Reclaim 19 hours a week: the time-saving guide for accountants

Time blocking that survives client chaos

Traditional time blocking advice assumes you control your schedule. But in accounting, client emergencies and regulatory deadlines often control you. Here’s how to make time blocking work in the real world:

Start with non-negotiable blocks. Choose your most important work—maybe it’s tax return preparation or financial analysis—and block time for it during your peak energy hours. Treat these blocks like client appointments.

Create admin blocks. Instead of checking email throughout the day, designate specific times: 9am, 1pm, and 4pm, for example. During these blocks, process emails, return calls, and handle administrative tasks.

Build buffer time. Don’t schedule back-to-back activities. Leave 15-30 minutes between major tasks to handle unexpected urgent items without derailing your entire day.

Use theme days strategically. Maybe Mondays are for new client onboarding, Wednesdays for monthly closings, and Fridays for marketing and admin work. This reduces the mental energy required to switch between different types of tasks.

The email batching game-changer

Email is probably your biggest source of interruption. Here’s how to tame it:

Turn off notifications. Yes, all of them. Email notifications on your phone, desktop alerts, those little red badges—turn them all off (seriously). Check email on your schedule, not when a notification demands your attention.

Use the 2-minute rule. When processing emails, if something takes less than 2 minutes to handle, do it immediately. If it takes longer, add it to your task list and schedule time for it.

Create email processing workflows:

• Delete/Archive: No response needed
• Delegate: Forward to team member with clear instructions
• Do: Handle immediately (under 2 minutes)
• Defer: Add to task list with specific deadline

Template common responses. Create templates for frequently-asked questions, meeting scheduling, document requests, and follow-ups. Most email platforms allow you to save these as canned responses or signatures.

Estimated time reclaimed: 3-4 hours per week through reduced interruptions and more efficient email processing

The “quick question” epidemic

We’ve all been there. A client sends what they call a “quick question” that requires 20 minutes of research and a detailed explanation. Multiply this by 20 clients, and suddenly you’ve spent your entire afternoon answering “quick” questions instead of doing billable work.

Establish clear communication protocols. Not every client question deserves an immediate response. Create tiers:

• Urgent: Tax deadline issues, payroll problems, anything that affects their ability to operate
• Important: Financial planning questions, compliance concerns, strategic advice
• Routine: General questions, clarifications, non-time-sensitive requests

Share these categories with clients during onboarding. Most people are reasonable when they understand your priorities.

Create a “quick question” policy. Try something like: “I’m happy to answer brief questions as part of our ongoing relationship. For questions that require research or detailed explanations, I’ll let you know if there’s an additional fee.” This sets expectations and protects your time.

Use video responses for complex explanations. Instead of typing a 500-word email explaining cash flow projections, record a 3-minute Loom video walking through their financial dashboard. It’s more personal, often clearer, and can be reused for similar client questions.

Email templates that don’t sound like robots

Templates get a bad rap because most of them sound terrible. Here’s how to create templates that save time without sacrificing personality:

The key is customizable variables. Instead of “Dear Client,” try “Hi [Name], I noticed your [specific business metric] has [specific change] this month…” Fill in the brackets, and you have a personalized message with minimal thinking required. 

Create templates for your most common scenarios:

• New client onboarding sequence
• Document request follow-ups
• Deadline reminders
• Service explanation emails
• Pricing and proposal responses

Pro tip: Include specific next steps in every template. Instead of “Let me know if you have questions,” try “Reply to this email with your preferred meeting time, or click here to schedule directly on my calendar.”

The phone call vs. email decision tree

Some conversations should never happen over email. Others should never happen over the phone. Here’s a simple cheat sheet:

Phone calls for:

• Complex explanations requiring back-and-forth
• Sensitive conversations (payment issues, service problems)
• Strategic planning discussions
• Anything that would require more than 3 email exchanges

Email for:

• Simple questions with straightforward answers
• Information sharing (documents, links, data)
• Follow-ups and confirmations
• Non-urgent requests

Video calls for:

• Screen sharing sessions
• Financial dashboard reviews
• Monthly check-ins with visual components
• Training clients on new software

The goal is to match the communication method to the complexity and urgency of the topic.

Estimated time reclaimed: 2-3 hours per week on routine communication

What to delegate first

Start with tasks that are:

• Repeatable: Standard processes that can be documented
• Non-client-facing: Internal work that doesn’t require your personal touch
• Time-consuming but not complex: Things that take time but don’t require advanced expertise
• Clear success criteria: Tasks where you can easily determine if they’re done correctly

Great first delegation candidates:

• Data entry and basic bookkeeping: Transaction categorization, invoice entry, bank reconciliation matching
• Document preparation: Formatting reports, creating presentations, basic tax form preparation
• Administrative tasks: Scheduling, file organization, client onboarding paperwork
• Research: Gathering information for client projects, compliance requirement research
• Marketing tasks: Social media posting, blog post research and drafting, email newsletter creation, LinkedIn content scheduling
• Business development support: Lead qualification, CRM data entry, prospect research, follow-up email sequences
• Website maintenance: Content updates, blog posting, basic SEO tasks, keeping service pages current

Consider a virtual assistant

Virtual assistants aren’t just for online entrepreneurs selling courses. Many VAs specialize in working with accountants and understand the unique requirements of financial work.

