When you’re a mom building a business from home, there are a lot of things that will slow your progress. Multi-tasking is definitely one of them. While doing a lot of things at once can help us squeeze more activities into our day, it has the opposite effect when you’re trying to grow your business.

To get the best results for your efforts, you need focused time and attention.

Making time to create a marketing strategy, business plan, sales strategy and all the other things necessary to grow a business is imperative to help your business thrive. But there are also some basic things you can do to help your business run more efficiently.

Here are 4 habits you need to cultivate to help you be more intentional with your time and activities.

Block time for specific tasks

As a mom with a business, there’s something to do every moment of every day. Whether it’s creating an email sequence, posting content or scheduling sales calls, your time can easily get away from you. Blocking time for specific tasks each day can help you use your time more effectively.

At the end of your day, look at the tasks you need to get done for the following day and block out your schedule. Schedule tasks that require focused attention for a time when you’re at your best. For me, that tends to be in the morning so things like writing a blog post, scheduling content or writing captions for my posts – I schedule in the morning before my kids are up.

Use a color-coded calendar and post it somewhere you can see it. I keep my Google calendar up on my desktop and I can refer to it frequently to stay on track. I also set alarms to remind me when to stop and start my next task. If you’re anything like me, you can get really caught up in something and easily lose track of time so setting an alarm can be very helpful.

Include breaks on your schedule too. Get some water, walk around or just stretch. Sometimes a mental break is all you need to refresh your mind and get the energy you need to finish strong.

Set Goals and Prioritize

Setting daily goals is probably the best thing you can do to manage your time more effectively. It helps keep you focused so you can get the most out of your day. To start, write a list of the top 5 goals you have for that day. Once you have your list, order them based on priority. Keep in mind any deadlines or time restraints. Then attack each one with focused attention, one at a time. Each task you complete, cross it off the list and celebrate what you’ve accomplished so far.

Create space for your business

You can’t have space in your life for your business if you don’t create physical space for it in your house. Pick a spot in your house and designate it as your work space. Make a habit of keeping all business- related items in that area. For example, I have a room where I have a desk, lights, computer, lots of notebooks and other things I use when I’m working. Keep your space organized. It will save you time and eliminate you running around looking for something. Taking 20 mins to find a misplaced file or document is time that can be better spent elsewhere.

Make your space comfortable so you enjoy being in it. Growing a business takes a lot of sometimes uncomfortable work so create a space you can enjoy. It’ll make doing the hard things just a little bit easier. Splurge on a comfortable chair or a desk. I finally bought a desk that elevates at the push of a button so I can stand up because I realized I was sitting in one position for hours.

Health Before Wealth

It’s hard to focus on growing your business when you’re not physically at your best. The most important thing you can do for yourself and your business is to prioritize your health. As a mom/entrepreneur there are a lot of things vying for your attention – especially when you’re a one woman show! It’s easy to want to wake up and jump right into the busyness of the business all day everyday. But resist the urge to constantly focus on your responsibilities. You’ll get burned out and your mental and physical health will suffer. Do things for your health to ensure you’re working at your mental and physical best. For me, that means most mornings I have my matcha tea and a workout before I start my day. I know if I don’t do it first thing, it won’t get done. So figure out what works for you to improve your overall health and include it in your daily routine.

Lastly, above all, enjoy the journey.