Ever heard that entrepreneurship is “working 100 hours a week for yourself to avoid working 40 hours a week for somebody else� Unsurprisingly, achieving the elusive work-life balance can be an insurmountable challenge for busy business owners, but what if you could hack your personal and work lives to improve the efficiency and productivity of both?
Here are our top five tips to create work-life balance for business owners.
​1. Adopt the 80/20 rule
The 80/20 rule, also known as Pareto’s Principle, was developed by Vilfredo Pareto, an Italian economist, who observed that 80% of land in Italy was owned by 20% of the population in 1906. This concept of disproportion can be applied to many business situations, and while these ratios are fluid, here are a few examples:
20% of the time you spend working produces 80% of the results
20% of your customers are responsible for 80% of sales
The 80/20 rule can have a dramatic effect on increasing efficiency, productivity and profitability in business, and consequently it can have the same effect on work-life balance.
2. Stop being “busyâ€
Working does not actually equate to productivity. Take a moment and assess which 20% of your daily/weekly/monthly activities are producing 80% of your results. Get ruthless. Cease the remaining low-productivity activities that take 80% of your time, and double-down on the high productivity 20%. Now we have some spare time to play with.
​3. Change things up at work
Pareto’s Principle is applicable to almost every aspect of business, so take it into the office. Get the team together to clean house and prioritise. What 20% of activities are generating 80% of leads? Which 20% of customers are creating 80% of customer service issues? Which 20% of staff are producing 80% of the results? Now how can they replicate their success?
4. Make things personal
With extra time to play with, build activities into your personal life to provide much needed balance. Using Pareto’s principle, assess which leisure activities have the greatest positive effect on you. Incorporate a collection of personal hobbies that meet holistic health needs. Find and capitalise on those outlets you enjoy that promote and provide for positive mental, physical, emotional and spiritual health.
5. Adopt a Business Process Outsourcing strategy
Finally, after gaining clarity with Pareto’s Principle, look at the essential business tasks that remain. Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) is a rapidly growing industry that allows you to achieve even greater efficiencies, particularly in the finance department, by outsourcing functional business processes such as accounting, HR, and customer service to a remote, off-shore team.
A Business Process Outsourcer will set up your remote workforce as if they were working in your own office but with enormous cost savings, availability of highly-qualified staff, and the competitive edge to future-proof your business.
Here at The Back Room, our off-shore team is based in the Philippines. With phenomenal English skills, highly-qualified staff and a workforce like no other, the Philippines is set to change the business landscape.
Read more: Why choose the Philippines for BPO
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To learn more and find out how The Back Room can help you achieve the ultimate work-life balance, check out:
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