HOW TO KNOCK MORE OFF YOUR TO DO LIST OF A PROJECT PLAN

Written by Miss Samantha Elizabeth

A big product launch, new location or offering a new service as a solopreneur can be very overwhelming and by the end of it, you probably feel so relieved that it is over. Whether you see yourself as an organized person or not, in the midst of scaling your business to the next level, it is hard for any solopreneur to stay organized and keep checking things off from your project plan to do list.


I consider myself a master at organization and even I had felt like the most disorganized person at times because I just did not know where to start with my to do list. There was nothing more I hated then knowing I had about 20 things on my project plan to do list, and barely knocked off 1 task from my to do list in 10 hours. It was the worst feeling knowing I just wasted a whole day because I was so overwhelmed with an unorganized project plan.

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    I have learned from my mistakes in the past and got a set of foolproof action steps to stay organized and check more off my to do list. Implementing these strategies are perfect for any solopreneur, all you need is to set aside a few hours one night to lay the groundwork. I suggest tweaking it at the end of every week, but if you are super detailed from the beginning, your project plan should be “easy as” to follow.

    PROJECT MANAGER TOOL

    Asana is a life saver, trust me. This project management tool is a great way to lay out everything that is needed to get done in a major project. Within your workspace of a major project, you can set mini project plans to work towards. Each of those mini-projects you can have tasks to check off as you go along, all with due dates you want them done by.

    So let’s say you are launching a new wine label at your Estate, your workspace in Asana may look something like


    Workspace → Project → Task → Subtask


    New Label → Blog → Post about new label → Find keywords

    My biggest suggestion is to make all your mini projects and tasks before you start assigning due dates. Make sure you put every little detail you can think of that need to get done, put it up on Asana. This way you have a good idea of what you need to get done and all the tasks are in chronological order. That way you know a blog post is live before you are trying to post it on Instagram with a dead link.

    Asana is amazing for organizing what you need to do each day, what is the priority and lets you lay out tasks in chronological order. No longer will you turn on your computer and think “Okay, what do I need to do today? What is most important?”. If you spend a little time and lay the groundwork in Asana at the start of your project, your to do list will be organized and simple to follow.


    I can already hear more checks off your to do list!


    You can use the basic version for free and I highly suggest you check it out. Even if you are not the most tech-savvy person, after a bit of time in Asana you will feel like a pro even with the free version!

    WHO IS RESPONSIBLE

    As a solopreneur, you are likely going to have a small team behind you or you might be a one-person show. Either way, this will help you know who to follow up with.


    Knowing who is responsible for what or what contractor you are relying on is important when trying to check tasks off your project plans to do list. You want to easily know who is responsible for what at a quick glance. It is super important to have this clearly laid out for when you have a day off or can not be reached on the phone. If your team is posed with a question that needs an answer right away they know who to turn to.


    Make a simple chart, it does not have to be anything pretty. Layout who is in charge of what and who has the final say, so everyone knows the go-to in regards to certain situations.


    For example, if your venue hosts events and a staff member gets an urgent call in regards to a flower delivery that can not be made. Who can they go to to make the solution as seamless as possible?

    It is also good practice to lay out what contractor you are relying on to come through as well. You or your team know who to follow up with when you’re waiting on something to be approved or delivered. Such as city approval for events.

    OUTSOURCE

    If there is some sort of task you and no one on your team is good at but it needs to get done. Outsource it. You ask around to people in your local area, hop on Google or join freelance Facebook groups, you can easily find help. Especially now with so many people having an online business and freelancing their service you can surely find the help you need.

    I say a good rule to follow is: If a task is taking you more than an hour and you still can’t figure it out or it is taking you a lot longer than it should…outsource it.

    For example: If you are trying to create Instagram graphics in Canva and it has been an hour and you have barely made 1 because you have not figured it out. Outsource it. It may cost you a bit extra but it will save you loads of time and keep your project plan on track.

    SET ASIDE TIME

    Set aside 1 hour at the end of every week to re-evaluate your Asana to do list and adjust anything you need to from there.

    You want to see if:

    • Your tasks in Asana are getting done

    • If there is a lot of tasks you left out on Asana

    • Are team member overwhelmed

    • Is something taking longer than expected

    Once you have assessed how your project plan is coming along you will have to make adjustment in Asana. Maybe you will have to create more time for some tasks, or maybe you hit some sort of hurdle and have to readjust when things get done. It is okay if something is taking longer, the important thing is that you are monitoring your project plan.