Want to free up your time?

Want to earn more money while working less?

It’s a definite yes to both of these, right?! I mean, isn’t this part of why you started your own business in the first place?

Cause here’s the thing.

If you’re feeling scatterbrained, spread too thin, and overwhelmed with all the things you need to juggle in your business…

If you are spending every bit of energy and every waking moment on your business but don’t feel like you are making much progress…

If you’re disheartened because the business you thought would give you added free time to spend with your family is actually eating up MORE of your time…

Something has got to change!

But what?

I’m going to use a little tough love here because really, the answer is fairly straightforward. But it’s also easier said than done.

Here it is:

You have to break up with the idea that you need to do everything yourself.

There. I said it.

And if I had the hand clapping emoji I would add a few of those in there with it too.

See, I know you’re doing the best you can do in the best ways that you know how. I do!

But at the same time, just because you’re doing the best you know how to do… it doesn’t mean that it directly translates to best practice! And don’t you want the best for yourself and for your business?!

This is where I’ve got your back! You already know your way is exhausting and not as effective as you’d like for it to be… so why don’t you give what I’m telling you a shot. Try it out and you’ll quickly see what I am talking about!

Let the idea go that you need to do everything yourself and see how much better you feel.

It will feel like a weight is lifted!

Though at first, it might feel scary. You see, sometimes we get stuck behind the idea that we have to be “successful” before we can think about hiring out help. We think we have to have big streams of income set in place first.

This is one way to do it, sure. I’m not saying that it’s the wrong way either. I’m simply giving another perspective of what could be a much more effective way. A way that doesn’t look like you being the CEO, CFO, Production Specialist, Sales Representative, Web Developer, Director of Marketing, Receptionist, HR Director, IT Specialist, Customer Service Lead, the list goes on and on.

On the one hand I highly believe we all are capable of amazing things and have SO much potential. But, I also believe that we can only do so many things at one time effectively.

So what can you do to be more effective in your business pursuits?

Be wise with how you spend your time.

Take an honest look at your day to day tasks and ask yourself if it is something you can employ someone else to do.

If you have a ton of phone calls and emails coming in that keep distracting you throughout the day can you hire someone to answer those for you? If you have inventory that needs to be photographed, can someone else do it? If you’re overwhelmed with figuring out the logistics of your business finances, can you find someone to help you with it?

Figure out where you can outsource!

If you’re reading this and you’re not inspired to pass off some of the things on your plate then I want you to do a time audit. Get out that pen and paper and document how you spend your time for a whole week. I bet you’ll see a lot of wasted time, but I’m also going to take a wild guess and say that you’ll see a large part of your day is not spent on value-add tasks. You’re spinning your wheels on tasks you can outsource!

When you free up your time, you will be able to more effectively focus on selling your product or service. You won’t be pulled here and there and everywhere. You won’t get caught up in the little day to day things that make you lose sight of what your business is really all about.

And here’s another big truth bomb… the only way you can become one of the “big dogs” in your field is by ditching the DIY approach.

Once you adopt the mindset that you can do it all, you will spend most of your time studying and learning instead of going and doing.

And yeah, that’s not a totally terrible thing. Learning is GREAT!

But if you’re spending all your time simply learning about entrepreneurship instead of selling the reason you decided to be an entrepreneur, there won’t be much a business.

So here’s a new perspective to consider: The art of Investments.

Invest in your future

Take a minute (or ten) and think about what you want your future to look like. What are your goals for your business in 5 years? Where do you want to be financially in 10 years?

Now what are you doing to get there?

All the work you’re doing now – right now – can have a steep impact on what your future looks like.

If you don’t see yourself packaging up products in the long-run, then why are you still doing it now? If you don’t want to be fussing with social media, then find someone who enjoys it and can help your business grow.

The point is, you don’t have to wait 5 or 10 years to invest in your future. You can start building your dream life right now!

Invest in others and they will invest in you.

Here’s another perspective…

If you’re expecting others to buy your service or your product and yet you never support fellow entrepreneurs, how do you think that will work out?

We attract what we put out.

When we are too focused inward we miss out on opportunities to connect with others.

But when you focus outward on supporting and encouraging others… well you might just be surprised how that support and positivity makes it way right back to you! And as a bonus you’ll feel good for helping and uplifting a fellow entrepreneur in the process!

I realize that might sound cliche, but let me rephrase it this way…

Your mindset is a powerful tool.

By saving your money and not outsourcing, your are subconsciously telling yourself that your business is not worth investing in.

And guess what?

If you’re telling yourself that your business is not good enough to invest in, you’re telling your customers the same thing. It’s not something you can hide.

Whether it comes through when their scrolling through your DIY website or they see it in they way you’re slow to respond to their emails because you’re bogged down with other tasks – they see it. The quality that comes from outsourcing and the lack of time when you chose not to really adds up!

Quick Recap

You can’t expect others to invest in your business if you still don’t believe it’s worth investing in.

Take time to reflect on some of the tasks in your business that take you away from your zone of genius. Do a time audit to see how much of your time and energy could be conserved if you passed these tasks off to someone else. Consider making goals to outsource one or two of these areas.

And always remember: you don’t need to do everything yourself. Busyness does not equal success!