www.teachersletyourlightshine.com/masterminds
Running your own micro school goes beyond quick success; it's about setting a strong foundation, planning intelligently, and scaling step-by-step. Whether you aspire to run your school from a remote location or work closely with a small group, this podcast can guide you.
Time isn’t just fleeting; it’s invaluable. Unlike money, you can't acquire more time. It’s essential to use time effectively to focus on delivering quality education, fostering good relationships, and nurturing your entrepreneurship goals. Learn how to manage tasks by setting distinct goals for yourself and prioritizing them based on their significance.
Running a microschool, starting up your hybrid program, and just being a mom and teacher alone- all require time! How can we put them altogether and master our calendar in the meantime? Get first-hand advice, tips, and strategies on time management to help avoid teacher burnout, prioritize tasks, and grow your micro schools. This episode shines its spotlight on our 'Micro School Masterminds' program, your ally in revolutionizing traditional education setups.
With monthly group coaching sessions, private community support, and weekly content, we address challenges in time management, financial planning, and marketing. Remember, the road to the top tests your patience, perseverance, and strategic planning skills.
www.teachersletyourlightshine.com/masterminds
In this episode, we elaborate on the importance of using tools like Trello, a project management system, and a master Google Calendar to save your time. We highlight how to say 'no' to requests that distract us from our cause by defining our goals and aligning them with our schedules.
Time management for teacher entrepreneurs stretches beyond work; it extends to self-care too. Building a routine incorporating time-blocked workspaces, allocation time for business development, and personal care. Achieve success without succumbing to the overwhelming demands of an overflowing inbox.
This episode leaves you with the motivation that as educational entrepreneurs, you have the power to control your time, destiny, and dreams. With the right organization skills, strategies, and tools, you can plan for a successful school and a fulfilling life.
www.teachersletyourlightshine.com/masterminds
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Book a Clarity Coaching Session: www.teachersletyourlightshine.com/coaching
Get started on your dream school right now! Get all the documents you need to jumpstart, market and enroll students! www.teachersletyourlightshine.com/shop We have step-by-step instructions to help you write powerful marketing brochures, enrollment forms, introductory packets, and so much more! You’ll also find easy-to-use templates made to simplify your creation process, as well as beautiful real-life examples used by my micro-school, Lighthouse Learning, to give you creative inspiration when designing your very own forms. You will be able to seal the deal with peace and clarity when you hand deliver your new handbook and contract. Tune in to today's episode to find out more and head over to our shop to purchase your documents at teachersletyourlightshine.com/shop
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Welcome back to episode 263 of the Teacher Let Your Light Shine podcast.
Today, we are breaking free from overwhelm. Going to be teaching you about some
of my very favorite tools for time management as a teacher entrepreneur.
I really hope that you are able to take this information and create strategies
(00:23):
in an effort to reclaim your time, prioritize your task,
and avoid burnout while building your micro school or keeping your micro school
at the pace that it's at and even growing it if that is your heart's desire.
Are you ready for another great episode? Let's do it.
Parents and teachers, the time has come.
(00:46):
The time for us to gather together and create the ultimate learning environment
for For those of us leading the movement and education by creating micro schools
and homeschool hybrids.
Now introducing micro school masterminds, the one and only program for those
of us who are dedicated to making a change and creating such incredible opportunities,
(01:11):
not only for our community, for our own families, for our own life.
If you are tired of feeling overwhelmed overwhelmed, and isolated in your journey
of building a micro school or homeschool hybrid?
Micro School Masterminds is here to support you through the frustration, the uncertainty.
Music.
The building business task, the direction, the vision, the time constraints,
(01:32):
the fumbling through your finances, the wondering how to grow what you already
have. Your answer is here.
You've been asking for this and we've created it. Micro School Masterminds,
the one and only the ultimate solution to transform your dream into your reality,
boost your success with efficient time management, financial planning,
(01:53):
strategic marketing, and systems and processes to streamline all your wild and amazing ideas.
So you can actually move the mountains standing in your way of your greatest success.
We know what it's like to struggle with analysis, paralysis,
financial insecurity, and marketing challenges in your micro-school.
Music.
(02:18):
To help the beginner current micro school owner and
the person who is ready to grow their existing business and mindset
with micro school masterminds you'll receive monthly group
coaching sessions with me mckinsey oliver private support
community access and weekly content filled with templates videos and printables
to help you with all of your business building tasks if you're feeling stuck
(02:41):
in a rut battling time management issues needing clarity over your budget or
your finances If you're struggling to hire the dream team or craving accountability and inspiration,
Microschool Masterminds is your answer.
