Are You Afraid to Know How Much Time You Spent In Your Biz?

Do you really know how much time you spent in your business today? What if you could track that time to use a payroll service to pay yourself?

Maybe you may find that you need to charge more for your products or services.

You may be shocked to learn exactly how many hours you are putting into your business. Not only payroll for you but if you have any employees or freelancers to pay as well.

Maybe you want to know how many hours a project takes.

You want to be sure you are paying a fair amount of money to them, so they continue to provide quality work for your business.

When I first started full-time at Inspire To Thrive, I had put in some 18 hour days. Yes, those were the first of the month days that I had to do my social media reports and invoicing. (Thankfully, today it takes me less time! The more you do something, the less time it may take.)

That really made me stop and look at where my time was being spent.

Estimating Your Time and Their Time

To be sure you are paying others properly you really need to estimate the time spent on each project
For example, I have broken down by each social media post and how long it takes to produce.

Some social media posts take 5 minutes and others can take up to 10 minutes. That includes creating graphics with Canva as well. But if I need ideas, that can take 30 minutes each to research and come up with content.

Next, I must figure out how many social media posts are needed per month. Most of the time it is around 12 posts per month for most clients. 12 posts x 5 minutes = 60 minutes or 1 hour.

That is the least amount of time, but it can also be 12 posts x 30 minutes = or 6 hours! That is a huge difference in time. So, I then estimate 3 hours per month for each of these types of clients.

If I need to do more or am posting on different types of social media, i.e. Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter X then I need to allow for more time.

To take your time management to the next level, you will need to develop time tracking reports, including specific activity details.

The graphics made in Canva have to be resized for each social media network which is easier than ever.

Finally, I need to schedule them with a tool like Agorapulse or Missing Lettr. All these different tasks do take time.

Oftentimes, a client will ask for more posts than 12 as things change from day to day. Or they will ask for changes on a post. Hence, it’s best to add more time for those “unknown” events.

Have you broken down your projects like this to manage your business’s time spent on work?

How To Check How Much Time You Spend On Apps

To check how much time you spend on apps, start by using the built-in tools on your phone. For iPhone users, open the Settings app, scroll down to “Screen Time,” and tap it.

Here, you’ll see a breakdown of your daily and weekly app usage.

Android users should go to Settings, select “Digital Wellbeing & Parental Controls,” and then tap “Dashboard.” This section shows detailed stats on your app usage.

You can set limits for specific apps if you need to cut back. Third-party apps, like RescueTime or Moment, can also give you insights and detailed reports.

These tools help you stay aware of your habits and manage your screen time effectively. Being conscious of how much time you spend on apps can help you make better choices and improve your productivity.

Paying for Other’s Time Spent on Your Business

Paying for others’ time they spend in your business is of utmost importance. You don’t want to keep hiring new people and training them if you have qualified employees or freelancers today.

By knowing how much time is being spent by them on your business will help you to pay them better and retain them for their services. People just wanted to be paid fairly for their time. You can’t blame them, right?

It is much easier to retain current employees than having to hire new ones. It takes more time and often more money to find new help. By not being shortsighted you can save yourself both time and money by retention.

You may have to fill in until you find a new person to take over the projects someone else was doing for you.

Growing Your Business Through Time

Once you know how much time your business needs to accomplish tasks you can decide from there if you want to grow it or not.

You may need to hire more people to grow your business, but you may also need to charge more for your services or products to expand it. By knowing how much time each task takes you can make a better and solid decision about growing your business.

If things get a little complex, the best employee scheduling software can help you identify shift patterns, regularly respond to issues that occur, as well as develop a more comprehensive solution should an issue persist.

Passive Income: Time Well Spent

Another way to expand your business may be through passive income sources. Passive income does not require any more of your time. Once it is set up correctly you can earn money while you sleep or go on a vacation.

Be sure to include the time it takes to set up your passive income stream prior. Then, you can figure how much that passive income is producing for your business.

Today passive income is one of the hottest methods of making money online.

Some people may think that blogging is a passive income stream but as Ryan Biddulph points out, blogging certainly is not passive. You may use passive income streams on your blog but your blog is not a passive income stream.

Selling an eBook on your blog or selling affiliate products on your blog are considered passive income streams. But the time you spend in your business to drive traffic and sales from the blog must be counted.

In Conclusion: Tracking The Time That You Spent in Your Business

I’d love to know in the comments below if you are timing all of your business projects piece by piece. If so, what type of tool are you using to track your time?

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