Do you struggle with delegating? Me too! Delegating is the process of assigning tasks to other team members, and it is one of the most resisted actions among business owners. It can be scary to relinquish control to someone else, but it is necessary for growth and long-term success. Overcoming the mindset issues around delegating allows you to be the CEO of your business and work in your zone of genius. Delegating also allows current team members to utilize their skills and zone of genius to do the tasks that you, as the CEO, do not need to be doing. 

Why Task Delegation is Necessary?

You will need to delegate unless you plan to stop your business growth at the point when you run out of hours in the day. Most people do not start a business to do all the things. Initially, you will wear many hats simply because you need more resources to hire. At some point, you will max out your bandwidth for new tasks, and that can completely stall growth and revenue. 

The other big reason to delegate is so you can take time away from your business. You can never be truly away when you are the sole person in the company. Even when you take a vacation with the intention of only checking in occasionally, it never works. You end up feeling torn between your business and your leisure. 

It is not sustainable to want growth and take time away from your business without some sort of team. You will need support to move the business forward, even if it is just an assistant. 

Last but not least, let’s be honest, we are not the best at every single task in our business. As a business owner, you are good at running the business, visualizing the future and strategy…but if you aren’t a bookkeeper then bookkeeping is NOT your zone of genius. Nor are the many other hats that you may have felt like you had to wear up to this point. 

Why do Business Owners Resist Delegating?

Many business owners are resistant to delegating for a variety of reasons, such as: 

• Don’t trust that someone can do the work as well as they can. 
• There is little time to train a person to do the job. 
• Worry that it will take more time to explain how to do the work than to do it themselves
• Don’t want to relinquish control to anyone else
• Perfectionism 
• Worry that things will go wrong and clients will be angry

While these are all possibilities, the long-term benefits to you and your business are worth the effort. I learned this personally when I made my first hire. 

In 2022 I found my business growing rapidly, and I had reached my limit of what I could handle independently. I was stretched so thin that I was not giving my business the attention it needed, and I could not take any time away. I was burned out, and I needed to hire. 

I decided to hire a virtual assistant (VA) as a low-risk team member, so they could start taking smaller tasks off my plate. Well, technically, I hired a VA agency that assigned two amazing assistants to me and works diligently to make sure everyone is on the same page. At first, it was a little more time-consuming to manage and train rather than just do the work myself. But as we became familiar with one another, things got much easier. 

I learned what their areas of expertise were, and I was able to assign projects that suited their talents. I also let go of the need to complete everything my way and allowed them to be a little creative and do things their way. This allowed them to be more efficient, and sometimes, their method was better! 

I was also pleasantly surprised to realize that giving them tasks outside my expertise allowed me to work in my zone of genius and serve my clients better. I stopped dreading the tasks that drained me and took way more time than it should have. Instead, I had the time to do the things that fill my cup. 

The biggest lesson I learned from my first hire was to embrace imperfection. I cannot expect to do everything perfectly, so why would I think someone else should? Not everything has to be A+ work to be successful, and once I accepted that, I felt so free. Now, my assistants are an integral part of my team, and I cannot remember how I managed it before! I can do the work that I love, my business has grown, and I can step away and rest. 

One of my favorite books about delegating in your business is Clockwork by Mike Michalowicz. The book is about creating a company that can operate without you. It is a must-read for any business owner who needs to delegate but needs help to let go. 

If you want to chat more about delegating in your business or are ready to delegate some of your financial functions, get in touch! We would love to hear from you!