How to Maximize Your (Very) Limited Time for Your Side Hustle

Starting a side hustle on the side of work or motherhood (or both!) is so exciting. From creating your social media posts to crafting the perfect first offer, the behind-the-scenes tasks can be so fulfilling, fun, and…time-consuming. It’s difficult to carve out the time to move goals forward and prioritize important tasks when everything feels, well, important. Here are our top strategies for getting the work done when it feels like there is no time to do so.

First, find your work chunks and commit to them as best you can. Pick 2-4 chunks of time per week that are 1-2 hours long to work on your business. This could look like one early morning, one evening, and one weekend naptime. If childcare is an issue and you have the resources (or a partner), ask for help so you have the true space you need at a time where your energy isn’t zapped (like 8pm when the kids are finally in bed).

Second, assign 1-3 priorities for each work chunk before your week begins. With your top to-dos mapped out ahead of time, you won’t have to waste any precious minutes trying to figure out what to do. And keep this priority list reasonable - don’t sit down to work with a list of 10 things that need to get done. We find that 3 priorities for a given work session is more than enough.

Next, consider “batching” your bff. Batching means you are working on similar tasks within a certain set of hours, and it can be very helpful if you find you're distracted or getting pulled in too many directions. This strategy encourages flow state, as you are not switching back and forth between ideas and tasks. For example, one of your weekly time chunks could be dedicated solely to social media, and you could create a week or two worth of content during a couple hours.

Finally, and maybe most importantly, keep tabs on your internal state. Your energy level is oftentimes a direct reflection of whether or not your basic needs are being met. Understanding what time of day and what part of the week you feel most creative and energized is key to optimizing your time, and the same goes for recognizing when you need a break. Finding pockets of time to move your big idea forward shouldn’t mean you stop caring for yourself, so be sure the time you’re allotting for work is reasonable and not overwhelming.

If you start to feel the early stages of burnout or exhaustion, take a pause to recharge and come back to your tasks when you’re feeling energized and creative. You will be that much more efficient with your time if you’re feeling well in your journey.