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The business is happily going, you have interesting ideas, but… You are overwhelmed business owner, so busy with something, you don’t even really know what, that you can’t realize them and scale up your business.

And to make matters worse, you are struggling with the so-called new normal (i.e. new and new restrictions, measures, rules, changes, but also huge opportunities).

I see it regularly. Successful entrepreneurs, owners of large and small businesses, will all feel relieved when they use a few (or at least one) of these strategies:

1. Step back

Take a deep breath and take a good look around. Unfocused decisions can be bad decisions. And since many people can’t calm down and detach until they get an accurate picture of the situation, it’s a good idea to take advantage of a third-party perspective. Often, meditation sessions, personal coaching sessions, sports, massage, something that will help relieve stress, or just bring the right perspective can help.

2. Analyze

What throws you off? When do you feel overwhelmed? How often? How and what do you do? What do you accumulate in? What would you need to subtract/pass on? Observe, record, and try to find patterns and triggers. (You can get help for this as well. In fact, you don’t have to be completely alone for anything! This is also a key lesson).

3. Proper Planning

Maybe you feel like you have to master everything from your to-do list (right now and on your own). I don’t think so. In the hurricane of duties and our own tasks, we often forget about the right prioritization. Often this is a problem associated with the inability to delegate, see below, or it can also be a consequence of adding without continuous removal. (An interesting book on this topic Subtract by Leidy Klotz).

But the Eisenhower Matrix still remains the simplest tool for prioritizing.

Hence the aforementioned delegation…

4. Delegate

For those who are still hesitating and keep rolling the familiar cliché “What can you not do yourself…” I have a simple mathematical example. How much does your time cost? How much does the assistant’s time cost? Can the assistant create a presentation for the client? Even if it takes her twice as much as it takes you, the cost of her salary is much lower than the cost of your time or the returns you can bring in at the same time.

The right people with the right skills can even be more expensive than your time if they deliver the results in less time and better quality.

5. Automation

A lot of things can be automatized, using the right programs and tools. By setting up the right workflows,  you can still be productive and at ease. Unless it is strictly necessary (and here it is necessary to consider it) to be at each transfer of information,  avoid it. Two things are important – that it runs like a wire and that at any moment you have the opportunity to know the current state, instantly, whether in the form of reports, monitoring, visualizations or verbal announcements from an authorized person (again, see delegation).

6. Focus

Delete yourself to limit multitasking to the lowest possible level, and if the hustle and bustle of your office are such that it cannot be 100% prevented, try to set aside time for deep work. You can start with short stretches and gradually lengthen them, you can alternate them in different ways, it depends on what and how you need. Someone helps music to fix on the job.

However, do not forget about transition time. Whether it’s moving between meetings, mentally retuning between tasks/activities, it takes a while. Keep this in mind when planning.

7. Off from work

Try to mentally disconnect from work when you are not in it, you are at home…, concentrate on the present moment, whether it is building a puzzle with children, playing golf, or other rest suitable for you. Stress is not healthy, and its increase can affect not only work performance, but also your health.

8. Fine-tuned Notifications

Not every beep is important. Social networks and other applications with their increasing notifications can easily disrupt concentration or even cause the urge to interrupt everything, at least mentally we have remorse “what if…, I have to answer him…” A few selected contacts/threads for urgent and high-priority cases and the rest to dampen. Set an hourly interval (or longer) to update emails, turn off most mobile networks. This is doubly true for the period of rest and sleep. Even today’s ubiquitous smartphones have a “bedtime mode”, which is excellent especially for those who are not willing to leave it in front of the bedroom door.

9. Frog

Perhaps we all know the wisdom “Eat that frog” >” that advises first to deal with the biggest/most unpleasant/bitter task. Not only is there no danger of further procrastination, but on the contrary, it will kick us. The feeling of overcoming something unpleasant and “fear-mongering” will give us energy, boost self-confidence and increase performance. And most importantly, it will reduce stress levels. A rolling stone always grows like a snowball.