We've helped hundreds of teachers pave the way to their microschool or homeschool hybrid dream.
We've created 733% of growth in our own microschool.
(03:05):
We're not letting stagnation, overwhelm, or missed opportunities hold you back.
Act now and join Microschool Masterminds to unlock the tools,
the guidance, and the community you need to thrive.
Don't miss out on this chance to transform your educational business and secure your success.
Visit TeachersLetYourLightShine.com slash masterminds to sign up today and lock
(03:27):
in introductory pricing for life.
Again, that's TeachersLetYourLightShine.com slash masterminds.
I will be waiting for you on the other side.
I am ready to kick off this episode with a big, huge thank you for the wonderful review from Dr.
(03:48):
Tammy Walker of Educational Solutions in Huntsville, Alabama.
She wrote, Oh my goodness, God knew exactly what I needed before I even knew what a micro school was.
And that is the truth, Tammy, for sure. He always does that.
I stumbled across McKinsey somehow and my jaw dropped open.
It was all the answers I was searching for. It was all of the answers to the
(04:13):
questions that I didn't even know yet.
It was confirmation that I was not crazy and that this could be done and it could be successful.
All of the racing thoughts circling my mind are being calmed by Mackenzie's wisdom and experience.
Thank you, God. The fact that she walked through this giving glory to God resonated
with my faith and journey too.
(04:34):
Yes, honey. Yes. I cannot listen to these podcasts fast enough.
I literally went to hop in my car and drive to Florida to hug her neck.
Thank you, Dr. Tammy Walker of Educational Solutions. Tammy,
that brought me so much joy.
I literally, I pictured you jumping in your car, driving to Florida and us embracing.
(04:55):
Thank you, honey, so much for bringing me so much joy. Thank you for your kindness
and goodness and for taking the time to leave that review. you.
It really, really blesses me and praise God for all of the beautiful things
that you have said and that he is giving you clarification.
You know, everyone, as we teachers, parents, and aspiring entrepreneurs find
(05:19):
ourselves wearing multiple hats, juggling countless responsibilities,
and of course, striving to make a meaningful impact in the lives of our our
students and families, we really do have noble pursuits.
When we have noble pursuits, it's all very easy to become overwhelmed,
(05:39):
stretched thin, and on the brink of burnout, which is exactly what we don't want to happen.
This is exactly why we wanted to build our own schools, to start our own program.
But if you're pulled in a million different directions, you're planning lessons,
you're managing finances, you're marketing your school, you're meeting with
parents. I mean, the list goes on.
(06:01):
And totally, I have been there. I'm still there.
But I have definitely found ways to make this a lot more streamlined,
streamlined, and a lot more time freedom.
Honestly, friends, I know many of you guys are thinking, how can you build a
business and have more time freedom?
Yes, there's going to be a lot of work up at front.
(06:23):
There's going to be a lot of work during seasons. But let me tell you,
the fact that you get to build your own schedule that you get to say yes or
no to the program to the demands of what you're building is freedom in itself.
And while you're putting in the work at the beginning, it's just like building a house.
(06:45):
Yes, there's a lot of time intensity at the beginning. Yes, as you're building
the walls and you're putting up the frames, all of that takes time.
Then you've got the house built and now you're painting the walls and now you're decorating it.
This is a process. We cannot think that we leave our teaching professions,
we start a school and we just coast into the future, that's a lie.
(07:08):
That is a quick way for you to start something that you have been planning in
your heart for many years that God blessed you with to then go,
this is made up, it's fictitious, and I don't wanna do this anymore.
No, I'm here to say that yes, it's gonna take time. Yes, it's gonna take hard
work. Yes, it's gonna take you making a plan.
(07:29):
And yes, it's going to take you working the plan. am.
All for the big vision in the future is that you will have more time freedom,
more financial freedom.
You will be able to build a business if it is your heart's desire to not even
work in it every day, to potentially build and replicate what you've already created.
(07:50):
And you could be on a vacation somewhere while somebody else is running it.
And let me tell you that I speak with with many teachers, that is their heart's desire.
But I also speak with many teachers who just wanna start in their house and
only work four days a week and only teach six children.
It really is your landscape. It really is. You get to plant the flowers.
(08:14):
You get to determine what the design is going to look like.
It is a very, very familiar scenario for many of us to have our days blur together,
have our to-do list that keeps growing and feel like we're drowning in a sea
of tasks and responsibilities.
We pour our hearts and our souls into our work, work always have,
(08:37):
always will, sacrificing our time, our energy, and often our own well-being in the process.
And I kid you not, earlier this morning, I woke up Saturday morning,
very, very early, woke up, was planning out my month of March.
