In my 40+ years of experience in sales, business development, and consulting, I’m blessed to have met more incredible entrepreneurs than I can count. Some were respected business leaders in their fields with decades of experience, while others were just getting started.

They all had a certain set of qualities and characteristics in spades: passion, drive, discipline, dedication, and perseverance to name just a few. These are essential components of the equation that yields a successful career in business.

But despite the abundance of these common qualities, there is one thing many if not all entrepreneurs wish they had more of: TIME.

The Most Valuable Resource

Many of my Celeste Giordano Coaching clients have shared their motivations for starting a business. Not surprisingly, many want to pursue a life filled with the material comforts that accompany success. Most of us yearn for the ability to take luxurious vacations each year, purchase and furnish a beautiful home (or two), spend freely on our family and friends, and donate generously to the charities and causes that matter to us.

But without a doubt, the most coveted reward of entrepreneurship is being a master of your time. Take a survey amongst successful entrepreneurs and you’ll discover that time is perceived as their most valuable resource. Yes, you read that corrected. Time is more desired even more than material wealth. Here’s why…

The gift of time enables entrepreneurs the opportunity to create a life by their design. With time, you can execute the daily, weekly, and monthly actions necessary to create results and enjoy material success. When time isn’t scarce and you aren’t faced with the mounting pressures that accompany a hectic life, you can act with greater focus and the creative problem-solving capabilities necessary to build a thriving legacy business and enjoy the perks that come with it!

Time Management: A Common Struggle

Building a legacy business can feel like a superhuman feat sometimes for many reasons. It demands juggling a myriad of responsibilities from sales and marketing to leading a team and shaping a vision for the future. Business owners need to hit the pavement and do their best work each and every day, all while managing a plethora of personal and family responsibilities. It’s no wonder that entrepreneurs complain that “there aren’t enough hours in the day.”

While you can’t change the number of hours in a day, you can focus on learning time management strategies that empower you to use your time more productively, effectively “creating” more time.

I want to share a story with you about my sister to explain how time management can be an entrepreneur’s best friend or worst enemy.

My sister Michelle Beeler’s birthday was on June 17th. As a birthday gift, I told her I’d be her free labor for the day. Michelle owns 2 businesses, a landscaping business called Creative Landscaping and Design and a printing business called 5 Star Graphic Services.

Like many entrepreneurs, she’s a hustler and a hard worker, and she has done very well for herself. However, she is also a procrastinator. She prefers to work independently and doesn’t like to be held accountable.

Normally, she has 10 yards to cut in a week, and she will do 2 each day, dragging the projects out over the whole week. By most Fridays, she finds she’s behind on printing projects. So I told her that on her birthday, we were doing all 10 yards in one day. She groaned and said, “No way!”

I insisted, and said that after yard number 5, we’d go get an ice cream to reward ourselves for our hard work. I also had a surprise reward in store for her after yard number 10. And all along the way, we crossed each yard off our list.

Well wouldn’t you know it, we knocked all 10 yards out in one day. Afterward, Michelle thanked me and said otherwise, she would have taken the path of least resistance and procrastinated. By managing her time well, she freed up the other 4 days of her week to accomplish tasks in her printing business.

As a surprise reward, Mike and I treated Michelle, my niece Daniele and her boyfriend Mike, and 2 great-nephews Braden and Braxton to a fabulous birthday dinner at her favorite seafood restaurant. It’s important that you relish in the rewards of your accomplishments too.

I want to share 3 lessons Michelle told me she learned from our day together:

1. Accountability gets the job done. Many entrepreneurs resist being held accountable, but when their feet are to the fire, they accomplish so much more and feel better about their work in the long run.
2. Do not procrastinate. What you can do today, don’t put off until tomorrow. It’s amazing how much you can get done in a short amount of time if you just set your mind to doing it.
3. Teamwork helps get a job done and pushes you to not put off what you can accomplish together. Delegating and working as a team does motivate you to work harder and smarter.

Next week, I’m going to share with you 3 time management strategies you can use to make the most of your most valuable resource, so be sure to look for that. In the meantime, remember Michelle’s 3 lessons as you go through your week. You’ll produce better results and enjoy greater work-life balance.

Contact me today to become a master of your time so you can “double plus” your income THIS year and create a life you love.

Celeste Giordano’s mission is to help business owners develop the skills, knowledge and attitude necessary to “DoublePlusTM” their income and become effective and inspirational leaders in their fields. Whether it’s taking your successful business to the next level or starting a new venture, she will teach you the exact skills and strategies you need to enroll more quality prospects, build a rock-solid team, and break through obstacles to achieve real profit and lasting success. Celeste is a professional business growth specialist, a master sales strategist, and dynamic speaker with more than 40 years experience in direct sales and managing high-performing teams.

To learn more about Celeste, click here.

Want to use this article? Please feel free to use this content as long as you keep it in its original format and include a link to the original post and Celeste Giordano’s brief bio.