Business of Baking Expert, and ACD Business Matters Columnist, Michelle Green, shares her expert business advice with these incredible time management tips. To read Michelle’s business column, subscribe to American Cake Decorating magazine.
Time Management can be a real challenge – here are some of my best tips for getting your time under control.
1. If you can make it ahead, do so – and I don’t mean a few days. I mean a few weeks! Cakes, butter cream and ganache can be frozen, sugar flowers can be stored, boards and cutters can be ordered well in advance. Don’t leave ANY essential part of an order to that last week.
2. If there’s something you use a lot of (for example, gum paste roses or 8” round chocolate cakes), make more than you need every single time you make them so that you start to build up some stock to have on hand.
3. Sugar flowers can almost always be made in all white then dusted to be the color you need. Making things in white and coloring them AFTER they are done is a lot easier and faster, and you’re not coloring too much or too little paste. This way you can also keep loads of flowers on hand then just color to order.
4. Before hanging up your apron at the end of the week, take a quick stock of what you’ve got on hand and make sure things like ganache, flour, sugar and fondant are topped up. You don’t want to start each week needing to head to the store. A five minute trip to the store always ends up way longer (and way more expensive) than you thought. (Is it just me?)
5. Put your phone on silent and in another room. If my phone is beeping or vibrating or flashing, I am simply powerless to ignore it. I’m addicted to it and it will annoy me until I give in to the addiction! Each “quick check” then sends me down the rabbit hole and I lose tons of time. The only and best solution to phone addiction – remove it from your line of sight and your hearing.
Want More On This Topic? I recommend these books and articles: On speeding up: http://thebizofbaking.com/time-keeps-ticking/ Make client communications faster: http://thebizofbaking.com/make-more-money-spend-less-time/