I started it yesterday, but I didn't get finished with it. I always have a planning
day at least once, if not twice a month, specifically for for forecasting into
(09:03):
the future, which is what I'm going to teach you in the Microschool Mastermind membership.
But this morning, as I was working through the month of March,
and I was writing out all of my gratitude for what has happened in February,
and planning the month ahead,
and the goals that I have looking forward,
I couldn't help but to thank God for the gift of my life right now and the gift
(09:30):
of Lighthouse Learning and going back and remember the days where I was afraid
that it wasn't going to be sustainable.
And like you, I was worried.
Do I have the capacity to do this? Do I have the capacity to keep doing it like this?
And the truth of the matter is, until I literally developed tools for my time
(09:52):
management success success and projects.
I was just finding sticky notes all over the place, looking through tons of
notebooks, trying to put my ideas together.
And today I want to share with you the three biggest, biggest needles that have
moved me into more time freedom, less overwhelmed.
(10:15):
And I'm also going to give you a bonus here. Okay.
So we're going to explore the power of of time management tools,
you've got to have a time management tool, practical strategies to reclaim your time.
I really dive into this in our membership, there is a module specifically for
(10:36):
developing tools for success.
And again, every single month through group coaching, I'm going to go through
making sure that your time management systems are set up, I can teach I can
teach you all the marketing.
I can teach you all the ways to grow and fund and financial.
All of that's going to be wonderful. But if you don't have the time for this,
(10:57):
we're all going to say I don't have time.
But if we look at our schedule, there are some days throughout the week where I get home at 3.30pm.
And I have nothing. And at around 8.30, this just happened to me on Thursday this week.
I was like, I had five hours.
And I just rested and relaxed and enjoyed my kids and enjoyed my home and cooked
(11:22):
and picked up a little bit, played with my dog, sat outside.
And I was like, that was five hours. That was a lot of time.
And I think I say to myself, I don't have time for stuff. Five hours is huge.
That was a major amount of time. And I was blessed with that gift of freedom
in that moment, not grading papers,
not trying to figure out who I'm going to call and who I'm going to have tour
(11:45):
set up with and what's my calendar look like. It had already been set in place.
It's absolutely crucial for you to master your time as an educational entrepreneur
because you are building a world, my friends. You're not just building a school.
You're building a world. You're building a culture. or you're building a community.
(12:07):
First, you have to understand that time is your most precious resource.
Unlike money or material possessions, you can't buy back more time.
Each minute that ticks away is literally a precious gift and it's a chance to
make a difference in the lives of your students, your family, and yourself.
Second, you have to understand that effective time management is the key to
(12:29):
productivity and efficiency.
We have to optimize our time and we're able to accomplish more in less time.
We free up our valuable hours. We're able to focus on what truly matters.
We're able to deliver high quality education, nurture relationships with your
students, with your families, grow your business, your intention, grow your purpose.
(12:50):
There's no way I could have built a school to this degree without very great time management tools.
Foundations, along with building another business, Teach Your Light, Your Light Shine.
I'm running two businesses and glory be to God for that.
And I have a very jam-packed schedule.
(13:11):
I am about to leave to be gone for the next 12 hours to my daughter's volleyball
tournament today from 12, I'm sorry, from 10 a.m.
Until 10 p.m. tonight. And I do it again on Sunday. and I'm taking off Monday
so that I can finish up her qualifying tournament so that she can see if she can go to Vegas.
(13:31):
No way would I have been able to do that without very specific systems in place.
I know that we all feel like there's just not enough hours in the day and we're
constantly racing against the clock and that's what I want to help you overcome.
My first question is, do you have
clear goals and priorities or
(13:52):
are you running off of a to-do list if you're
running off of a to-do list that's okay but now
I want you to take your to-do list and we've got to create buckets
that these tasks fall into also known
as projects and these projects need to determine your priorities or your priorities
(14:14):
determine your projects whatever you however you want to say it but we cannot
have a to-do list every day and we're just going through and not determining
what our goals are and what our priorities are.
So let's just stop for a second. What are your goals?
What are your goals for this month?
What are your goals for the end of the school year?
What are your goals for the summer? What are your goals by the end of 2024?
(14:38):
Once you know what your goals are and you look at your to-do list.
And you start breaking it up into this is a priority and this isn't.
This is what I need to focus on in March.
Then once I focus, once I get my focus on what truly needs to be done in March,
now I can say, okay, I've got all of these things that I need to do in March.
Do any of them form into like categories, such as marketing,
(15:04):
such as communication, such as website building, such as tours,
such as meeting families?
