ll want to switch another project management software that integrates (or allows for integration) with an accounting or invoicing software you use.
If it works, stop switching
On the other hand, if you do find an app or a tool that works, stop switching tools. Make a mental note not to switch for a while. If you find the tool or app hard to use or if you find it hard to convince your business users (anyone else who works with you on the same tool or app) for a complete onboarding or training, give yourself a particular time set into the future to make a change. For now, everyone goes with the choice (unless it’s hurting your business everyday). Make sure you get a vote on that decision. Make your users (or partners) understand that it’s better to allocate non-billable, non-client, or non-productive time for decisions involving application changes.
Plug in to available training
Don’t reinvent the wheel. Don’t even try to spend your time or company resources to train new employees, contractors, or other users. Almost every app or tool has “help” or other resources made available to users. Pick guides, videos, training documents, and other material relevant to the tool of your choice for your internal use. Plenty of third party training resources exists online such as Lynda.com and Grovo.com, which have practically every tool, listed for you (or your users to learn from).
Don’t bite more than you can chew
It’s tempting to go from one tool to another. The fact is that most tools work for your business anyway and the tool or app you pick depends on your personal choice. Perhaps, it’s based on a collective vote company wide. Either ways, most project management software or CRM tools roll out constant updates to make sure that they are keeping up with the times. Don’t upgrade before you need to and don’t look to spend more time on any tool than you should. Resist the temptation to spend more time on web-based tools since you’ll never be able to account for the time lost for non-productive tweaks or experiments you’d do with any one tool.
As any productivity enthusiast will attest, managing your time well requires focus, determination, and hard work. It requires a mindset overhaul and commitment to a cause. Don’t let the tools hurt your business instead of benefiting you.
What are your favorite tools you use for various business processes? List out your top web-based apps in the comments below.