Excessive Social Media Messing Around. I love social media and there are effective ways to use it for your business and non-effective ways. The worst offenders play Facebook games all day long and I sit around wondering whether or not they have clients. The other offenders get in wrapped in the timesuck vortex of Facebook and respond to every post, conversation and event invite. Here is how it works for these victims: 1. Play on Facebook, 2. Go back to Outlook and check email and see new Facebook message, and 3. Go back to Facebook, log back in and answer post. And, the next thing you know … it is 5 p.m. and you have not accomplished anything. Play on social media, but be selective and targeted. For example, update your post and focus on business-related activity. If you want to spend all day yapping with Aunt Edna about her new Pomeranian do it on Saturday … unless you are publishing a book on dogs.
Google me. I had a doctor once respond to a question I had with the response “I have written several articles on that subject … Google me.” I am still laughing, because he also had an entourage and despite being just slightly arrogant he was a great doctor. I know someone who sits around all day and Googles himself at different times to see if someone is saying anything bad about him. He then goes to various forums where this is happening and responds, thus creating another string of negative responses. After he is done, he goes back to his personal blog and blogs about it. I am not sure what this timesuck is accomplishing for him, but it is certainly a waste of time. Here is a tip I have him (and your publicist should be doing this for you too): Set up a Google alert and plug in key terms you want. Now, once a day he receives automatic emails from Google. I hope I saved him some searching time.
Problem people. Make a point in your business to not working with problem people. Problem people are major timesucks whether you are in corporate or you are out on your own. Problem people are as follows: 1. People who do not pay their bills on time and you have to chase them. Waste of time. This is a good area where an admin would come in handy, so you can focus on your work. 2. P.I.T.A.’s (Pains In The Ass) with unrealistic expectations. With any client, set expectations (realistic ones) from day one. This will avoid future headaches. Also, if someone is a P.I.T.A from day one, they are going to be a P.I.T.A. the whole time. Cut your losses and focus on other new projects. The bottom line is that problem people are timesucks.