Such as team meetings, or projecting into the summer, or finances?
Where do all of these like pieces of information go together into a specific
bucket? That's your project.
(15:27):
Now, if I take all those little tasks, and I just have buckets,
known as projects, which ones are most important right now in this season?
That's what we have to determine our goals and our priorities.
Step one, step two, just know that those goals and priorities need to be documented somewhere.
(15:49):
I love Trello. I used to use MeisterTask. That was really great for me as I was working by myself.
Year one, year two, year three, but year four, as we just expanded.
I had to have a bigger project management system. We moved to Trello.
If you're working by yourself right now, and you're using MeisterTask because
(16:10):
I had taught you that, I would start to encourage you to begin moving over to
a larger project management system such as Trello.
It's very universal, it's very widely used, and we're gonna take those goals
and priorities and we're gonna put them into Trello.
That's step two. You've gotta have a project management system,
tool. I do this with my coaching clients. I'm going to get super specific and
(16:34):
nitty gritty. We're going to plan out your whole year.
Whenever you first get into Microschool Masterminds, the very first thing that
I'm going to have you do is set up your Trello boards.
I'm going to have you break down all of your months for the remainder of the school year.
And not only that, we're going to create workspaces to help you plan things out,
(16:56):
not only for your business, but also for your personal life,
because I don't want to just focus on your business. I want to focus on you.
I want to focus on your personal life. So the micro school mastermind membership
is not just going to be about building your business.
It's also going to be about building you, building your mind,
building your time, building your energy.
(17:17):
I'm going to highly encourage you every month to take care of your physical, mental well-being.
We're going to have have sweet, precious, awesome challenges. Yes, we are.
But right now, we got to get a project management system, a place,
a hub. We can't just keep working on to-do lists.
We can't just keep working through trying to find a whole bunch of Google Docs.
(17:39):
The third thing that we need to work on is a Google Calendar.
Do you have a master Google Calendar? And are you able to share that amongst
people, even your family, even your husband?
That's so important. If we're talking about time management,
we got to see where our time's going every month.
So after we get our goals and priorities, now we look at our calendar and we
(18:00):
look at the month and we say, where are these goals and priorities going to fall?
Where am I going to place these goals and priorities?
Because we want to make sure that we are not multitasking, that we're getting
more done, that we're not decreasing our productivity and increasing our stress.
We want to focus on one task, one project at a time that gives our full attention.
(18:25):
You will be amazed at how much more you can accomplish.
So after we look at our Google Calendar for the month, we're then going to break
it down into our week and our paper planner, my friends.
Yes, we go from big ideas, big goals, big priorities.
We look at our month, then we look at our week. Do you have a paper planner.
(18:46):
As a teacher entrepreneur, we feel the pressure to say yes to every opportunity that comes our way.
But when you know what your goals and priorities are, when you know how much
time you have, when you know what needs to be changed on your schedule,
your time and energy become a really great treasured resource.
We have to be very selective about where we invest our time.
(19:08):
We can't be afraid to decline requests, but we also have to be aligned with our goals.
We also have to make sure that throughout the week that we're not just planning
just to-dos, to-dos, to-dos and business, business, business and marketing,
marketing and go here and go there and call this person.
No, we've got to make sure that we're prioritizing self-care,
(19:29):
prioritizing date nights, prioritizing time with our family.
Those are very big goals that I have for my family as well.
I have goals for TeacherLater, LightShine, Lighthouse Learning,
my personal life and my family life.
So we need to make sure that everything is being able to fit into our weekly
schedule and not just for our business.
(19:49):
Do we have strategies and do we have routines?
So we go from our goals and our priorities and we start putting them in a project
management system such as Trello.
Then we look at our Google Calendar, we look at our month. You might even be
able to look at your quarter. I do that very, very frequently.
Then we break that down into our week and then we get very specific about our
(20:13):
days. I love to time block.
I also love being able to use Trello for my weekly and daily planning.
We have to prioritize our time management.
If you're like, I don't even know where to begin. Let me tell you,
you begin by setting down and you begin by looking at your calendar.
Do not look at your email list.
(20:34):
Don't do it. Look at your calendar. Look at your paper planner.
If you don't have those, get started with those.
Look at all your sticky notes. Let's put it into to a cohesive place that makes
sense like a hub, a vault.
That's what I use Trello for. There is absolute hope on the horizon.
We are wanting essentialism and well-being and long-term sustainability.
(20:57):
We don't want to be constantly overwhelmed, stretched or stretched too thin.
It's not just your work that suffers. It's your health. It's your relationships.
