How to Take Back Your Time and Make Your Workday Work for You

If you’re drowning in emails, bouncing between tasks, and ending each day wondering where your time went, it’s time for a change. What if I told you time management isn’t the problem. It’s how you’re structuring your day that’s causing the problem.

In this episode, I’m sharing a powerful shift that will help you stop reacting and start running your business with intention. You’ll discover:

✔️ The key mindset shift that moves you from overwhelmed to in control
✔️ How to stop email and notifications from hijacking your productivity
✔️ A simple system to create routines that actually work

Whether you're just getting started or you’re a six-figure entrepreneur tired of spinning your wheels, the truth is working harder isn’t the answer. Building business systems is. Imagine finally having the time and freedom to focus on growth because your business runs smoothly behind the scenes.

Ready to make that happen?

Tune in now and let’s build a business that works for you, not the other way around!

0:00 - Why your workday feels out of control and what’s actually keeping you stuck in the cycle of constant reaction

3:59 - The secret to staying in control of your day starts before it even begins

6:17 - A no-excuses challenge to finally break free from your inbox and reclaim your focus

9:01 - How one client stopped spinning her wheels, took control of her time, and changed the way she runs her business

11:18 - The first step to building a business that works for you so you can stop running on empty

Resources Mentioned:

🤝 Join The MY-T Society for tools, templates, and expert support to simplify your business systems and take control of your time!

Leave a Rating and Review: https://ratethispodcast.com/mindyourtime

Additional Resources Available:

Tired of feeling overwhelmed by the back end of your business? It’s time to take control. Grab my free audio masterclass, The ABC Guide to Streamline Your Back Office, and start freeing up your time today.

Let’s connect online:

Follow Me On Instagram: @the_shannonbaker

Chapters

• 0:00 Why your workday feels out of control and what’s actually keeping you stuck in the cycle of constant reaction
• 3:59 The secret to staying in control of your day starts before it even begins
• 6:17 A no-excuses challenge to finally break free from your inbox and reclaim your focus
• 9:01 How one client stopped spinning her wheels, took control of her time, and changed the way she runs her business
• 11:18 The first step to building a business that works for you so you can stop running on empty

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

If you're tired of being chained to your inbox and your to-do list feels like it's never ending, this episode is for you, because today I'm going to share one small but powerful shift that will help you take back control of your time without adding more to your plate. And spoiler alert the problem isn't time management, so let's get into it. Welcome to the Mind your Time podcast. I'm Shannon Baker, your coffee-loving host and business operations strategist. If your business feels chaotic and you're tired of spinning your wheels, you're in the right place. Each episode contains bold strategies and practical insights rooted in my power and motion framework to help you streamline your operations, reclaim your time and grow without burnout. So, whether you're just starting out or scaling to six figures and beyond, I'll help you simplify, set boundaries and build a business that works for you. So grab a cup of coffee or your favorite beverage and let's dive in. Okay, I want you to tell me if this sounds familiar. You sit down at your desk ready to start your day. You have a million things to do, but before you even open your laptop, you already feel behind. Your inbox is already overflowing, notifications are coming in nonstop and you are knee deep in client requests because most of them were left from yesterday or last week. You've got admin work to do, and things that weren't even on your radar five minutes ago have put you in panic mode. So by noon, you have been busy all morning, but you actually have not accomplished anything you wanted to do. You've bounced back and forth between emails, text messages, unplanned phone calls, social media notifications and your plan for the day. Well, that went out of the window quickly. You know what? I see this all the time, especially with women entrepreneurs who are running successful businesses, but they feel stuck because they're constantly in reaction mode. So, instead of leading their businesses to success, they are spending their days putting out fires. Is that you? Well, why does this happen? Well, let's be real. It's not about time management. It's really about how you set yourself up for success before the day even starts. If you're starting your day feeling scattered, then it's no surprise that your day actually stays scattered. But the good news is you can end this cycle. This is fixable, and today I'm going to share one small but powerful shift that can completely transform the way you work so you can get more done. Now. I know exactly how this feels, because I've been there.

Speaker 1: 2:51

I remember a few years ago, when my mornings were a total mess. I would wake up and, before I even had my coffee, I would check my email, scroll through notifications and I was knee-deep in everyone else's priorities instead of my own. It didn't matter what goal I was trying to reach, because by the time I had handled everything else, I was drained mentally, emotionally and physically. I spent way too much time managing everyone else's requests and responding to whatever felt most urgent to everyone else. At that time, and after all was said and done, I literally had nothing in the gas tank left for strategic growth. Then, when I got tired of it, I made one big shift that changed everything. I started preparing for tomorrow today. So, instead of waking up in reactive mode, I started deciding my priorities before I logged off for the day. And that's when everything changed. Because here's the thing. Everything changed, because here's the thing.

Speaker 1: 4:01

When you don't decide what matters most to you, your inbox, your clients and your notifications are going to decide for you. So let's talk about how you can make this shift for yourself. Well, the first thing you have to do is decide tomorrow's priorities today. So what does that mean? Well, before you close your laptop, I want you to take five minutes to write down your top three priorities for tomorrow. That's it. You don't need a fancy planner. You don't need complicated software. You just need a simple list of what actually needs your attention. This will eliminate decision fatigue and help you start the day with clarity instead of scrambling, because if you don't take control of your schedule, everything and everyone else will continue to control your time. And I want you to do this today, before you shut your laptop down.