10. Performance support

Whether it’s coaching, external help, a consultant/analyst, or hiring a partner with whom you can share responsibility, you will always be relieved – in the number of responsibilities, stress, time…

11. Be consistent

And not only on yourself but also on others. I know from my own experience that a common cause of the overload is non-compliance with deadlines in the lower chain. Establish the right strategy with a fixed deadline and stick to it and enforce it. It is important to set realistic (achievable) deadlines that are not very ambitious, and not to forget the reward (for yourself and the links of the chain = team) for timely, or even premature, fulfilment.

12. Correctly say no

An oft-repeated mantra to relieve stress and time. However, entrepreneurs know that if they refuse to work now, they may be without contracts in 18 months. The business owner takes a different approach. If it is a job case consider the following:

• Do I have the capacity to do that now?
• If not, can I outsource it?
• Is it worth it?
• Will it move me somewhere? (or does it just jam me?)

Knowing when to say yes and when to say no is a very important skill belonging to a successful business.

13. Forget about micromanagement

He has never testified and will never lead to good performance and productivity. Choose employees who know the field and cultivate leaders who will lead them to the desired results (Whether Henry hammers a nail with his left or right-hand does not matter).

14. Motivate and listen

When I mentioned strictness, I did not forget to mention the need for a reward after reaching a certain target. If you keep yourself and your team motivated, they will also perform well enough to focus on strategic things and release your overload. It’s the same with listening. You wouldn’t believe how much money and time you can save by listening to the people who are doing the job. It’s worth it!

Although these strategies are primarily aimed at the business owner, make no mistake, in principle they can also be applied to the operation of the entire company. The owner was at the birth of this company, the owner is the soul of this company, and what we will talk about, entrepreneurs have the DNA of the company so deep that they are one and as once they often function.

If you don’t drive your business, you will be driven out of business.

B.C.Forbes

After my last article and looking at my dormant social media profiles, I was inundated with a surprisingly large number of questions about why I don’t properly manage all these networks when I’m talking so nicely about personal optimization.

And since I don’t want to write in dozen chats 😉 there’s one collective and open answer.

It’s not my priority, it’s not my passion, and I don’t really know how to do it.

I lost a successful IG profile with several thousand followers some time ago (it was hacked, but the operator deleted it instead of returning it to me). For the most part, my orders are based on recommendations, which is why I wasn’t so pressured at the time, although it’s a pitty of content.

And since I don’t know how to make engaging reels, stand in front of the camera (even though I know what to pass on), I’m not even actively looking for it.

But because I like challenges, not only for me but for others, I hereby call on you.

If there is a person among you (student, enthusiast, adventurer) for whom social networks are part of the nervous system and is convinced that he/she can revive, light up and stir up the stagnant waters of my social networks, he/she has the opportunity…

I offer an job opportunity in the form of an internship for pioneers who are no stranger to innovation, insolence (bordering almost with guerilla marketing), proactivity and creativity together with the necessary abilities (such as editing photos, creating posts in canva, content plans e.g. in airtable, an overview of their work in Trello….), knowledge of multiple social networks; beware here, I do not know how many of the networks one person can manage so that it has a proper impact.

And what job opportunity in marketing do I offer?

At first, it is certainly not a dizzying fee, at first it is an unpaid internship.

• You can just try and see if something like this is for you in the future.
• You will receive a certificate of practice and recommendations after the end of the agreed cooperation.
• After 2-4 months, we can agree on paid cooperation with mutual satisfaction.
• After 2-4 months, you can move on to one of the international projects in which I have a hand, whether it is marketing, sports, investing, Europe, UAE, India, Russia, USA – it’s a lot…

Remote please😉

I’ve been thinking about the right CTA, but I’m thinking, it’s up to you, show me the right thing.