It's your overall quality of life, especially if you're transitioning out
of school right now and you're starting this
business or if you've been homeschooling and you're starting this
project of starting a school listen up we are
(21:18):
here to explore very practical strategies
i'm not all about just go out and just start winging it baby no i want you to
be able to make sure that you have tools in place so that you can break free
from the overwhelm that you don't want to be a part of anymore but here's the
thing is everybody else used to control your calendar everybody else used to
control your lesson plans.
(21:38):
Everybody else used to tell you what time you had to report somewhere and what
you had to do during your time, but now you get the opportunity to determine that.
But you need the tools for success.
We want to build a thriving micro school without sacrificing your sanity.
So stay tuned, stay inspired, and remember that you have the power to take control
(21:59):
of your time, your destiny, and your dreams. You don't have to fall victim.
Trust me when I tell you, You are so capable.
Start with organizing yourself.
Pick one of the strategies that I just taught you today. Pick one of the tools.
And focus just on that and get it really set up well and then move on to the next.
(22:21):
But don't let your inbox determine your calendar.
And I can't wait to see you. We're just less than a month away of Microschool
Masterminds membership where we're gonna take it full throttle,
baby, into helping you not only plan for your school, but planning for the good life.
That's what we're all about when it comes to making the most out of our teacher destiny.
Welcome back to episode 263 of the Teacher Let Your Light Shine podcast.
Today, we are breaking free from overwhelm. Going to be teaching you about some
of my very favorite tools for time management as a teacher entrepreneur.
I really hope that you are able to take this information and create strategies
(00:23):
in an effort to reclaim your time, prioritize your task,
and avoid burnout while building your micro school or keeping your micro school
at the pace that it's at and even growing it if that is your heart's desire.
Are you ready for another great episode? Let's do it.
Parents and teachers, the time has come.
(00:46):
The time for us to gather together and create the ultimate learning environment
for For those of us leading the movement and education by creating micro schools
and homeschool hybrids.
Now introducing micro school masterminds, the one and only program for those
of us who are dedicated to making a change and creating such incredible opportunities,
(01:11):
not only for our community, for our own families, for our own life.
If you are tired of feeling overwhelmed overwhelmed, and isolated in your journey
of building a micro school or homeschool hybrid?
Micro School Masterminds is here to support you through the frustration, the uncertainty.
Music.
The building business task, the direction, the vision, the time constraints,
(01:32):
the fumbling through your finances, the wondering how to grow what you already
have. Your answer is here.
You've been asking for this and we've created it. Micro School Masterminds,
the one and only the ultimate solution to transform your dream into your reality,
boost your success with efficient time management, financial planning,
(01:53):
strategic marketing, and systems and processes to streamline all your wild and amazing ideas.
So you can actually move the mountains standing in your way of your greatest success.
We know what it's like to struggle with analysis, paralysis,
financial insecurity, and marketing challenges in your micro-school.
Music.
(02:18):
To help the beginner current micro school owner and
the person who is ready to grow their existing business and mindset
with micro school masterminds you'll receive monthly group
coaching sessions with me mckinsey oliver private support
community access and weekly content filled with templates videos and printables
to help you with all of your business building tasks if you're feeling stuck
(02:41):
in a rut battling time management issues needing clarity over your budget or
your finances If you're struggling to hire the dream team or craving accountability and inspiration,
Microschool Masterminds is your answer.
We've helped hundreds of teachers pave the way to their microschool or homeschool hybrid dream.
We've created 733% of growth in our own microschool.
(03:05):
We're not letting stagnation, overwhelm, or missed opportunities hold you back.
Act now and join Microschool Masterminds to unlock the tools,
the guidance, and the community you need to thrive.
Don't miss out on this chance to transform your educational business and secure your success.
Visit TeachersLetYourLightShine.com slash masterminds to sign up today and lock
(03:27):
in introductory pricing for life.
Again, that's TeachersLetYourLightShine.com slash masterminds.
I will be waiting for you on the other side.
I am ready to kick off this episode with a big, huge thank you for the wonderful review from Dr.
(03:48):
Tammy Walker of Educational Solutions in Huntsville, Alabama.
She wrote, Oh my goodness, God knew exactly what I needed before I even knew what a micro school was.
And that is the truth, Tammy, for sure. He always does that.
I stumbled across McKinsey somehow and my jaw dropped open.
It was all the answers I was searching for. It was all of the answers to the
(04:13):
questions that I didn't even know yet.
It was confirmation that I was not crazy and that this could be done and it could be successful.
All of the racing thoughts circling my mind are being calmed by Mackenzie's wisdom and experience.