Speaker 1: 5:06

So write down your top three priorities for tomorrow. That's step one. Step two you need to batch your distractions. Yes, I said distractions, because that's exactly what administrative tasks, social media emails, unplanned phone calls that's exactly what they are, because right now, they're taking over your entire day. I mean, think about it. How many times do you check your inbox through the day? Is it constantly open in the background? Are you refreshing it while your own calls or between calls? Are you answering emails as soon as they pop into your inbox? If you are chained to your inbox and letting it run your day, you're losing about 10 hours every week. And listen, I get it. You don't want to miss an important message. You want to give the best customer experience. You possibly can, but constantly checking your email isn't managing your business or providing good customer service. It's making your business manage you.

Speaker 1: 6:17

So this is something I want you to do for a quick win. I want you to decide how many times you're going to check your email every day and no, all day is not an option. So pick between two or three set times, and then I want you to stick with them. For most business owners, checking your email morning, midday and afternoon is enough, and if you're brave, twice a day is even better. Here's a bonus step I want you to unsubscribe from at least three email lists today. You know the ones that you're getting from someone that you never actually read, even though you keep saying you're going to. And if you're at your laptop right now, I want you to go ahead and do that while you're listening to this episode.

Speaker 1: 7:04

And the third and final step I want you to set up an inbox management system that actually works for you. If your inbox is your to-do list, you have set yourself up for failure every single day, so this is what I want you to do Create a folder in your inbox called file. Later Put it in all caps. Then, tomorrow when you check your email for the first time for the day, set a five minute timer and move anything that doesn't need your immediate attention into that folder. This prevents your inbox from turning into a bottomless to-do list.

Speaker 1: 7:49

And listen, if email is a major source of stress for you, I have got something that can help you Inside of the Mighty Society membership. I created the Beyond Inbox Zero workbook and that walks you through setting up an inbox that works for you, not against you. It's designed to help you take control of your email habits so you're not constantly drowning in messages, and that's just one of the resources inside of the Mighty Society that will help you take back control of your time, because, let's be real, reinventing the wheel every single day is a time waster, and none of us are immune to this trap. I can't say that enough. So, whether it's how you onboard clients, how you follow up on leads, how you manage your team, whatever it is, structured processes mean less stress, fewer missteps and more time for the things that will actually grow your business, and that's exactly why I created the Mighty Society membership. It gives you access to the tools and support that you need to implement these types of shifts with ease.

Speaker 1: 9:02

I worked with a business owner recently who was spending half of her day responding to emails, text messages, and must not even talk about the unscheduled phone calls. So this was preventing her from working on the things that would actually move her business forward, and she felt like she was always busy but never making real progress. And it was a real problem because she was busy but it wasn't doing the things she needed to be doing, including giving me the information that I needed to assist her. So we made a few simple shifts. We set the three email check-in times per day that she would work on her inbox instead of constantly checking her emails. We also created email templates for her most common responses so she wasn't rewriting the same messages over and over again, and she started batching her admin work instead of letting it take over her day. Within a week, she gained back hours in her schedule and within a month, she was finally able to work on her growth strategy instead of just trying to keep up with everything.

Speaker 1: 10:14

Why am I telling you this? Because you can do the same thing. That's what I want for you. So let's recap what we've talked about today. The one shift that will change everything is preparing for tomorrow today, so take five minutes at the end of your workday to set up your top priorities for tomorrow, and I want you to batch distractions like email, social media and stop reacting to them all day long. Then I want you to create repeatable processes so you're not wasting your time recreating them every time you have to do them.

Speaker 1: 10:52

And if you're serious about shifting from chaos to clarity, please join us inside of the mighty society membership, because you'll get access to the beyond inbox zero workbook, the process mapping and five steps guide. There are also message templates in there that will cut down the time that you spend responding to emails and, most importantly, you get direct support from me. So you've got two choices you can keep spending your days chained to your inbox putting out fires, or you can take control of your time once and for all lighting out fires, or you can take control of your time once and for all. So go to theshannonbakercom forward, slash membership and take the first step towards creating a business that works for you and not the other way around. And before you go, pick one email cleanup step that you're going to do right now, like unsubscribing. Even that small action moves you closer to a business that runs on your terms, and if this episode helped you, send it to a fellow entrepreneur who needs to hear this, and I can't wait to see you inside of the Mighty Society membership.

Speaker 1: 12:02

Thanks for hanging out with me this week. If you've made it this far, it's clear you're ready to shake things up and take control of your business, and I'm here for it. But remember, just listening to this episode won't get you better results. I challenge you to break the mold and take action today. Your next move let's connect Head to the show notes and book a call with me to learn how the Mighty Society membership can help you streamline your back office and reclaim your time. If you're not ready for that step yet, no worries. Connect with me on Instagram, at the underscore Shannon Baker, and tell me what resonated most from today's episode. And if you're loving the podcast, leaving a review is a quick way to show your support and help more entrepreneurs like you break free from the chaos. Listening is great, but action creates transformation. Go, make it happen and until next time, keep calm and streamline.