Transcript

Have you ever heard this advice?

If you want to run a successful company, delegate all non-essential tasks and only work on the tasks that grow the business.

Well, I got news for you. That advice is wrong – especially for new businesses.

Hi, I’m Carmen Sognonvi.

Keep watching to find out why I think delegating is overrated.

By the way, if you want to get a list of the 7 tools I rely on to run all the marketing at my business, head on over to CarmenSognonvi.com/Tools.

I’ll show you everything from how I track our flyer distribution to who I use for printing and graphic design.

So let’s talk about delegating.

The conventional wisdom is that all business owners should delegate as much as they can, as quickly as they can.

But I’m here to tell you that for many entrepreneurs, that’s just wrong.

So let’s break down some of the common reasons business owners start delegating work. And I’m going to show you why each of these reasons is actually a myth.

Myth 1:
I don’t have enough time to get everything done

Here’s the reality: you have enough time, you’re just not using your time properly.

Too many business owners hire help long before it’s even necessary.

Think to yourself: how many hours a day do you actually spend on delivering or creating the product or service you’re being paid for?

So if you’re a graphic designer, how many hours do you spend actually designing? If you’re a dance teacher, how many hours do you spend teaching classes?

Most likely, the answer is that you spend less than half of your day delivering the actual work.

That means that all those other hours in your day could be spent on other things.

But many business owners don’t use that time effectively, so they hire someone else to help with answering phones, or replying to emails.

Meanwhile, they’re frittering away their precious time on Twitter and Facebook, convincing themselves that they’re doing marketing, when none of those activities is bringing in leads.

Their expenses creep up, their sales don’t grow, and so their profits shrink.

So be honest with yourself about how effectively you’re using your time.

When you’re just starting out, you have more time than money.

When you get to the point where you have more money than time, that’s when you can comfortably hire help.

Myth 2:
My business won’t grow unless I hire people

Here’s the reality: What should scare you more than not growing, is running out of cash.

Take an honest look at your finances. Do you have any money left over after you pay all your expenses each month and after you pay yourself a reasonable salary?

If not, you can’t afford to hire help. It’s that simple. But nobody ever talks about this part.

And that’s because most of the time, the people telling you that you should delegate everything are people who offer virtual assistant or outsourcing services themselves. Or they’re affiliates for businesses that offer these services.

So it’s not in their best interests to talk about what delegating and outsourcing does to your bottom line. They’re just trying to make a sale from you.

If you don’t have the money to hire help, but you truly feel like you need it, focus on getting your sales up first. Don’t borrow money to pay for it.

And in the meantime, just thug it out. You’re far better off temporarily working a few more hours each day than digging yourself into a financial hole you can never get out of.

Myth 3:
I want to focus on the big picture and leave the details to my team

Here’s the reality: Your business probably isn’t big enough yet for you to ignore the details.

Now before you say anything, yes, I have read Michael Gerber’s book E-Myth and yes, I understand the importance of working ON your business, not just IN it.

But it takes most business owners years to get to the point where their revenues are large enough to sustain a staff that can manage all the day-to-day work, while the owner focuses purely on leadership.

So be honest with yourself – are you really at that stage yet? Or are you just playing at being a BAWSE because you see other people doing it?

Here’s my take. If there are tasks in your business that you want to delegate, you first have to know how to do them yourself. Otherwise, how are you going to train someone else to do it the right way?

Plus, if you’ve hired someone who’s doing tasks that you have no idea how to do, what happens if that employee suddenly leaves the company? You’ll be screwed.

So when you’re in the earlier stages of your business, you should know how to do everything yourself. It will give you much greater control.

One more thing

Most articles I’ve read about delegating and outsourcing leave out one important detail:

People need to be managed.

But nobody talks about that. They make it seem as if you can take a task, write out step-by-step instructions, train someone how to do it, and then never have to think about it or lift a finger again.

That’s just not how things work in real life.

People get complacent. They get a little lazy. They start wanting to cut corners, find shortcuts. I don’t care how smart or capable or motivated your employees are, everybody needs to be managed. That’s just human nature.

So if you’re going to delegate tasks, understand that it doesn’t necessarily mean less work for you. You’re just now creating a new set of work for yourself – setting up systems to check things are done properly, scheduling meetings to train and develop your team, figuring out the best ways to keep them motivated and engaged.

All that takes a lot of work. Are you sure it’s worth taking that on at this particular stage in your business?

Give it some thought before you jump straight to delegating.

Now before I get to our question of the week, I want to let you know that if you found this video useful, I would encourage you to sign up to get email updates from me!

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And if you have a question you’d like me to answer in a future video, just send it to info@carmensognonvi.com.

Ok, now it’s time for our question of the week!

What sorts of tasks do you delegate to others? And what tasks do you prefer to do yourself? And why?

I’d love to hear your thoughts, so leave a comment below!

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