(so you can grow your business)!
The idea of delegating often makes small business owners really nervous!!! I totally understand as I’ve recently had to deal with those scary monsters! But I do know that busting through those fears is the path to growth!!! As I mentioned last week, this is part 2 of a 5 part series on delegating so you stop being the bottleneck in your business and focus on your magic! So let’s talk about those fears around ‘delegation’! Delegation might hurt my clients – no one can serve them as well as I can!! While you are the face of your business and your brand and your clients depend on your wisdom & expertise – you’re right; you have a special relationship with your clients. Delegation doesn’t replicate that relationship but supports it. Let me explain. Delegating administrative and customer service tasks allows you to be free to focus on high-value work your clients LOVE. It allow them to benefit from your intense focus!!! And you might be surprised – that your clients receive better customer service when someone on your team is dedicated to that role. Why – because they focus on just that! I’m afraid of losing control! How can I keep track of what’s going on? I totally understand this one! As a solo-entrepreneur, you are used to managing all the details yourself – I mean you did birth this business? Right? And whatever your system, it has worked so far. However, actually the tools that you’ve used to keep yourself organized will also work for a team including software such as Trello, Asana, or Evernote! Delegation is a BIG investment! I’m not sure my business is ready to dedicate the time & money to add a team member! Adding a team member does require an investment; however for most businesses a part-time team member is a valid possibility. There is a requirement to determine the time you’ll need from someone as well as commitment to finding & training the right person; and then paying them. However, what I know to be true, is that it’s time & money well spent especially if it’s done with some planning!!! Determine what you need to take off your plate; create a list of expectations as well as a list of skills required. (Watch for the upcoming blog… 6 ways to delegate without hiring!) You can start preparing your business for delegation well before you are ready to delegate!!! Outlining your PROCESSES while you are still doing most of the things yourself allows you to become more productive. Handing off clearly outlined processes to an assistant allows your business to be more productive. I remember when I hired a VA to help me with my SHIFT events. All of my processes and procedures were not written down – they were in my head and I followed them automatically. So getting those processes out of my head and onto paper was paramount in helping my VA to do the job effectively! That investment of time to write out the processes was well worth the effort and time so that she could do the job effectively!!! So what fears come up for you when you think about delegating some of your lower level tasks? Do any of these resonate with you!? Or do some new ones come up? Next week, we will talk about how you can identify the signs that it’s TIME for you to consider delegating! Till then … BE UNSTOPPABLE!!! Diana DID YOU KNOW…. I’m doing a video series “The Inside Scoop” about what happens behind the scenes as I’m creating my upcoming SHIFT event. Check them out here Missed these? Glorified Employee & stages of business growth (here) Oprah doesn’t film her own show (here)
