I have a new client who is extremely talented, multi-versatile and filled with great ideas. My job as her coach is to help her make decisions which stay true to her passion, develop a really big vision, and guide her along the journey. With as big a vision as she has in mind I realized she needs to learn to delegate right from the beginning. And here’s why.
Know your job
As the owner and founder of your business you are the idea person, the decision maker, the reason it exists. Your job is to keep on the lookout for new opportunities, create new collaborations, develop new products and expand your services. It is not your job to get caught up in administrative details.
Who can you get to help and what do you want them to do?
For at least one week track your time. How much time do you spend on emails, phone calls, making travel arrangements, writing articles, posting to blogs – whatever you do? How much time do you spend on exploring the potential of new ideas, talking with possible joint venture partners, creating new products and services, developing your own skill set and expanding your own knowledge base? How much time are you spending in your business and how much time on your business?
At the end of the week divide your tasks into the following categories and put the time spent or time you’d like to spend on each task
- Things only I can do
- Things someone else could do but I enjoy doing
- Things I don’t like to do
- Things I don’t do well or that are hard for me to do but need to be done
- Things that need doing that I don’t have time to do
Go back and put an X in front of what you are willing to give away. These are the tasks you can hire out.
Create job descriptions for the people you would like to hire
Then take some time developing a list of tasks you would hire a person to do. Include:
- Job Title
- Job Description
- Hours Needed
- Cost
- Type of person who would fit this position
Areas you may hire people to help you with are:
- Coach
- Virtual assistant – you may need several who specialize in different tasks – blog management, travel arrangements, research for speaking engagements, article and blog posting, web management, video production, social media management, etc.
- Financial guidance from a tax preparer or accountant.
- Technical support for your web presence
- Copy Editor
- Proofreader
- Graphic artist
What are you willing to release?
In a PTA meeting a long time ago I realized that just because I could do every job on the agenda didn’t mean I had to volunteer for it. I get to choose where I wanted to serve. Your choices need to keep you in your passion. You need to do the work that excites your imagination, that leads to new innovative choices, and that allows you to do your best work – full out – joyously giving your all. To do that you have to give some tasks away so you can do what only you are meant to do. What are you willing to release? What are you willing to trust someone else to do? Who do you know who can do that?
You write the blog post but let a VA post it on your blog and in article submission sites. If you have lots of ideas of places to speak, have a VA research it for you, find the contact person and their information and hand it to you when you are ready to make the call. Let a VA format your emagazine or update information on your web site or manage your Tweet schedule. Let someone else set up your membership site or run the back end of your webinar software. Sometimes using collaborative software helps the process. And no, it’s not easier to do these things yourself when it adds up to time you cannot spend working on your business expansion.
Take the step
Look around at people you know who can provide the services you need, network for recommendations, go online and find resources. As you explore add to the list of responsibilities you might be ready to outsource. Then do the math. If you pay someone to do six hours of work a week what money-making ideas can you put into action in that same six hours? What new products can you produce? What new collaborative partnerships can you form? You are the idea person. Keep yourself free to explore, examine, choose and create your next steps.
© 2011 Cara Lumen