Thank you, God. The fact that she walked through this giving glory to God resonated
with my faith and journey too.
(04:34):
Yes, honey. Yes. I cannot listen to these podcasts fast enough.
I literally went to hop in my car and drive to Florida to hug her neck.
Thank you, Dr. Tammy Walker of Educational Solutions. Tammy,
that brought me so much joy.
I literally, I pictured you jumping in your car, driving to Florida and us embracing.
(04:55):
Thank you, honey, so much for bringing me so much joy. Thank you for your kindness
and goodness and for taking the time to leave that review. you.
It really, really blesses me and praise God for all of the beautiful things
that you have said and that he is giving you clarification.
You know, everyone, as we teachers, parents, and aspiring entrepreneurs find
(05:19):
ourselves wearing multiple hats, juggling countless responsibilities,
and of course, striving to make a meaningful impact in the lives of our our
students and families, we really do have noble pursuits.
When we have noble pursuits, it's all very easy to become overwhelmed,
(05:39):
stretched thin, and on the brink of burnout, which is exactly what we don't want to happen.
This is exactly why we wanted to build our own schools, to start our own program.
But if you're pulled in a million different directions, you're planning lessons,
you're managing finances, you're marketing your school, you're meeting with
parents. I mean, the list goes on.
(06:01):
And totally, I have been there. I'm still there.
But I have definitely found ways to make this a lot more streamlined,
streamlined, and a lot more time freedom.
Honestly, friends, I know many of you guys are thinking, how can you build a
business and have more time freedom?
Yes, there's going to be a lot of work up at front.
(06:23):
There's going to be a lot of work during seasons. But let me tell you,
the fact that you get to build your own schedule that you get to say yes or
no to the program to the demands of what you're building is freedom in itself.
And while you're putting in the work at the beginning, it's just like building a house.
(06:45):
Yes, there's a lot of time intensity at the beginning. Yes, as you're building
the walls and you're putting up the frames, all of that takes time.
Then you've got the house built and now you're painting the walls and now you're decorating it.
This is a process. We cannot think that we leave our teaching professions,
we start a school and we just coast into the future, that's a lie.
(07:08):
That is a quick way for you to start something that you have been planning in
your heart for many years that God blessed you with to then go,
this is made up, it's fictitious, and I don't wanna do this anymore.
No, I'm here to say that yes, it's gonna take time. Yes, it's gonna take hard
work. Yes, it's gonna take you making a plan.
(07:29):
And yes, it's going to take you working the plan. am.
All for the big vision in the future is that you will have more time freedom,
more financial freedom.
You will be able to build a business if it is your heart's desire to not even
work in it every day, to potentially build and replicate what you've already created.
(07:50):
And you could be on a vacation somewhere while somebody else is running it.
And let me tell you that I speak with with many teachers, that is their heart's desire.
But I also speak with many teachers who just wanna start in their house and
only work four days a week and only teach six children.
It really is your landscape. It really is. You get to plant the flowers.
(08:14):
You get to determine what the design is going to look like.
It is a very, very familiar scenario for many of us to have our days blur together,
have our to-do list that keeps growing and feel like we're drowning in a sea
of tasks and responsibilities.
We pour our hearts and our souls into our work, work always have,
(08:37):
always will, sacrificing our time, our energy, and often our own well-being in the process.
And I kid you not, earlier this morning, I woke up Saturday morning,
very, very early, woke up, was planning out my month of March.
I started it yesterday, but I didn't get finished with it. I always have a planning
day at least once, if not twice a month, specifically for for forecasting into
(09:03):
the future, which is what I'm going to teach you in the Microschool Mastermind membership.
But this morning, as I was working through the month of March,
and I was writing out all of my gratitude for what has happened in February,
and planning the month ahead,
and the goals that I have looking forward,
I couldn't help but to thank God for the gift of my life right now and the gift
(09:30):
of Lighthouse Learning and going back and remember the days where I was afraid
that it wasn't going to be sustainable.
And like you, I was worried.
Do I have the capacity to do this? Do I have the capacity to keep doing it like this?
And the truth of the matter is, until I literally developed tools for my time
(09:52):
management success success and projects.
I was just finding sticky notes all over the place, looking through tons of
notebooks, trying to put my ideas together.
And today I want to share with you the three biggest, biggest needles that have
moved me into more time freedom, less overwhelmed.
(10:15):
And I'm also going to give you a bonus here. Okay.
So we're going to explore the power of of time management tools,
you've got to have a time management tool, practical strategies to reclaim your time.
I really dive into this in our membership, there is a module specifically for
(10:36):
developing tools for success.