• Belay: Specializes in professional services with vetted, US-based VAs
• Time Etc: Offers assistants with specific expertise in accounting and bookkeeping
• Fancy Hands: Good for one-off tasks and research projects
• LinkedIn: Post about your VA needs in accounting groups or your network—often the best recommendations come from other accountants who’ve already found great people

Note: LinkedIn is also a great place forbuilding a reliable network of people who can handle different aspects of your practice.

Look on LinkedIn for:

• Junior staff members
• Bookkeepers
• Tax preparers
• Admin assistants 
• Freelance specialists 
• Other accounting firms for overflow work
• Technology consultants
• Marketing agencies

Creating delegation-ready processes: Document your processes as if you’re training someone who knows nothing about your business. Include screenshots, step-by-step instructions, and examples of what the finished work should look like. Yes, this takes time upfront, but it pays dividends every time you delegate.

Estimated time reclaimed: 5-10 hours per week through strategic delegation

Why SOPs matter more for accountants

Unlike other professions, accounting has high stakes for accuracy. A mistake in a tax return isn’t just embarrassing, it can result in penalties, audits, and lost client relationships. SOPs help maintain quality while allowing you to work more efficiently.

SOPs also solve the expert trap. When everything depends on your knowledge and expertise, you become a bottleneck. Clients wait for you to be available, team members can’t handle tasks without your input, and you can’t take time off without everything grinding to a halt.

Building SOPs that actually get used

The key to useful SOPs is making them practical and accessible. Here’s how:

Start with your pain points. What processes do you find yourself explaining repeatedly? What tasks take longer than they should because you have to remember the steps each time? These are your first SOP candidates.

Use the 5-year-old test. Write your SOPs as if you’re explaining the process to someone with no accounting background. If a reasonably intelligent person couldn’t follow your instructions and get the right result, your SOP needs work.

Include screenshots and examples. Don’t just say “enter the client information.” Show exactly where to click, what information goes in each field, and what the completed form should look like.

Make them living documents. SOPs should evolve as your processes improve. Schedule quarterly reviews to update procedures based on what you’ve learned.

Essential SOPs for every accounting practice:

• Client onboarding process: From initial contact to first deliverable
• Monthly client closing procedures: Step-by-step reconciliation and reporting process
• Tax return preparation workflow: Document collection through filing
• Invoice and payment processing: From time tracking to collections
• File organization and backup procedures: How documents are named, stored, and protected

Quality control built in

Good SOPs include quality checkpoints that catch errors before they become problems:

Build in review stages: For complex processes, include checkpoints where someone else reviews the work before it moves to the next step.

Create error-checking templates: Develop checklists of common mistakes to review before finalizing work.

Document exceptions: When processes don’t work as expected, document what happened and how it was resolved. This builds institutional knowledge that prevents similar issues in the future.

Estimated time reclaimed: 2-3 hours per week through reduced errors, rework, and decision fatigue.

The decision fatigue factor

Every small decision throughout your day (what to work on next, how to respond to an email, where to file a document) consumes mental energy. By the afternoon, your decision-making capacity is diminished, which makes every task take longer.

Reduce daily micro-decisions:

• Standardize your morning routine so you don’t have to think about it
• Create default responses for common client requests
• Use project templates that eliminate setup decisions
• Establish standard meeting agendas so you don’t have to plan each meeting from scratch

The multitasking myth

Research consistently shows that multitasking reduces productivity and increases errors. For accountants, where accuracy is critical, the cost of multitasking is especially high.

Single-tasking strategies:

• Close unnecessary browser tabs and applications when working on focused tasks
• Use website blockers during concentrated work periods
• Turn off non-essential notifications on all devices

Energy management vs. time management

Your energy levels fluctuate throughout the day. Matching high-energy tasks to high-energy times can dramatically improve both speed and quality of work.

Identify your peak performance times: When do you feel most alert and focused? Schedule your most important work during these periods.

Match tasks to energy levels:

• High energy: Complex analysis, strategic planning, important client calls
• Medium energy: Routine compliance work, email processing, administrative tasks
• Low energy: Filing, organizing, simple data entry

Estimated time reclaimed: 2-4 hours per week through improved focus and energy management