In an era where time is the ultimate currency, automation has emerged as a game-changer for individuals and businesses alike. From mundane chores that drain mental energy to complex processes that bog down productivity, the quest to automate daily tasks is driven by a simple desire: to reclaim hours for what truly matters. Whether it's fostering creativity, enhancing client relationships, or simply reducing stress, automation tools powered by AI, software, and smart systems are transforming how we operate. But what specific tasks do professionals wish they could hand off to machines? To explore this, we posed a question to 15 thought leaders across various industries: "If you could automate one task in your day, what would it be?" Their responses reveal common pain points and the profound "why" behind the urge to automate.
This article delves into these insights, categorizing the tasks into key themes such as administrative drudgery, content and marketing efforts, inventory and supply chain management, project oversight, and niche operational hurdles. We'll examine why these tasks are ripe for automation, the potential benefits, and how implementing such changes could revolutionize daily routines. Drawing from the experts' wisdom—limited to just a sentence or two per response, presented in italics—we'll illustrate real-world applications while expanding on broader implications. By the end, you'll have a roadmap for identifying and automating your own time-sinks, potentially unlocking hundreds of hours annually for innovation and growth.
The Burden of Administrative Drudgery: Emails, Reports, and Documentation
Administrative tasks often form the invisible backbone of professional life, consuming disproportionate time without adding proportional value. Emails alone can eat up to 28% of the average worker's week, according to studies from productivity platforms like RescueTime. Sorting, prioritizing, and responding to them creates a constant cognitive load, leading to decision fatigue and reduced focus on high-impact work. Similarly, generating reports and documenting processes involve repetitive data handling that feels archaic in a digital age. Automating these could involve AI-driven tools like email classifiers, automated reporting dashboards, or voice-to-text invoicing systems, freeing minds for strategic thinking.
Take email management, a recurring theme among our experts. Marcus Denning, Principal & Senior Lawyer at MK Law, highlights the issue: “If I could automate a certain task in my day, it would be sorting through emails. I spend a lot of time dealing with the continuous stream of messages, some of which are routine or can be done by another person.” This sentiment echoes the frustration of many professionals who juggle overflowing inboxes. By automating sorting—using tools like Gmail's filters or advanced AI like Superhuman—routine messages could be categorized, flagged, or even auto-replied, potentially saving 1-2 hours daily. The "why" here is clear: it preserves mental bandwidth for core expertise, such as legal analysis, rather than administrative triage.
Spencergarret Fernandez, Founder & CEO of SEO Echelon, doubles down on this: “If I had my choice which task to automate it would be email management and sorting. That takes up a great deal of time and mental energy which is surprising.” Fernandez's point underscores the hidden cost of mental energy; what seems like a quick scan accumulates into hours of context-switching. Automation via machine learning algorithms that learn user preferences could prioritize urgent emails, draft responses to common queries, and even unsubscribe from spam. In a broader sense, this shift allows for deeper engagement in creative pursuits, like SEO strategy development, turning reactive tasks into proactive opportunities.
Moving beyond emails, reporting and documentation present another automation goldmine. Hugh Dixon, Marketing Manager at PSS International Removals, explains: “The tasks that I would want to automate in my day are the weekly performance reports in all our marketing channels and formatting them to be reviewed internally. Each week, I gather data in Google Ads, Meta, and GA4, as well as our CRM, then clean it, compare it to the previous period, and prepare it in a form that non-data people in different departments can actually read.” This manual aggregation is a classic bottleneck, prone to errors and delays. Tools like Google Data Studio or Zapier integrations could automate data pulls, cleansing, and visualization, slashing processing time from hours to minutes. The rationale? It ensures accuracy while enabling non-technical teams to make data-driven decisions swiftly, fostering a culture of efficiency.
Jason Rowe, Director & Founder of Hello Electrical, targets post-service documentation: “The most time-consuming task that I would like to automate is the process of carefully documenting the work after the service and invoicing every single visit of a client. This is necessary to do billing and is fifteen to twenty minutes a job.” For service-based businesses, this repetition multiplies across jobs, leading to burnout. AI apps with voice recognition and GPS integration could auto-generate reports from on-site notes, reducing errors and freeing technicians for client interactions. The impact: up to 800 hours saved annually, as Rowe estimates, redirecting efforts toward service innovation and customer satisfaction.
These examples illustrate how administrative automation isn't just about time-saving—it's about elevating human roles. By offloading rote work, professionals can focus on empathy-driven tasks, like client consultations, that machines can't replicate. In aggregate, this could boost overall productivity by 20-30%, as per McKinsey reports on automation's potential.
Content Creation and Marketing: Amplifying Reach Without the Grind
In the digital economy, content is king, but creating and distributing it often feels like a Sisyphean task. Blog posts, social media clips, and marketing materials require consistent effort to build brand visibility, yet they compete with core business functions. Automation here leverages AI generators like ChatGPT for drafts, combined with scheduling tools like Buffer, to maintain a steady output without constant manual input.
Justin Lovely, Owner of Lovely Law Firm Injury Lawyers, pinpoints this: “If I could automate something, it would be content creation and sharing. Automating some of our marketing, for example, writing first-draft articles from popular injury topics or breaking up videos into social media clips, would help us expand our reach without diverting attention from client work.” For legal professionals, where trust hinges on educational content, automation preserves authenticity while scaling distribution. The "why" is rooted in community building: more accessible guidance empowers potential clients, increasing engagement without sacrificing billable hours.