And again, every single month through group coaching, I'm going to go through
making sure that your time management systems are set up, I can teach I can
teach you all the marketing.
I can teach you all the ways to grow and fund and financial.
All of that's going to be wonderful. But if you don't have the time for this,
(10:57):
we're all going to say I don't have time.
But if we look at our schedule, there are some days throughout the week where I get home at 3.30pm.
And I have nothing. And at around 8.30, this just happened to me on Thursday this week.
I was like, I had five hours.
And I just rested and relaxed and enjoyed my kids and enjoyed my home and cooked
(11:22):
and picked up a little bit, played with my dog, sat outside.
And I was like, that was five hours. That was a lot of time.
And I think I say to myself, I don't have time for stuff. Five hours is huge.
That was a major amount of time. And I was blessed with that gift of freedom
in that moment, not grading papers,
not trying to figure out who I'm going to call and who I'm going to have tour
(11:45):
set up with and what's my calendar look like. It had already been set in place.
It's absolutely crucial for you to master your time as an educational entrepreneur
because you are building a world, my friends. You're not just building a school.
You're building a world. You're building a culture. or you're building a community.
(12:07):
First, you have to understand that time is your most precious resource.
Unlike money or material possessions, you can't buy back more time.
Each minute that ticks away is literally a precious gift and it's a chance to
make a difference in the lives of your students, your family, and yourself.
Second, you have to understand that effective time management is the key to
(12:29):
productivity and efficiency.
We have to optimize our time and we're able to accomplish more in less time.
We free up our valuable hours. We're able to focus on what truly matters.
We're able to deliver high quality education, nurture relationships with your
students, with your families, grow your business, your intention, grow your purpose.
(12:50):
There's no way I could have built a school to this degree without very great time management tools.
Foundations, along with building another business, Teach Your Light, Your Light Shine.
I'm running two businesses and glory be to God for that.
And I have a very jam-packed schedule.
(13:11):
I am about to leave to be gone for the next 12 hours to my daughter's volleyball
tournament today from 12, I'm sorry, from 10 a.m.
Until 10 p.m. tonight. And I do it again on Sunday. and I'm taking off Monday
so that I can finish up her qualifying tournament so that she can see if she can go to Vegas.
(13:31):
No way would I have been able to do that without very specific systems in place.
I know that we all feel like there's just not enough hours in the day and we're
constantly racing against the clock and that's what I want to help you overcome.
My first question is, do you have
clear goals and priorities or
(13:52):
are you running off of a to-do list if you're
running off of a to-do list that's okay but now
I want you to take your to-do list and we've got to create buckets
that these tasks fall into also known
as projects and these projects need to determine your priorities or your priorities
(14:14):
determine your projects whatever you however you want to say it but we cannot
have a to-do list every day and we're just going through and not determining
what our goals are and what our priorities are.
So let's just stop for a second. What are your goals?
What are your goals for this month?
What are your goals for the end of the school year?
What are your goals for the summer? What are your goals by the end of 2024?
(14:38):
Once you know what your goals are and you look at your to-do list.
And you start breaking it up into this is a priority and this isn't.
This is what I need to focus on in March.
Then once I focus, once I get my focus on what truly needs to be done in March,
now I can say, okay, I've got all of these things that I need to do in March.
Do any of them form into like categories, such as marketing,
(15:04):
such as communication, such as website building, such as tours,
such as meeting families?
Such as team meetings, or projecting into the summer, or finances?
Where do all of these like pieces of information go together into a specific
bucket? That's your project.
(15:27):
Now, if I take all those little tasks, and I just have buckets,
known as projects, which ones are most important right now in this season?
That's what we have to determine our goals and our priorities.
Step one, step two, just know that those goals and priorities need to be documented somewhere.
(15:49):
I love Trello. I used to use MeisterTask. That was really great for me as I was working by myself.
Year one, year two, year three, but year four, as we just expanded.
I had to have a bigger project management system. We moved to Trello.
If you're working by yourself right now, and you're using MeisterTask because
(16:10):
I had taught you that, I would start to encourage you to begin moving over to
a larger project management system such as Trello.
It's very universal, it's very widely used, and we're gonna take those goals
and priorities and we're gonna put them into Trello.
That's step two. You've gotta have a project management system,
tool. I do this with my coaching clients. I'm going to get super specific and
(16:34):
nitty gritty. We're going to plan out your whole year.
Whenever you first get into Microschool Masterminds, the very first thing that
I'm going to have you do is set up your Trello boards.
I'm going to have you break down all of your months for the remainder of the school year.