Let’s take a look at what strategic mapping is, its purpose and its contribution to a dramatic reorientation from operational details to strategic intentions. Creating a map during the strategic planning process will help not only management, but entire companies and employees at all levels.

The concept of mapping strategies is not a new tool, but it was first introduced in the early 1990s with the introduction of the Strategic Maps template. Kaplan and Norton (1996) originally presented the concept of a strategy map in their book Balanced Scorecard: Implementation of the Strategy.

With a well-designed strategic map, employees can know the overall strategy and how they fit into the picture.

For small teams and businesses, their strategy may and will be different from large companies.

Strategy mapping requires each element to be a start-point and endpoint plan.

The strategic map also helps you evaluate the overall performance of your company while giving you the opportunity to delve deeper into the different components of your strategy if needed. It also facilitates the definition and communication of the company’s strategy/mission/vision/direction.

But what exactly is a strategic map?

It is one of the strategic planning tools.

• How to correctly identify your individual goals?
• How to ensure that they are balanced, interconnected with each other and with the mission (motto) of society?

A strategic map is a visual tool to help you work with priorities and their relationships. Each strategic map has a main 4 perspectives:

• Finance
  • Revenue growth
  • Productivity
• Customers
  • Customer value design is key to the finance mission
  • Customer’s privacy
  • How to achieve financial and customer goals?
  • Improving customer relationship (increasing value for the customer)
• Product management
• Operational excellence
  • Processes
  • Working on operational excellence
• Fostering growth through innovation and expansion
• Good relations with external partners
• Learning and growth
• Skills and knowledge of employees

The strategic map and its four levels help you better define what you want to achieve, identify key objectives. The map can also reveal intangible means that create strategic value (unique know-how, for example).

Benefits of strategic mapping

• Multi-level breakdown = creation of short-term tactics to achieve long-term goals
• Simpler delegation and analysis</li><li>Greater understanding and engagement
• Better risk management

From visualization to execution

• Define mission, vision, values
• Priorities + priorities in each perspective
• Specify business goals
• What are the priorities related to business objectives? And why did you choose these specific goals?
• By determining metrics and methodologies
• Implementation plans

You can use a lot of expert tools to create a strategic map, or even platforms offering cheap yet high-quality solutions. Personally, I always start with notes, with a pencil and paper, I choose the tool according to a specific case.

But one thing is certain, a strategic map is a tool, not a target. The goal is to achieve your goals connected to your mission, culture and within your environment, with subsequent growth. It is not possible to achieve goals that are disconnected from the priorities and vision of society.

I don’t know what is it work-life balance.

I mean, to set the record straight. What is presented everywhere as a meta work-life balance creates unrealistic fantasies and disappointments for many people who naively believe that they can create something amazingly large and prosperous in the long run without any effort.

Personal optimization

Unfortunately, my clients also come up to me with this idea, which require personal optimization. Although they know how much effort it took to build their business, they were somehow tempted by the marketing idea of a lot of leisure time (or they don’t do what they really want – but that’s a different story), but that’s not the case at all. Yes, the goal of all this is freedom, financial and time. But freedom of time does not mean sit on the porch for two days (without the help of creating that source of infinite income).

It takes some effort, especially at the beginning.

My Time Management

Freedom of time means choice, but certainly no not doing anything.

Sometimes I work 20 hours a day myself. And it’s certainly not incompetence, a lack of time management, and certainly not the incompetence of a consultant to advise what I don’t follow. It’s passion. Passion. I love my job. As a consultant, I can help my clients achieve their goals. As the owner and founder of several companies (projects), I can supply products and services that help our clients.

And yes, I have a family, I have children. And I know they’re not suffering.

The children have reached the age where we talk to them openly about everything. When we spend time together, we actually spend it together (disconnected). I, their biological father and my partner are entrepreneurs, obsessed with action and moving forward. All three of us are working in front of them, we’re talking to them, and the kids are learning from it. Son found his business opportunity on youTube and my daughter tries to break through with fashion pieces, both learning on crypto market demo accounts. And all on their own initiative, and on the condition that they don’t neglect school, and they weren’t even 14 yet…

What is work-life balance for me?