James Owen, Co-Founder & Director of Click Intelligence, focuses on visibility: “As a Cofounder of an ad agency, I have found that sharing great content is not enough; you need to get eyes on it. We automate emails that invite our existing clients to follow us on social media.” This automated nudge via CRM tools like ActiveCampaign turns passive content into active outreach, driving organic growth. It exemplifies how automation bridges creation and consumption, ensuring efforts yield measurable returns like higher engagement rates.
Paul Carlson, Managing Partner at Law Firm Velocity, takes a meta approach to digital organization: “Decluttering digital files. If I could automate a clean sweep, that would be great.” In content-heavy fields, disorganized files hinder quick access, stifling creativity. Automated tools like file organizers or AI declutterers could categorize and purge junk, freeing mental space for strategic marketing. The benefit? Clarity that prevents the subtle erosion of productivity over time.
Expanding on these, automation in content realms allows for personalization at scale. For instance, AI could analyze audience data to tailor drafts, ensuring relevance. This not only saves time but enhances ROI, as targeted content performs better. Industries like law and marketing, where expertise must shine through, stand to gain immensely by using automation as an amplifier rather than a replacement.
Inventory and Supply Management: Preventing Disruptions and Enabling Growth
Inventory management is a perennial challenge for retail and manufacturing, involving tracking stock levels, forecasting needs, and avoiding stockouts. Manual methods lead to errors, costing businesses millions annually, per supply chain analyses. Smart systems like RFID tags or AI predictive analytics can automate reordering, minimizing human intervention.
Andres Bernot, CEO & Founder of Wow! Shirts, states: “The one task I would wish to automate would be to handle inventory. At the moment, I spend plenty of time to keep up with what is in stock and when to restock them so as not to run out of stock sizes or colors.” Automation via learning algorithms could trigger auto-orders, eliminating distractions from creative tasks like design. The "why": It ensures seamless operations, allowing focus on innovation and customer experience.
Steven Bahbah, Managing Director of Service First Plumbing, targets invoices: “The thing that I would like to be automated is reading supplier invoices line by line. Our average monthly transactions involve more than 60 individual orders in plumbing, gas and building materials.” Manual verification is error-prone and time-intensive; OCR (optical character recognition) AI could scan and flag discrepancies, redirecting time to fieldwork. This reduces costs from overpayments and streamlines cash flow.
Hasan Hanif, CEO & Founder of Colour Vistas, focuses on order processing: “Automating the preparation and processing of client orders to be printed with sublimation color would save much time, and eliminate errors as well. It consists in reviewing client specifications, the set up of design files, the readiness of materials, and checking the information prior to sending orders to produce.” By automating workflows, accuracy improves, boosting client satisfaction and productivity.
These insights highlight automation's role in resilience. Predictive tools can foresee disruptions, like supply shortages, enabling proactive adjustments. For small businesses, this levels the playing field against giants, potentially increasing efficiency by 40%, as seen in case studies from Shopify.
Project Oversight and Site Management: From Intuition to Insight
Projects demand vigilance, but manual monitoring often relies on lagging indicators, missing early warning signs. Automation through integrated platforms like Asana or AI analytics can aggregate data for real-time insights, replicating human intuition.
Andrew Bates, COO of Bates Electric, envisions: “I'd love to have a tool that could look at every single aspect of a project and tell me whether it's a good idea. By the time a project shows up as a red flag, I've invested a pile of time, money, and energy into the process.” Such a tool could analyze subtle cues like email tones or overtime spikes, catching issues early for better outcomes.
Caspar Matthews, Director of Electcomm Group Electrical & Data, targets scheduling: “The organization and arrangement of site checks are among tasks that I would automate, should I have the opportunity to do one in my day. In our business, timing and progress of projects are essential elements in ensuring that functions are not going haywire.” Automated syncing of calendars could eliminate conflicts, saving hundreds of hours for technical expertise.
Todd Bingham, Brand President of Top Rail Fence, proposes: “The pre-installation site assessment process for us, so if a land surveying app existed, our crews could eliminate literally the 2-3 hours they currently spend at each job site hand-measuring property lines. Instead of sending a crew member out twice, we could just have all that data captured automatically during the initial sales visit.” This would halve timelines and reduce disputes, enhancing efficiency.
Automation in oversight fosters predictability, reducing risks and costs. By quantifying intuition, it empowers data-backed decisions, potentially cutting project delays by 50%.
Niche Operational Hurdles: From Lost Items to Photo Audits
Unique tasks in specific industries also beg for automation, addressing frustrations that compound daily.
Adrian Iorga, Founder & President of Stairhopper Movers, wishes for: “If I could automate one single task in my day, it would be finding lost items. I'd love a real-life version of the "accio" charm from Harry Potter; so I could instantly summon something I can't find.” GPS trackers or AI inventory apps could locate items, minimizing downtime in logistics.
John Beaver, CEO & Founder of Desky, focuses on: “The task that I would automate in my day would be the auditing of product photos in our entire retail channels. It may seem small, but we have sales on more than a dozen platforms each having different format requirements.” Automated image processors could resize and check consistency, ensuring brand integrity across platforms.
These niche automations demonstrate versatility: even quirky pain points can be addressed with tailored tech, yielding outsized returns in time and frustration saved.
Conclusion: Embracing Automation for a More Intentional Life
The experts' responses paint a vivid picture: automation targets the repetitive, error-prone, and distracting, liberating time for creativity, strategy, and human connection. Whether it's emails, inventory, or project flags, the "why" boils down to efficiency, accuracy, and growth. As AI evolves, tools like those mentioned become accessible, promising a future where work aligns more with passion than tedium.
Implementing automation starts small—identify your top time-sink, pilot a tool, and iterate. The payoff? Not just hours reclaimed, but a life and business optimized for impact. In a world racing forward, automating wisely ensures you stay ahead, not just keeping up.
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