I have a confession to make – I’m a control freak.
But by growing the team I work with over the last year, I’m learning to let go. We’ve added some quality folks to the team and it’s a whole lot easier to let go of responsibility when you are putting it in capable hands.
With fewer day-to-day responsibilities, I can focus on more big picture issues and on content creation. Most of the writing and public speaking I do are what we use to get people interested in ColorMetrix and what we do. Content marketing if you will.
What tasks are you are not finding enough time to get done that would be growing your business?
Okay, write out a list of those tasks – right now – I’ll wait.
Now, make another list of the tasks keeping you from doing those business growing tasks. Again – right now – I’ll wait.
That second list is where you need to start. Find ways to stop doing those tasks. Outsource, hire, just ignore them for a month – whatever is appropriate for your business.
Now here’s the hard part: Once you’ve handed off the tasks on the second list, every second of time you’ve gained must be dedicated to the first list.
It works. Trust me on this one.
Excellent post Jim, and most likely it hits home for many people. I’m a big believer in delegation, and I also say that your time is best spent coaching those around you who are executing. As a leader, one of the biggest threats to your business is when you burn yourself out with too many tasks and start to believe that if you don’t do it, it won’t get done properly. Mistakes will always be made in any part of life, and it’s our job as leaders to help team members learn and grow from those mistakes, rather than trying to take on more of the work.
Thanks for reminding me how important that all is, and I really like your method of the lists. I just may have to try that out 🙂
Brew-Really appreciate your comment. It came at a time when I’ve been trying to come up with a way to deal with a constraint in our tech support/bug reporting system. Reading you comment pulled all the thoughts in my head together and today we are implementing a whole new system. And people wonder why it’s worth blogging….not me!