I read the 4-Hour Work Week by Tim Ferris when I was 19 or 20 years old.

I don’t know where the message and main title of the book got lost in translation but I internalised the idea of a 4-hour work day into my life.

And though it was early in my entrepreneurship journey, I learned so much about optimising my time for 4-hour workdays.

Many online entrepreneurs start their businesses for some kind of freedom, but as they work and build their businesses, they have traded their 9-5’s for another 9-5.

Though there is a lot to be done in your business, you started it for freedom.

And working the same amount of hours or more like in a job isn’t freedom.

The Biggest Myth

The #1 thing you’ll hear from most entrepreneurs and professionals is “I don’t have time.”

And though they truly believe that, it’s a lie and the main thing holding them back from having more time in their lives.

Everyone has the same 24 hours in a day.

Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk, the cashier at your local grocery store, the child in grade 3 and you.

We all have the same 24 hours in a day.

The difference between you and all these people, specifically with entrepreneurs like yourself is how you use that time.

Time is a valuable and limited resource.

If you waste today, you can’t exactly get it back tomorrow.

Time is always there, but you don’t have enough of it because of the way you use it.

And though learning to manage your time is an effective skill to learn, it doesn’t increase the value of your time or give you more.

Here’s why.

The Pitfall In Focusing on Time

Time management leaves a lot of things open, but it also makes you a slave to time.

Busy people focus on how much time they spend working.

Productive people focus on how much work they get done in a certain amount of time.

And it’s because they understand this simple thing:

Not all time and not all tasks are created equally.

Some hours you have more energy, some hours you have less energy.

These tasks will take longer than expected, while other tasks will go by faster than expected.

You also other life commitments you have that need your time and attention.

So trying to manage your time is quite ineffective.

Remember we all have the same 24 hours in a day, but the reason others get more done in those 24 hours than you is that they focus on this one thing:

Prioritisation.

Yes & No: Where is Your Time Going?

A common but ineffective tool that so many people use is a to-do list.

To-do lists are great in theory because they outline what you want to do, but they suck in practicality.

When you list tasks out, there’s no context to what you need to do.

It’s simply a long list of tasks and when it’s a long list, it can create overwhelm.

And as we said before, not all tasks are created equally.

Productivity comes from how you use your time and how much you get out.

So instead of focusing on time and all the tasks on your to-do list, you need to prioritise.

This means two things:

1. Identifying your high-leverage tasks

2. Self-analysis for highest energy levels

1. Identifying your high-leverage tasks

When you are building your business and looking to 10x it, the tasks you say no to and yes to could either get you to 10x or keep you where you are.

Looking at your to-do list, you know which tasks have the most leverage for your growth.

These are the tasks that need to be prioritised above all else.

Building out a sales letter could be worth $10,000 per hour to your business whereas replying to emails could be worth $50 per hour.

If the sales letter is worth so much, it should be prioritised over the emails.

Identify 1 -3 tasks that are so high-leverage and prioritise them above all else.

These are the tasks that must be completed at the end of the day. The other tasks can be completed once these tasks are done and you have time available.

2. Self-analysis for highest energy levels

Having your 1-3 high-leverage tasks identified, now they need to be completed.

To ensure they are done to the highest quality possible, you want to do them when you have the most energy physically and cognitively.

There’s nothing worse than doing such a demanding yet important task when you are tired, easily distracted and overwhelmed.

Common productivity advice would say to do your tasks first thing in the morning, but I have friends who are most productive in the afternoon or evening.

I’m a bit of the opposite where my highest energy is before noon.

So instead of working with common advice and potentially shooting yourself in the foot, you want to find your most optimal time.

One way to do this is to start mapping your energy levels during the day.

Doing this will make it easier for you to tap into flow and get more work done in less time.

Another way is to identify and work to your chronotype.

A chronotype is your body’s natural biological clock and your body’s natural inclination for sleep, eating and work.

You can find out your chronotype by taking a short quiz here: https://thepowerofwhenquiz.com/

Knowing your chronotype is a really powerful way to work with your body’s natural rhythm and work to your natural advantage.

We can’t control the movement of time, but we can control how we use it.

Either working with it or against it.

This system is what allows me to work on my business 4 - 6 hours a day and make the most of those hours every day.

This allows me the freedom to enjoy the rest of my day and spend my time as I want.

Instead of overwhelming yourself with long to-do lists, ditch them.

Focus less on time itself and how to use it by:

1. Prioritising.

2. Focusing on 1 - 3 high-leverage tasks.

3. Working to your chronotype.

When you master your prioritisation skills, time will always be on your side.

p.s.

If you are an entrepreneur or creator who wants to become a high performer and scale your business without overwhelm burnout or distractions, book a free consultation with me here.