How should entrepreneurs divide their week?

Hi Michael, Yes: there is a way to do this. That is the brunt of what I train business owners and professionals to do: the key is in brain science. There are a couple of points and then the basic practices: a. The brain can only handle about four items per day of high priority b. These items need to be outcome oriented: i.e. a number or observable event : not action oriented which is what most people do (if you don't the brain does a pattern mismatch and triggers a worry response) c. Create four max. long term objectives: e.g. for the year d. Ensure that daily there is some correlation between the daily outcomes and the long term objectives e. Create a mission statement, and ensure the same correlation Works very well: and I gave you the gist: however, this requires some practice and daily coaching: about 10 to 15 minutes a day for four days a week for between 3 to 6 months. We have experimented with apps, but found that email is hands down the way to get this done daily. The daily emails track the correlation, training in picking the best daily outcome, provides accountability etc. Then we train people in how to schedule into their calendars (electronic preferred with alarms set - so you don't worry about pacing - your smart phone does) using 21 Safe and Sane management tips: these are done in a way to increase flexibility : i.e. more blank space on the calendar to handle innovation time and breakdowns that inevitably occur. I am oversimplifying, but it works and we have the data and 22 years of working with thousands of clients to demonstrate Kind regards, Sunil Bhaskaran

I like Harvest both for time-tracking and for invoicing clients. It's simple, which I love.

Four thoughts. First, define what maximum and minimum effort estimate is acceptable - for example, tasks should not take less than 2 hours or more than 4. Second, communicate that contingency shouldn't be included in the estimates so they aren't padded. Instead, have some room in the overall plan for tasks to slip. Third, measure actual vs. estimates to learn how the team estimates - you'll find that some people consistently over estimate, and some consistently under estimate. Show them and have them adjust course. Finally, make sure that the people estimating understand that no answer is acceptable - it is better to redirect a task than have wide guesses.

There is a legendary example of this: Jack Dorsey being the CEO of both Twitter and Square simultaneously. Yes, it is possible to hold two jobs. It's even possible to be the CEO of two billion-dollar companies. It's far from easy, but it's possible with an extreme dose of discipline and time management. I heard Jack personally tell the story of how he managed his time at a fireside chat he did in New York. The closest I can get to an online article that talks about it is this: http://money.cnn.com/2011/11/13/technology/dorsey_techonomy/ Take a look at the way he splits the days of his week into themes. Each of his 6 working days has a purpose. Monday: Management meetings and "running the company" work Tuesday: Product development Wednesday: Marketing, communications and growth Thursday: Developers and partnerships Friday: The company and its culture Saturday: (no work) Sunday: Big picture strategy But he then goes next level and splits his time between two companies by alternating mornings and afternoons in each office. The article mentions him working 16 hour days – 8 hrs at each company – but when Jack told the story himself, he said he was splitting mornings and afternoons between the companies. Monday Morning = Twitter Monday Afternoon = Square Tuesday Morning = Square Tuesday Afternoon = Twitter Wednesday Morning = Twitter etc This might be an approach you can think of taking. It means you make it clear what your schedule is, when you will be working on different aspects of each job, and then be incredibly disciplined about sticking to the schedule so other people can accommodate and work with you.

If I have to tell you only one thing: it is Distribution. Most of the entrepreneurs (including me at one point) are so obsessed with the product and adding new features to it. They completely overlooked the fact that Distributing the product is what play single most important role. Even over the quality of the product.