The Silent Killer of Success: Why Time Management Makes or Breaks Entrepreneurs

Time management is the hidden CEO skill that determines whether entrepreneurs thrive or merely survive in their businesses. We explore how poor time habits silently sabotage success while introducing practical strategies to reclaim control of your schedule and accelerate progress toward your goals.

• Recognizing when you're "busy but broke, booked but burnt out, posting but not profitable"
• Understanding that most entrepreneurs fail due to poor time management, not lack of talent
• Viewing time as currency that's either invested in or withdrawn from your future
• Implementing the 3D Rule: do it, delegate it, or drop it
• Creating sacred CEO time blocks for working on your business, not just in it
• Setting just one powerful goal each week instead of diluting focus
• Protecting your creativity with silent mornings before digital distractions
• Batching similar tasks to maximize efficiency and preserve energy
• Recognizing that saying "no" is sometimes the most productive action

Check out our Time Clarity Tracker PDF—a free downloadable resource to help you monitor and optimize how you spend your hours. Print it out, hang it on your refrigerator, and use it as a starting point for better time management. Because you deserve not just success, but peace.

Send us a text

Support the show

Collect all free downloadable checklist and access to other items including the featured Stanley on the go tumblers. https://linktr.ee/notjustcandletalk

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hello world, welcome back to Not Just Candle Talk the
real, raw and unfiltered showfor creators, entrepreneurs and
dreamers who are done playingsmall.
I'm your host, Tony, and todaywe're going to talk about the
one thing you can't buy backtime time.

(00:30):
Whether you're building a brand, launching a product, running a
side hustle or still stuck inyour nine-to-five trying to
juggle it all, this episode isyour wake-up call.
This isn't just about plannersand productivity hacks.
We're diving into the realemotional costs of poor time
management, how it silentlykills your progress and, most

(00:53):
importantly, how to take yourtime back.
So let's get into it.
Let me tell you a quick storybefore we get started.
A few years back, I was workingon a project, trying to build,
taking freelance gigs.

(01:14):
I was showing up on socials andbeing everything to everyone
and being everything to everyone, but inside I was drowning in a
calendar full of stuff thatlooked productive but wasn't
profitable.
I was busy but broke, Bookedbut burnt out, Posting but not

(01:40):
profitable.
That's when I realized I didn'thave a business problem.
I had a time management problem.
And if you're listening to this, chances are so do you.
So here's the truth.
Most creators and entrepreneursaren't failing because of lack
of talent.

(02:00):
They're failing because of lackof time, clarity and how
they're spending their hoursevery single day.
You don't need more time, Okay.
You need to use your timedifferently.
So what do I mean by that?
Let's break it down.
So if you're not managing yourtime, you're not managing your

(02:26):
energy, your output or yourincome.
Think of time like money.
Every minute is a deposit orevery withdrawal from your
future.
Here's what poor timemanagement looks like in real
life Starting 10 things butfinishing none.

(02:49):
Saying yes to every collab thatdoesn't pay.
Getting stuck in contentcreation but never actually
promoting.
Being on 24-7 and wondering whyyou're exhausted.
Time is the CEO skill nobody'steaching.

(03:12):
It affects your launches, yoursales and, above all, your
sanity.
And here's the kicker when youwaste your time, you're not just
delaying your dream, You'realso feeding your imposter
syndrome, because the longer youdelay action, the louder the

(03:36):
doubt gets.
So here these are things thatmight work.
Okay, that may work if youpractice them.
Number one the 3D rule is do it,delegate it and then drop it.

(03:56):
Every task must go in one ofthese three buckets.
Period Number two the CEO timeblocks.
What that means is you canblock out two hours a week that
are non-negotiable for workingon your business or any project,

(04:17):
Not just in it Podcasting,planning, email strategy, a
revenue review that's yourboardroom meeting with yourself.
Number three one goal per week,Not five, not 10, one powerful

(04:38):
needle, moving goal each week.
You'll be shocked how effectivethis is.
Number four silent mornings.
This is my all time favorite.
No phone calls, no scrolling,no reacting.
Spend your first 20 minutesevery day creating, journaling

(05:04):
or planning.
Protect your mind before theinternet hacks it.
Number five batch and bounce.
What does that mean?
Batch your content, Batch yourprojects, Batch your life.
Then bounce out and live.
You weren't meant to be on allday, every day.

(05:27):
Let me speak directly to myfellow creators and artists and
those passionate entrepreneurs.
Of course, you've got a skill,You've got a gift, but your gift
can become a grind when yourcalendar doesn't protect your

(05:47):
creativity.
Your creativity needs space,not chaos.
You can't build an empire ifyour time is always on clearance
.
You can't scale if every houris always spoken for.
You can't succeed if you'retreating your dream like a side

(06:10):
hobby and you're a distractionlike a full time job.
So here's the uncomfortabletruth.
Sometimes the most productivething you can do is actually
just saying no, my favoritething, Another one of my
favorite things.
One of my favorite things.

(06:31):
So I want to challenge you forthe coming week, starting today,
or you can start it tomorrow.
Let's try these things for oneweek.
Audit your calendar that's one.
Reclaim five wasted hoursthat's two.
Apply one of the five timehabits that's two.

(06:52):
Apply one of the five timehabits that's number three and
repeat this mantra my time isexpensive.
So is my dream.
So I wanted to touch on thisepisode or this subject my bad

(07:12):
on this episode or this subject.
My bad, this subject.
Because a lot of people havedifficulty with time management.
It could be either gettingsomewhere on time, it could be
the stop and start in a project.
A lot of people get stuck intime management.
It's important, it's a part oftime management, is a part of

(07:33):
discipline.
Right, those two?
To me, they go hand in hand.
If you don't have discipline,you will not.

(07:58):
An artist will tell you withoutdiscipline and time management,
it just does not work.
So I think I needed to do thisepisode, just because the
outpour of responses I've beengetting from people is this I
just don't have enough time todo X, Y, Z.
So that sparked me doing thisepisode, and anybody out there,

(08:25):
if this episode hit home, pleaseshare it in your friend groups
uh, your bestie, who's alwaysbusy, busy, busy and um, it's
just, you know, having a hardtime.
And if you're ready to godeeper, what I'm going to do is
uh, I'm a download, have adownloadable PDF for you.

(08:46):
That's the time clarity tracker.
Uh, I created it just forAnybody who has difficult With
time management.
It's a short PDF.
You can keep track of your time.
You can print it out, Hangingon your refrigerator.
Just, you know, a startingpoint To getting on track and

(09:07):
staying disciplined, Because youdeserve success.
But, but, more than that, youdeserve peace.
And if it starts with how youspend your time, I think it's
important to take a look at it.
Every little bit helps, rightwhen you're running a small

(09:28):
business, or even doing a sidehustle or working, for that
matter.
You can apply this also to ifyou've got your nine to five and
you've got a family.
You can apply this, thesetactics or life skills that I
put in this episode.
So I'm not going to take toomuch more of your time Until

(09:51):
next time.
Stay lit, but don't burn out.
Thank you so much for listening.
Talk to you soon, Bye.