Sure, the word soloprenuer means you’re no stranger to juggling income producing activities, as well as marketing, sales, billing and client/customer demands–singlehandedly. But don’t be fooled, if you’re ready to grow your business and struggling with getting through your to-do list,  you’ll have to realize you can’t do it all alone.
[RELATED: 5 Ways to Maintain Work-Life Balance as a Solopreneur]
For many solopreneurs, learning how to stay organized and delegating task are a challenge, for many reasons. While some business owners think asking for help makes them look incompetent, others may be uncomfortable relinquishing control, and many simply cannot afford to hire help. But many experts will agree,  multi-tasking can lead to mistakes, burnout, and loss in productivity which in turn can affect your bottom line. Here are a few free or low-cost tips, tools and resources to help you master your to-do list.
Create a 1-3-5 ‘To Do’ List – The 1-3-5 rule, recommended by the Daily Muse,  is a great way to simplify and organize your daily task. Here’s how it works,  assume that you can only accomplish one big thing, three medium things, and five small things. Before leaving the end of each day, take a few minutes to define your 1-3-5 for the next day, so you’re ready to hit the ground running the next day.
Delegate tasks – To grow your business, you’ll have to delegate tasks so you can focus on your strengths and activities to position the business for success. Consider the following tools and resources:
- Contact local Universities and hire an intern or someone looking to advance their skillset and gain hands-on experience in the field.
- Hire  a virtual assistant or freelancer for everything from web design and writing assistance to tech support and help around the house. Task Rabbit, Upwork, and Fiverr are a few web resources for connecting individuals with services.
Get smart with your smartphone. Lifehacker recommended a great tip: “Most people don’t schedule their work. They schedule the interruptions that prevent their work from happening. The nutshell: Start treating your work with respect and schedule it into your calendar. Stop relocating the real work you do to the wasteland between the interruptions that are forced on you.” Alternatively, you  can turn your phone off for periods of time to minimize distractions and get really focused on certain tasks.
Automate and schedule tasks. Regularly tracking your time and costs and submitting invoices to clients are essential. The Harvest application allows to track your time on your laptop, iPhone, Android, or even on the Apple Watch so that you can track, budget wisely and bill accurately. The application also integrates with Asana and QuickBooks.
For marketing your services online, Hootsuite or Buffer are great websites for scheduling and managing social media posts and reviewing your analytics.