And not only that, we're going to create workspaces to help you plan things out,
(16:56):
not only for your business, but also for your personal life,
because I don't want to just focus on your business. I want to focus on you.
I want to focus on your personal life. So the micro school mastermind membership
is not just going to be about building your business.
It's also going to be about building you, building your mind,
building your time, building your energy.
(17:17):
I'm going to highly encourage you every month to take care of your physical, mental well-being.
We're going to have have sweet, precious, awesome challenges. Yes, we are.
But right now, we got to get a project management system, a place,
a hub. We can't just keep working on to-do lists.
We can't just keep working through trying to find a whole bunch of Google Docs.
(17:39):
The third thing that we need to work on is a Google Calendar.
Do you have a master Google Calendar? And are you able to share that amongst
people, even your family, even your husband?
That's so important. If we're talking about time management,
we got to see where our time's going every month.
So after we get our goals and priorities, now we look at our calendar and we
(18:00):
look at the month and we say, where are these goals and priorities going to fall?
Where am I going to place these goals and priorities?
Because we want to make sure that we are not multitasking, that we're getting
more done, that we're not decreasing our productivity and increasing our stress.
We want to focus on one task, one project at a time that gives our full attention.
(18:25):
You will be amazed at how much more you can accomplish.
So after we look at our Google Calendar for the month, we're then going to break
it down into our week and our paper planner, my friends.
Yes, we go from big ideas, big goals, big priorities.
We look at our month, then we look at our week. Do you have a paper planner.
(18:46):
As a teacher entrepreneur, we feel the pressure to say yes to every opportunity that comes our way.
But when you know what your goals and priorities are, when you know how much
time you have, when you know what needs to be changed on your schedule,
your time and energy become a really great treasured resource.
We have to be very selective about where we invest our time.
(19:08):
We can't be afraid to decline requests, but we also have to be aligned with our goals.
We also have to make sure that throughout the week that we're not just planning
just to-dos, to-dos, to-dos and business, business, business and marketing,
marketing and go here and go there and call this person.
No, we've got to make sure that we're prioritizing self-care,
(19:29):
prioritizing date nights, prioritizing time with our family.
Those are very big goals that I have for my family as well.
I have goals for TeacherLater, LightShine, Lighthouse Learning,
my personal life and my family life.
So we need to make sure that everything is being able to fit into our weekly
schedule and not just for our business.
(19:49):
Do we have strategies and do we have routines?
So we go from our goals and our priorities and we start putting them in a project
management system such as Trello.
Then we look at our Google Calendar, we look at our month. You might even be
able to look at your quarter. I do that very, very frequently.
Then we break that down into our week and then we get very specific about our
(20:13):
days. I love to time block.
I also love being able to use Trello for my weekly and daily planning.
We have to prioritize our time management.
If you're like, I don't even know where to begin. Let me tell you,
you begin by setting down and you begin by looking at your calendar.
Do not look at your email list.
(20:34):
Don't do it. Look at your calendar. Look at your paper planner.
If you don't have those, get started with those.
Look at all your sticky notes. Let's put it into to a cohesive place that makes
sense like a hub, a vault.
That's what I use Trello for. There is absolute hope on the horizon.
We are wanting essentialism and well-being and long-term sustainability.
(20:57):
We don't want to be constantly overwhelmed, stretched or stretched too thin.
It's not just your work that suffers. It's your health. It's your relationships.
It's your overall quality of life, especially if you're transitioning out
of school right now and you're starting this
business or if you've been homeschooling and you're starting this
project of starting a school listen up we are
(21:18):
here to explore very practical strategies
i'm not all about just go out and just start winging it baby no i want you to
be able to make sure that you have tools in place so that you can break free
from the overwhelm that you don't want to be a part of anymore but here's the
thing is everybody else used to control your calendar everybody else used to
control your lesson plans.
(21:38):
Everybody else used to tell you what time you had to report somewhere and what
you had to do during your time, but now you get the opportunity to determine that.
But you need the tools for success.
We want to build a thriving micro school without sacrificing your sanity.
So stay tuned, stay inspired, and remember that you have the power to take control
(21:59):
of your time, your destiny, and your dreams. You don't have to fall victim.
Trust me when I tell you, You are so capable.
Start with organizing yourself.
Pick one of the strategies that I just taught you today. Pick one of the tools.
And focus just on that and get it really set up well and then move on to the next.
(22:21):
But don't let your inbox determine your calendar.
And I can't wait to see you. We're just less than a month away of Microschool
Masterminds membership where we're gonna take it full throttle,
baby, into helping you not only plan for your school, but planning for the good life.
That's what we're all about when it comes to making the most out of our teacher destiny.
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