If you’re trying to work out how to free up time in your business, the best place to start probably isn’t a productivity hack or a new app. It’s a slightly uncomfortable question: do you actually know where your time is going right now?
Most founders don’t. Not really. We have a rough sense of it, but the reality of how our hours are actually spent tends to be quite different from what we think. And until you know that, it’s very hard to change it.
So before anything else, let’s start there.
Step one: find out where your time is actually going
The single most useful thing you can do before trying to free up time in your business is to track it. Just for a week or two. Properly.
It sounds simple, but most people find it genuinely revealing. The tasks that feel quick turn out to take an hour. The things you think are eating your day are sometimes not the culprit at all. Without the data, you’re guessing.
A free tool like Toggl makes this straightforward. You start a timer when you begin a task and stop it when you move on. That’s it. By the end of the week you’ve got a clear picture of where your time is actually going, which is usually quite different from where you assumed it was going.
Don’t try to change anything yet. Just observe. The point of this step is honest information, not judgement.
Step two: sort what you find into three buckets
Once you’ve got a week or two of data, look through it and sort everything into three groups.
The first group is tasks that genuinely need to be you. The client relationships, the key decisions, the work that moves your business forward and that only you can do. These stay with you.
The second group is tasks that need doing but don’t specifically need to be you. Admin, scheduling, reports, inbox management, social media scheduling. These are candidates for delegation.
The third group is the one most people overlook: tasks that don’t really need doing at all. Meetings that could be emails. Reports nobody reads. Processes you’ve always done a certain way but that don’t serve a clear purpose anymore. These can simply stop.
Step three: deal with the ‘does this need doing at all’ pile first
Before you think about delegating or automating anything, go through that third group and start cutting. This is the fastest way to free up time in your business because it costs nothing and can happen immediately.
Ask yourself honestly: what would actually happen if this task stopped? If the answer is “probably nothing”, or “I’m not sure anyone would notice”, that’s your answer.
It can feel uncomfortable to stop doing things you’ve always done. But holding onto tasks out of habit or obligation is one of the most common ways founders quietly lose hours every week.
Step four: automate the repetitive stuff
For tasks that do need doing but follow a predictable pattern, automation is often simpler than people expect. You don’t need to be particularly technical to make it work.
Scheduling tools can handle meeting bookings without the back-and-forth. Email templates and saved replies can deal with common enquiries in a fraction of the time. Simple workflows in tools like Zapier or Make can connect your apps and cut out the manual steps in between.
None of this takes long to set up, and once it’s in place it quietly saves you time every single day. Even getting one or two repetitive tasks off your plate this way can make a noticeable difference to how your week feels.
Step five: delegate what’s left
By this point you’ve stopped doing things that didn’t need doing, and automated the repetitive stuff. What’s left in your second bucket is the work that still needs doing, but that doesn’t need to be you.
This is where getting some support comes in. And for a lot of founders, it’s the step that makes the biggest difference.
Think about what that list looks like for you. Inbox management. Preparing reports. Chasing invoices. Updating social media. Coordinating diaries. These are all real, important tasks, but none of them require the person who built the business. When someone else handles them, you get back the hours and headspace you need to focus on the work that actually grows things.
It’s worth remembering that getting support doesn’t have to mean hiring someone full-time. For many founders, a flexible virtual support arrangement works far better, you get the help you need without the overhead and commitment of employment.
A note from us
At Liruss, this is exactly the kind of work we do with founders every day. If you’ve gone through these steps and found yourself with a second bucket full of tasks that need a home, we’d love to have a conversation about whether we might be a good fit.
Drop us a line at hello@liruss.co.uk or book a discovery call to find out more.
Frequently asked questions
How do I free up time in my business?
Start by tracking where your time is actually going, using a free tool like Toggl, for at least a week. Then sort your tasks into three groups: work only you can do, work that could be done by someone else, and work that doesn’t need doing at all. Tackle the third group first by cutting unnecessary tasks, then automate what’s repetitive, and finally look at delegating the rest.
What is the best time tracking tool for business owners?
Toggl is one of the most popular free time tracking tools for founders and business owners. It’s simple to use, requires no technical setup, and gives you a clear breakdown of where your hours are going across the week.
What tasks should a business owner delegate?
The tasks worth delegating are ones that need doing regularly but don’t specifically require your expertise or decision-making. Common examples include inbox management, diary scheduling, social media scheduling, report preparation, invoice chasing, and client onboarding admin.
Is it worth getting a virtual assistant as a business owner?
For many founders, yes. A virtual assistant or virtual business support service handles the operational and admin tasks that eat into your time, without the cost and commitment of a full-time employee. It works particularly well for business owners who have a clear list of tasks they’d like off their plate but don’t need someone in-house five days a week.
How do I know if I need more support in my business?
A good indicator is if you regularly find yourself doing work in the evenings or weekends just to keep up, if things are starting to slip, or if the strategic and growth-focused work keeps getting pushed aside. These are signs the day-to-day has outgrown what one person can reasonably carry.
