How much of your time is spent working in your business rather than on your business?  Studies show that businesses fail because they don’t make the right decision at the right time — but most of us spend the majority of our day dealing with the myriad of details involved in running the shop.

I don’t want to downplay the importance of spending at least part of your day assisting customers and working side-by-side with your staff.  These are both very important to the success of your business, and listening to what these two stakeholder groups have to say is key to making good long-term decisions.

But many of us (myself included) find ourselves scrambling to keep up with the daily inundation of mail, messages and e-mail, as well as coping with whatever urgent issues come along.  If you run out of cash register tape, for example, your five year plan doesn’t seem so urgent.

Here are a few tips that may help you make the best use of your time:

•Set regular appointment times for your sales rep meetings so that you have some free time in between. I suggest that you arrive at the store at least an hour before your first appointment (and ideally before the store opens).  Normally I see reps three days a week at 11:00, 1:00 and 3:00 — but use whatever works for you.

•Limit your time on the computer so that you are not facing the screen for hours every day instead of being present in the store.  This becomes more and more of a challenge as vendors send catalogues electronically and reps communicate via e-mail instead of coming in the store.  The supply side of our industry needs to think about how these practices impact our time on the sales floor.

•Schedule monthly meetings with key members of your staff to discuss big picture issues, such as upcoming promotions, staffing needs, and display issues.  Our management team meets for an hour and a half over breakfast at a coffee shop near the store, and gets a great deal of planning and problem-solving done.

•You may need to hire an additional part-timer in order to free up some of your time for long-term goal-setting and problem-solving. As the business owner or manager, that is an important part of your job description. Make sure you have time to do it!

•Take time for rest and relaxation outside the store so that you stay healthy and enthused.  Whenever possible, make time to travel to other communities to see similar businesses, which can be a great source of inspiration.  GIve yourself breaks in your day, even if it’s just for a walk around the block.

We each are only given 24 hours in a day, and 7 days in a week.  Spending your time wisely can make your life more pleasurable and your business more successful. 

Happy Retailing,

Carol “Orange” Schroeder