In our new series, Selfmade U, we’ll tackle the most common questions and pain points that come up for business owners with tips and tricks from Selfmade, a virtual business coaching program, led by Brit + Co founder Brit Morin and sponsored by Office Depot OfficeMax. We’ll hear from Selfmade alum, business coaches, and Brit herself on what it takes to run a successful business and make it as an entrepreneur.
Most new business owners struggle with letting go. You start out wearing all of the hats, and probably get pretty good at a lot of things. But as you grow, how do you know when it’s time to delegate, especially when resources are tight?
“I had to learn to just let go of being in control and trusting my team to do what it was they were hired to do with the same level of accuracy, efficiency, and care that I’d do,” says Priscilla Fields, founder of Focus Virtual Business Solutions. “Once I released that, delegating was easy.”
Fields is in the business of delegating. Her agency supports small business owners by leveraging automation and streamlining day-to-day operations. “We take care of all the ‘little important things’ so you can stay focused on big picture goals,” she says.
Fields was just starting to hire other team members when she decided to apply for an Office Depot OfficeMax scholarship to Selfmade. “Community is something that every entrepreneur values because the road can get really lonely,” says Fields. “With just a few clicks, I was able to connect with other women who are facing or have faced similar challenges as myself. This helps me personally but also helps me understand my target market, who are other business owners.”
In her Selfmade workshop, How to Delegate to Make Money, business coach Emily Merrell helps entrepreneurs overcome their fear of delegating with these tips:
Decide what to delegate. First, ask yourself questions like: What is time consuming but doesn’t move the needle? What do you put at the bottom of the list? What is a skill that you struggle with but can be outsourced? “I like to listen to my body,” says Merrell. “What is the number one thing I resent doing? That is probably the one thing you want to get off your plate.”
Audit your time. Take a few minutes to write down the tasks that you currently do. Set a price for each task and then highlight the ones that must be done by you and only you. Look at the remaining low-price tasks. Those are the ones that you can start delegating. You don’t need to hire a full-time employee or even a part-time one. Delegating tasks like taxes or designing marketing materials is a once-a-year expense.
Delegate efficiently. Once you decide what to delegate, you want to make sure you’re ready to hand off any task and communicate your needs clearly. This will help you avoid mistakes, wasted time, and higher costs. “When I started as an entrepreneur, I wish someone told me to build my business as if it’s not just me,” says Fields. “I would have made documenting processes more of a priority so I could delegate with more ease. I now take my time to hire and vet quality contractors who have integrity so I don’t ever feel like I need to micromanage people.”
Communicate clearly. Merrell suggests starting with one task at a time and communicating your “why” or your goals for your business to the person you’re delegating to, including how the assignment relates to those goals. Give feedback along the way to make sure you have better results down the road. Coordinate check-ins and communicate through one source, whether that’s through a project management tool, text, or email.
“I fell in love with my TUL notebook I bought at Office Depot,” says Fields. “The to-do list and scheduler help to keep all my important notes in one singular place. Writing things out helps me to retain the information much better than typing into a digital document, so I appreciate their private collection of brands.”
Automate tasks. Delegating doesn’t always have to be to a person. Project management and social media management tools can help you streamline processes and avoid repetitive tasks.
Try a trade. You can trade your services with another business owner in lieu of payment. “Don’t forget to think creatively,” says Merrell. Tap into your community for people who can help you while you help them.
Fields now manages a team of five. “It took me almost destroying my business to realize that I needed to outsource for myself. Outsourcing is the backbone of my business, but it also helped me grow my business from a solo mission to a full team,” she says.
And her Office Depot OfficeMax scholarship to Selfmade helped her reach a new level of confidence. “When I started Selfmade, I lacked a level of confidence to talk about my business that I didn’t realize I needed. It forced me to really slow down to articulate my messaging of who I am speaking to and why my brand is important to partner with (as an investor and client). Now I’m ready to rebrand and reach my dream clients and talk more about my business.”
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Illustrated by Daniela Jordan-Villaveces
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