Let me share a story with you about how I learned what I needed to delegate to others and what I needed to hold on to.
In my earlier years in business, I thought if I did it all myself that I would retain more money because I didn’t have to hire help.
Makes sense to a young entrepreneur…in her own head anyway.
Well I struggled, and I wasted…yes WASTED time trying to figure out all these tools that I quite honestly had no desire to learn and didn’t want to have to deal with regularly.
One day after spending 7 hours…yes 7 HOURS trying to figure out a change on my website, I reached out to a friend in desperation. I told her what I was experiencing and asked her what the cost was to hire her to do it.
I kid you not…she replied to me in 10 minutes and said “done” and I was like WHAT? HOW? OMG!
She also said no charge because it took her less than 5 minutes.
THAT was the day I decided to take responsibility for my time and how I spent it. That was the day I realized that no, as an entrepreneur you don’t have to do it all yourself. That was the day I realized that someone else always loves the work you don’t. And you will love work that someone else doesn’t.
So how are you spending your time each day? Are you being productive and working on revenue generating tasks? Or are you wasting time trying to do it all when you don’t have to?
That 7 hours I wasted could have brought me in thousands of dollars in income but I was wasting it doing something I didn’t have to because I didn’t want to admit there was another way.
Get out of the “I can do it all” mindset. You can’t. None of us can.
If your fridge stopped working, you would call someone skilled in repair to fix it rather than let all your food spoil while you “try to figure it out yourself” right? Well same goes for your business. Hire someone that is skilled in what you need done so that you are not letting your clients and other work go to the wayside while you “try to figure it out yourself” in this situation also.
Lean on your support network and get referrals for help. Get feedback on the software you are thinking of purchasing so that you can see what others think of it and you also know where you can turn for help if you have questions.
Things don’t have to be frustrating all the time. Business doesn’t have to be hard! You got into business to do what you love and share your message with the world. Remember that and take the time to get help when needed and introduce new items into your work flow as you have the time to learn them.
Erin Alli is a professional writer, blogger, coach and health advocate. She is also a wife and mom. She helps busy working moms in their journey for inspiration, business tips and lifestyle tips that work and make life easier so they have more time to enjoy it. You can connect with her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/erinallicoaching or on her site at www.ErinAlli.com