How to NOT do it all when self-employed
Now that I have my own business, do I really have to do it all?
From my experience as a self employed business owner, here are three great ways to leverage the tools and community you have around you to move forward and NOT have to do it all yourself.
How to not do it all- but why wouldn’t I want to?
I first started my business after more than a decade working as an employee. I was very excited to have my own business. Not long after taking this leap, I had the next thought: wait, do I really have to do all of this myself??
Right at the beginning this may well be necessary. Here are my recommendations for self employed business owners who are ready to not have to do it all.
Workflows
Automate digital workflows— making the most of your time and effort is key. There are a number of ways to make your work more efficient by automating them:
- Automation apps can take information from one source and get it ready for you in another. Example: importing new customers from payment source into your CRM
- Utilizing keyboard shortcuts can cut down on repetitive typing and get you moving through your work much faster. There are ways to do this in your OS as well third party apps.
- Cross-posting services can help streamline your marketing efforts across platforms.
Community
Join a business support group to share contacts, ideas and learn more skills. In your area or online, you may find groups for:
- Business Mastermind
- Networking and Leads
- Chamber of Commerce, SCORE and SBA
In your community you may also find collaborators or potential business partners to work with, to build a team for the future!
Hire it out
When you’re ready, you can offload tasks to hired specialists and focus your time on the work that requires your particular expertise:
- An assistant to take on admin roles
- Bring on interns to train up
- Specialized professional services to support your business requirements
- Sub-contractors to make a production team for service-based businesses that are not ready for employees
Solution: You are not alone, nor have to be
With the help of digital tools, your business community and other resources, you can free yourself from the burden of having to do it all for your business. A world of shared knowledge and teamwork awaits.
