The #1 Productivity Mistake Solopreneurs Make (And How to Fix It)

(wait, do you even know what your priorities are?!)

I know what you’re thinking. This sounds like a lot of doom and gloom. But it doesn’t have to be. And in this post, I’ll show you exactly how to turn things around and give your productivity a much-needed shove in the right direction. 👇

The Solopreneur Productivity Mistake Explained

Think things might magically fall in place and you’ll simply “catch up” if you just put in extra effort or pull a few all-nighters? Hold on, not so fast.

Here’s why grinding harder is a soul-sucking trap:

❌	Time seems to disappear and you end up wasting hours on low-impact tasks
❌	No accountability or external structure which makes it easy to get distracted or to procrastinate
❌	Progress is not tracked in a meaningful way (hello, random to-do lists that never get done)

Think about this for a minute. Imagine you’re a business coach who thrives on helping others reach their own goals. So you fill your calendar to the brim with Zoom coaching sessions which leaves you no room to work on your business.

You’re left with a growing to-do list that’s not connected to meaningful goals. And with your limited time, you fall into the habit of “I’ll get to it when I get to it” mindset or spend most of your time tackling things like website glitches or deciding what font to use in your next presentation. There’s no structure or plan of attack nor anyone who’s keeping you accountable.

Basically, you *feel* busy every day but have no idea where your time goes (which means burnout may be right around the corner).

If this sounds like you, don’t worry, there’s a fix for that.

Read More: Why Small Business Owners Struggle With Productivity (And How to Fix It)

The Fix: How Solopreneurs Can be More Productive

Wouldn’t you agree that instead of pushing harder and forcing yourself to do “all the things,” that your time is better spent getting clarity about how you actually use your minutes? Because when you do that, you’ll be able to create a system that helps to keep you focused and on track — and most importantly, productive.

So how should you start? Take the first (and simple) step: track your time. To get your baseline and have a good chance of improving your productivity, you need a measure, analyze, or <enter your word> how you currently use your time.

Unexpected call from your kiddo’s school?

A colleague who stopped by “just because?”

Lunch?

The “OMG, I have a fire that needs outing right this second” call from a client?

How about the “my brain really wants to work on this unimportant thing even though it’s not a priority” thing?

Yes to all of those!

But, there’s more …

Even when you bounce around from browser tab to browser tab, you gotta track it.

And tech like RescueTime (referral link) can help. It will automatically track your online travels so you can get a good idea of how much time you spend in the digital world. And it will also assign you an overall Productivity Score.

There is one last thing to keep in mind. Do not judge yourself harshly. It’s easy to think that you’re “making a muck” of things but remember, you’re on a mission to infuse your workday with positivity and productivity.

You’re an investigator that’s information gathering. This is a good use of your time so don’t spoil it by being mean to yourself. #rantover

Look for The Usual Suspects

Alright, so you’ve figured out how you spend your time (across 3-7 days) and now it’s time for the next step: Look for patterns so you can optimize your schedule.

(this is where the RaPiD Productivity Framework comes in … more on that in a bit 👇)

That’s the whole point of this time-tracking exercise, right? Your goal is to use the data that you’ve collected to set up your ideal schedule so that you can take advantage of your natural productivity rhythms, instead of just filling your entire day with tasks, meetings, and those productivity killing interruptions.

3 key patterns to looks for:

1. High peak times (these are your “I’m energized and can conquer the world!” vibes)
2. Low peak times (“Is it time for a 4th cup of coffee?”)
3. Distractions (TikTok, Instagram, digital games)

You may be flinching a bit right about now because some of these patterns (hello, distractions!) are flashing before your eyes. But it’s all good. Remember, once you identify the 3 key patterns, you will be in a winning position.

Here’s why:

• Data, baby! You’ll learn and truly understand how you naturally use time throughout your day
• Customized schedule. That data will help you design a schedule that syncs with your brain and workstyle #easypeasy

Even better news: You don’t have to figure this out alone. This is exactly what we do on Action Days inside the Hive. We turn patterns into productivity so you actually take action, follow through, and finish! 🐝

Power Up Your Systems with RaPiD Productivity

Once you understand where your time is going AND you’ve set up your ideal schedule, you need a repeatable system to make your workday flow more effectively. This is the part of the process where you kick busy-ness to the curb. #woohoo

It’s also where my RaPiD Productivity Framework comes in:

🔹Review	Look at your patterns. What’s sucking your time from priorities? What’s working?
🔹 Plan	Zhuzh up (rearrange, fix, optimize) your schedule for the day based on your peak and non-peak times and your priorities, then sprinkle in some rewards.
🔹 Do	Do the things! But not just any thing. You gotta pick your top tasks and block off time on your calendar to tackle them.

Your mission, should you choose to accept it is to use a systematic approach productivity. Stop hoping for the best because you’ll probably end up with what you’ve always gotten — too much busy work and not enough productivity. 😐

Alright, you’ve got a system with RaPiD Productivity (✅check!) and a plan of attack (✅check!).

The problem: staying focused and getting things done especially when you work solo. Somehow your time becomes a slippery little bugger when you work by yourself, doesn’t it?

But have no fear, co-working and accountability are here to save the day.

This is precisely why I baked Action Days into the Thrive-Hive community. That way solopreneurs, small business peeps, and professionals who tend to work independently for long stretches can get structured work time with built-in accountability.

What’s the difference between an Action Day & working solo?

You’ll get:

• Dedicated time for you to to focus on urgent and important tasks and projects
• Clarity about goals, tasks, projects, and results your looking for
• Working alongside other business owners and solopreneurs virtually
• Accountability to stave off procrastination (and “this is too hard to do so I’ll ignore it”)
• Momentum boosters: Support, connection, and conversation
• Practice taking action in a motivating setting instead of just relying on your unpredictable willpower

Ready to Level Up Your Productivity? Here’s Your Roadmap.

“They say” that awareness is half the battle. And “they” are right (whomever “they” are). 💯

So now that you know that attempting to do “all the things” without a clear system or accountability is one of the productivity mistakes solopreneurs make, you can turn things around by taking simple but powerful steps.

By using a structured process that fits with your natural tendencies, you will soon start to see a the results you’re after. You’ll build your focus muscle and speed toward your goals (even the big, hairy, audacious ones), all with the collective vibe of the Hive behind you. 🐝

Here’s your roadmap for getting started:

Step 1:	Grab the free Time-Tracking Worksheet so you can clearly identify your time zombies (🧟‍♀️you might not love what you discover, but knowledge is power!)
Step 2:	Give the RaPiD Productivity Framework a go (so no more flying by the seat of your pants!)
Step 3:	Jump into Action Day (inside the Thrive-Hive) so you can kick distractions to the curb and experience the sweet satisfaction of focused progress!

👉 Join us for the next Action Day (Wednesdays @ 2PM Eastern) 

 

This is officially your TL;DR section. 😊 Basically, it’s a super condensed recap of today’s post plus your next steps.

First, you might already feel this in your bones, but just to confirm, the #1 productivity mistake solopreneurs make isn’t about lack of heart, drive, commitment, or even effort. It’s about having a loosey-goosey way of doing things with no clear system or accountability.

Second, I’ve got you covered. Use my 3 main ingredients create your unique productivity recipe: 1) Time-Tracking Worksheet, 2) RaPiD Productivity Framework, and 3) Action Day so you can power up your workday.

And finally, all you have to do is just start. Stop waiting for the perfect time. Take the first step (check your roadmap) and get closer to your goals. #yougotthis 💪