Who to Delegate to, Even When You’ve Got No-One
By Robyn Pearce
(806 words)
Have you ever said to
yourself, in some frustration: ‘There’s just too much to do, but I’ve got
no-one to pass it to’
Or:
‘I wish I could afford some
more help. I’ll hire someone when I make a bit more money.’
If so, perhaps there’s a
way round your dilemma.
A few years ago I fielded a
question from one of my web service providers. He asked: ‘What’s the main thing
that prevents you achieving all your internet-related business goals?’ I was
about to reply ‘Lack of time’ when I realised that I of all people (being a
time management specialist), couldn’t use that excuse. So I dug a bit deeper.
My final answer was ‘Lack of resources’.
That answer brought another
question: ‘What parts of the work can someone else do, and where can I find
such a person?’ I decided it was time to make a list of what I could outsource
from my large array of tasks. To my surprise, the list was long!
Have you ever noticed that once you’re clear about what you want, the
answer shows up remarkably fast?
The solution to my problem,
once I was very clear as to what I needed, only took six weeks and took the
form of a brilliant senior uni student. By the time Jason left us, nearly three
years later, he’d not only made a very solid contribution to the company but
also gained valuable experience. And not only was he far better and faster at
his work than me, but his pay scale was a lot lower than what I could bill
myself out at.
So, next time you can’t
find time to think, or you feel overwhelmed, look for pieces of your work to
outsource.
The first step is to write
down the specific tasks. Then get creative about who can do it.
To tickle your thinking,
here’s a partial list of our suppliers over the years:
- My first
assistant was a young lass off a job scheme. A friend and I shared her
hours and her wages and the pay was subsidised by the government. Six
months later my friend could afford to hire Lillian full-time and I could
afford to hire an experienced part-timer of my own.
- School
mothers are a brilliant employment pool. Give them the chance to do
flexible work hours or even work from home and you’ll have wonderful loyal
team members.
- Student
Job Search is a brilliant source of short-term contractors.
- Many other
tertiary or vocational colleges also have work schemes and/or offer
graduate or senior students as interns. For instance, we use Natcoll
graduates for some of our graphic design www.natcoll.ac.nz/general/content/creative-bite.html
- Do you
have any teenagers in your extended family who’re keen to earn money on
casual work? Stuffing envelopes, mowing lawns, cleaning house, driving the
kids to practice or helping with homework, doing techie stuff for you …. Get
creative and you’ll be surprised at how much you can outsource to others.
- Don’t just
think local. We use suppliers all over the country who work so
consistently for us that we regard them as an integral part of the team.
- Can you
work with a virtual team? Jill, my Office Manager moved from Auckland to Christchurch
a few years ago and still continues to run my office. I visit about once
or twice a year. In fact, all our team (part-time contractors except me) work
in a ‘virtual’ environment from our own homes. It’s infinitely more
productive and cost-effective for us all. Who wants to drive through heavy
traffic to get to work!
Here’s the thing. While you’re doing work that someone else could do
at a far lower pay rate than yourself, effectively you’re paying yourself that
low rate.
If you want to move ahead in your business, the need to delegate
ALWAYS comes before you can quite afford the extra staff. But, if you don’t let
something go you’ll continue to pay yourself that lower rate – and your life
will be so full of minutiae that you’ll have no energy left to work on the
long-term activities with potentially far higher returns.
Help (and the opportunity
to make more money) is everywhere. Just get clear about what you need.
Robyn Pearce
CSP (Certified Speaking Professional) is the Time Queen ( plus mother of
six and grandmother of twelve.) She mastered her own time challenges and now
helps people around the world overcome theirs.
She'll show
you how to free up more time and get better results faster.
Enrol
for your free Top Time Tips at www.gettingagrip.com
- practical advice every two weeks and you'll get your own free report 'How
to Master Time In Only 90 Seconds', a simple yet powerful diagnostic tool
to help you identify your key areas for action.
© All Rights Reserved to Robyn Pearce, GettingAGrip.com, PO Box 29 586, Fendalton, Christchurch 8540, New Zealand Ph.+ 64 3 351 2140
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