The possibility to do what I enjoy and fulfil, the possibility to switch off when&nbsp; I need or want to be with my family.

I hear your question

And what do I advise my clients when they ask me for personal optimization?

The diplomatic answer may be: It depends on their goals and needs…

Most of the time, however, it is really about improving time management, delegation, introducing practical tools and possibilities of viewing from the outside…

A common cause, as with companies, can be found in hidden productivity (time) eaters, frozen processes, inefficient information flows and blinders.

Sometimes it’s a challenge. And because it is a very intense task with the client, friendship or other cooperation is often also made.

Anyway, I don’t have a personal optimization client who wouldn’t recommend me anymore or even complain…

Lingering uncertainty? Long-term crisis management concerning the current situation in the world? How to build a resilient company? How to stand and survive into new-normal?

The current situation isn’t difficult not only CFO &amp; CEO in its positions. Let’s see what key decisions business strategists can make and that will help create a resilient business on the path to business prosperity and growth.

Lack of cash, a transition to the home office, necessary change in business processes, the need to digitize and automate many on the administrative agenda, the need to flexibly change. These are the most common challenges for entrepreneurs, managers and all businessmen/women in recent months increasingly than they used to.

The company’s resilience consists of three key points:

• Financial resilience = ability to face and withstand events affecting liquidity returns…
• Operational resilience = ability to absorb impacts, changes, technologies and market needs
• Reputational resilience = ability to react, communicate and create trust not only externally, but also inside society

Corporate management of the resilient company

must realize that none of these key strategic pillars of the company’s resilience can be omitted or neglected. Like a stool with three legs…

For a successful change, it must always be complex and therefore a change in multiple directions is often required.

Crisis plans of all crisis managers and managers mostly work with the theories “What if…”

• Change in demand
• Possibility for employees to go to work
• Irregularity of material/goods supplies
• Natural and other restrictions (government)
• New necessary processes (health checks, spacing, etc.)

But are they just risk?

Yes for Amazon, for example, the current situation is an indisputable opportunity, which also makes good use of…

But let’s go back to building resilience.

What steps to take to make your business resilient and healthy company?

• Schedule for different periods. Count on more possible scenarios (and never forget the “worst-case scenario” and be prepared to come out of it with your head up)
• Plan and look at things from different perspectives – an outside view, outside of operational blindness, is often very effective
• Prepare different scenarios for the company’s process planning
• Monitor your actions and their consequences, review regularly and bring possible adjustments to the next steps</li><li>Work with your strategic plans, forecasts and&nbsp; cashflow
• Have a list of possible alternative vendors

Basic questions when building a resilient business:

• Do I have a clear idea of what financial, operational and reputational resilience means for the company?
• Are we operationally and financially prepared for another emergency or crisis?
• Is our infrastructure and service provider ecosystem agile and event-ready?
• Do we know how changing market dynamics and the development of public opinion can affect a company and its reputation?
• Does our company’s culture support resilience when it comes to managing disruptive elements (continuity) and adapting to economic, political or cultural changes (adaptive capacity)?
• Do we have a clear purpose that stakeholders can trust and support?
• Are we currently taking a proactive and holistic approach to building organizational resilience and risk management?

Flexibility

is another, but not the last, important part of resilient companies. The ability to adapt, to increase activity in the field for which there is demand, and vice versa to reduce the ability to not to suffer where there are no temporary sales.

Finally, I dare to recall the basic mantra of more than one crisis manager:

Don’t be freezy by fear.

If you’re scared, you’ll never solve anything. But if you really feel like you’re not going to give this up, it’s perfectly ok to call in a specialist. On the contrary, you may be pleasantly surprised at how elegantly this can be solved.