There are insufficient hours in the day for a business owner to complete all of the tasks on their “To Do List” while operating a business. Add in family, friends, a social life, and community responsibilities, and you’re essentially running on fumes at the end of each week, wondering if what you’re doing is worthwhile. Fortunately, we live in an era when virtually anything can be outsourced. Outsourcing is not limited to business; it also applies to personal tasks.
Don’t feel like cleaning the house? Engage the services of a house cleaner or cleaning service.
Do you despise mowing the lawn and doing yard work? Engage the services of a landscaping company.
No time for a dog walk? Engage the services of a dog walker.
Women, are you opposed to carrying a child and experiencing the body expansion associated with childbirth? Engage the services of a surrogate.
I’m kidding about the last one, as that is a significant life choice, but you get the point!
In business, the same rules apply!
How do you know when your business is ready to outsource jobs?
The first step is to take an inventory of everything you do on a daily basis, input vs. output, for one week. Make a list of them on a piece of paper or in an e-note. Additional points if you include how those jobs made you feel, for example, proud, excited, happy, drained, stressed, or anxious. After the week is over and you’ve compiled your list, spend 15 minutes rating each task on a 1-4 scale:
1- You adore the task; it comes naturally, is enjoyable, and you feel energized while performing it.
2- You ENJOY the task; it’s simple for you to complete quickly because it falls within your area of expertise.
3- You are NEUTRAL to the task; you do not enjoy it nor do you despise performing it because you know it gets done and advances the business.
4- You despise this task, dread it every time you see it on your calendar, procrastinate, reach for that extra snack you don’t need, and scroll through social media whenever you consider having to do it.
After rating your tasks, you can immediately see which ones you should outsource first… All fours! It’s self-evident to stop doing anything that is not within your zone of genius and that you are coerced into doing. Maintaining these tasks on your calendar and “To Do List” consumes a lot of energy and time. By compiling the list, you’ve begun writing job descriptions and can identify which roles to outsource.
Now, review the three items you’ve listed and include them in the outsource list and job description. Spending more time on your 1 and 2 tasks will benefit both you and your business. The output will match the input, resulting in a higher rate of return on energy.
You can take the rating a step further by assigning a monetary value to the tasks performed.
Is it a $10/hr, $20/hr, $50/hr, $150/hr, or $300/hr job?
Market research, data entry, customer service, email management, and file organization all cost $10.
$20/hr graphic design, curation of social media content, and virtual assistant
Between $50 and $150 per hour, bookkeeping, accounting, technology implementation, and information technology work
$300 per hour plus—coaching staff, sales, and copywriting at the fractional director level CMO, CTO, and CFO
*Hourly rates vary according to experience level and location of outsourcing.
When you assign a dollar value to the tasks you’re performing, you’ll gain a better understanding of how you’re spending your time and the return on your efforts. Now, if any of the tasks you rated as a 1 or 2 require less than $10 per hour, you can add it to the outsource list.
