Wearing many hats is not uncommon at all among many overwhelmed business owners who are trying to do it all by themselves. Especially when first starting out, there may not be enough cash flow to justify hiring employees, let alone drawing a paycheck from the business, leaving an overwhelmed small business owner. Unfortunately, this may be a counter-productive process.
Alleviating the time consuming busy tasks which are necessary in running a business would offer not only peace of mind but the opportunity to grow a business and allow the business owner to work on the bigger picture.
How does one deal with busyness? The answer is actually quite simple, yet can be difficult to jump into. Outsourcing. It may seem like a scary concept at first for several reasons, but outsourcing is a great way for business owners to delegate the busy tasks by hiring contractors such as virtual assistants, bookkeepers, graphic designers, copywriters, marketing consultants and web designers. This would allow the business owner the chance to see how well an outsourced contractor would fit in with his or her vision without the expense of hiring employees. The beauty of a contractor is that you only pay for the project you need done at any given time, and then you’re done. You do not have a paid employee sitting around waiting for something to do.
Allowing themselves to step out of their comfort zones and outsource tasks may allow overwhelmed business owners to concentrate on areas that are key to their growth and success.
The first step in assessing whether outsourcing is ideal and whether it would be beneficial to your business’ growth would be to just jump in and try it. There are many resources on the internet to start get started, including Guru, oDesk and FreeLance.com. One could even contact a local business organization such as a chamber of commerce or a women’s group, to see if there are any contractors in the area.
Another benefit of hiring a contractor would be the opportunity to “test the waters” until you find the right person who fits in well with your business, and even maintain a relationship with more than one contractor.
One will never know if one doesn’t at least try. Once a biz owner tries, he most likely will find himself way ahead of where he used to be and will probably ask herself, “why didn’t I do this sooner?”