Youâve probably heard the saying about âworking smarter, not harderâ because everyone wants to learn how to do more by doing less. The thing is, the trick really isnât to do less in general. Itâs more about choosing the most impactful actions over the least impactful actions.
If you really want to work less but make more money, you can if you know what to do when you start.
FREE Checklist: 12 Ways To Make More Money In Your Business
Work Less and Make More Money
Know Your Goals and Objectives
If you donât know what your goals and objectives are, itâs hard to even earn the first penny, much less earn money consistently. Set up your goals and objectives to develop step-by-step instructions that you can follow and schedule in your calendar to ensure that the money-making activities get done first.
Delegate, Outsource and Automate
Donât try to do everything yourself. There is so much technology available that can help you automate a lot of the busy work youâre now doing.
For example, you can automate all bookkeeping entries, and even set up new clients in your project management system if you understand how to use a certain type of connectivity technology (like you can get with HubSpot, for example).
Use the Right Tools for the Job
Donât try to cobble together a bunch of free tools to use to run your business if you really want to work less and make more money. Spend the money and make the investment in your business on software and tools that will grow with you and are the right tools for the job.
Understand the 80/20 Rule
The 80/20 rule proposes that 20% of your efforts result in 80% of the output. Because of this, when you use your analytics to study the impact youâre making with each action, toss out the ones that donât produce enough. Then do more of what does produce and youâll win this busy-work game and eliminate unnecessary, unproductive steps.
Act Consistently and Focus on Impact
When you schedule actions that impact your income and your business (or your life) in a positive way, you need to be consistent in those actions. When you are focused on the impact of your actions, you will get a lot more done in less time and with less effort.
Diversify Your Income Streams
Never put all your eggs in one basket, as they say. Studies show that âthe one percentâ has at least 7 income streams. If you focus on having multiple income streams, youâre going to be more likely to be successful because if one thing starts becoming less profitable, you can let it go and do something else.
Set Your Prices Better
Many times, solopreneurs will set their prices too low. Take the time to truly analyze the prices you set and use a method that works to do it. You can use many pricing methods, from cost-plus to value-based and others. Donât just choose the price out of thin air. Instead, price your services and products in a consistent way so that you can be profitable. If anything that you do wonât produce a worthwhile profit, donât do it anymore.
Let Go of Your Least Profitable Clients
This often happens to solopreneurs in service-based industries. They start working with someone, and ten years later have never raised their prices. You need to either raise them on these people on a yearly basis to keep up, or you need to let them go. One way to do this is to raise your prices to what they should be, giving them plenty of notice to either find someone else or pay your reasonable and profitable rates. But even if you sell a physical product, you should periodically check your costs to ensure you are making the profit that you desire.
Free Checklist: 12 Ideas For Making More Money In Your Business
As you can see, the point is to create momentum by choosing to work on the things that truly make a difference before you work on anything else. It also means that you have to be willing to let go of your comfort zone and find people and resources that can help you get more done with less.
Every business owner wants their income to feel secure and stable. One of the most common business problems today is that many entrepreneurs and business owners hit income plateaus. But there are ways to push beyond them. One extra stream of income might not add up to much, but if you set up more than one income stream, it can become a river of revenue. Download my free report, 12 Ideas For Making More Money In Your Business and use it to help grow your business to work less and make more money.