No – she doesn’t film her own show – heck she probably doesn’t choose her own clothes! Tony Hsieh doesn’t answer the phones at Zappos.com. And Jimmy Fallon doesn’t write all his own jokes.
These powerhouses know the secret to their success is to FOCUS ON WHAT THEY DO BEST – the things only they can do – and pass the rest onto someone else!
So before you hand over your company passwords or your CRM to your 16-year-old and head out the door for summer vacation, let’s talk about DELEGATING!
This blog is the beginning of a new series on how you can delegate to free up more of your time to focus on your magic. And before you say – DIANA – I can’t afford to delegate – please bear with me and I promise to show you how you CAN delegate even on a budget.
I also want to apologize for the length of this blog which is longer than usual but there’s certainly some good stuff here!!.
So the next few weeks, watch out for blogs and (FB Live’s – Monday and Wednesdays around noon – here). Here are some of the topics we’ll explore together:
- The Entrepreneur’s Trap – why you need to delegate to grow
- Busting Through your fears about delegating
- 3 Signs you need to Delegate
- Six Ways to Delegate without hiring a team member
- Interview with my VA – How to Delegate to a VA
So why did I create this series on DELEGATION? A couple of reasons! First – summer is here and as Canadians I know we all want to enjoy as much of it as possible. However, I continually hear from women entrepreneurs that they can’t ‘get out of the office’; they’re too busy; if I leave the office, I won’t make any money’, etc. Whatever, you’re saying to yourself as to why you can’t delegate – I’m going to challenge you to read these blogs and to reframe your thoughts and instead say … HOW can I delegate? How can I free up more time.
The 2nd reason I decide that this was a timely topics is because I’ve just delegated my social media. YUP, I finally bit the bullet as they say and I’ve delegated my social media to my Virtual Assistant (VA) to free up even more of my time. By doing this – by allowing her to create the posts from my blog material; by having her create the pictures to go with the posts; etc. – I’m freeing up more time (not for myself) but to focus on what I’m really good at – getting out there and speaking; and serving clients! It’s allowing me to have greater impact!
So enough about me – this blog is for you! Have you fallen into the ENTREPRENEUR’s TRAP?
What is the ENTREPRENEUR’s TRAP?
It’s the myth that we buy into. It’s the myth that….
- I can do this quicker, faster, better by myself (than if I delegated)
- I don’t have the budget to delegate/hire.
- I’m smart – I don’t need help; I can do this by myself
- (secretly – I’d feel guilty if I wasn’t ‘busy’)
- my business isn’t big enough to delegate
If any of those resonate with you … I totally understand … been there and got the t-shirt!!
Here’s 3 mistakes that can hinder your growth and 3 mistakes I’ve seen happen time & time again – btw, I’ve made every single one!!
MISTAKE #1 Everything in your business revolves around you
Our businesses are like our babies – mistakenly we think, no one can take better care of them than us; that’s when we become the centers of our little universe – involved in every task, decision, idea and crisis situation that happens.
You know what I’m talking about if you feel:
- Trapped by what you’ve created
- That even though you are working non-stop, it’s getting you where you want to be SOOOO SLOWLY
- That no matter how productive you are it’s never enough
Well, the good thing is that you have a SOLVABLE problem and one that you can change – now!
Because if you don’t get support for at least some of the low-level activities that are taking up all of your time; you’ll never get to do the BIG stuff (the work you know you’re destined to share with the world). If Oprah worried about details like filming the show and choosing her own clothes, she won’t have time to do the great interviews she did!
MISTAKE #2 Never claiming your role as CEO of your company
Practically all of us who start a business for the first time fall into a trap of working more IN our business than ON it (It’s called the E-myth – a book by Michael Gerber).
Most of us started our small business to practice our ‘craft’ and be well paid for it – without anyone bossing us around. Very quickly though, we find ourselves overwhelmed by everything that needs to get done. If you’re doing most of the things in your business – then you are your own employee! In other words, you are focused on doing the items on the to-do list without lifting your head to consider whether your activities are getting you any closer to achieving your year end goals.
If you want your business to grow, you’ve got to step into your CEO role and focus on things you do best while leaving the rest to your ‘team’. If you’re not at a place yet, where you have a team, it’s important to set aside at least some time each week to ACT like a CEO and do some big picture planning.
MISTAKE #3 Thinking that you’ll worry about delegation when you’re ready to delegate
Recently I listened to an interview with a very successful entrepreneur who said that the BEST TIME to hire an assistant is when you’re at about 75% capacity so that there’s enough bandwidth left to train them. He also admitted that most entrepreneurs wait till the last minute!
The thing is that you can and should start preparing your business for delegating LONG BEFORE you are ready to delegate. This is where you start organizing the back end of processes before hiring someone. Outlining and creating SOP’s (standard operating procedures) for repetitive tasks actually become the foundation of a training manual you can easily share with your new hire.
So I’m curious ….
Does any of this resonate with you?
Are you making any of these mistakes now in your business?
What will you do to stop making those mistakes?
What will you do so you can grow your business?
If you have more questions, stay tuned for the remainder of the series on delegating so you can grow!
Till then … BE UNSTOPPABLE!!!
Diana
PPPSSSS SAVE THE DATE – September 27 and 28 (VIP Day) – SHIFT, the profit event! Is your business profitable? Want to learn how to double or triple your profits without feeling icky? I’m tired of constantly hearing about building a 6 or 7 figure business!!! LADIES — it’s not about your sales — it’s about your PROFIT. So head over to your calendar; book off the time; get a babysitter; re-schedule clients – do what you need to do! Your business with thank you! (This is what a CEO would do!!!) …. We have some amazing speakers and I’ll reveal all very soon!!!
Missed these?
Glorified Employee & stages of business growth (here)
