If you’re an entrepreneur or small business owner and you’re ready to take your business to the next level by building a team so that you can leverage other people’s time, talent and skills, outsourcing may be your answer. It’s easy to get started but there are a few things you should have in place to make the experience positive, worthwhile and effective.
The first step to accomplishing anything in life is determining your goal. An example would be going on a road trip. The first thing you would do before getting in your car is deciding on your destination. The same principle applies to outsourcing.
Where Are You Going?
I’m assuming you already have your business goals mapped out. I know they may change as your business and technology evolves but let’s focus on the goals you currently have set right now. If you don’t have your 5 year, 3 year, 1 year and 6 month goals set…. STOP reading this right now and proceed to getting that done! Your virtual army of support and I will still be here and thank you for it when you’re done. 😊
You’ll be loved by everyone that works with you, if you’re clear on what you want from them and what you want to accomplish in your business.
With clear goals, whoever you add to your team will be able to support you at the most efficient and effective level. If they’re top-notch (which I’m here to help you make sure they will be) and about their business, they should also be able to provide you with suggestions to take your ideas and requests to a level you probably haven’t considered.
Without a clear goal and no big picture, you may stagnate and stifle your help and limit their capabilities to just the task at hand. You won’t be able to maximize your partnership with them and you won’t be able to get the full benefits of leveraging their skills and expertise.
Let’s Go!
After you’ve got your business goals set, you’ll want to think about how you’re going to reach them, and more specifically, how outsourcing can help you reach them
HERE’S HOW TO DO IT:
- Break down your business goals into milestones.
- Break down your milestones into smaller actionable goals.
- Break down those small actionable goals into smaller goals until get it down to the task level.
SAMPLE WORKSHEET ==> You can download a sample Goal to Milestone to Task Breakdown Sheet here.
The best goals are measurable, defined, and specific. Once you start outsourcing in an effective way, you should be able to calculate how much free time you’ve earned yourself.
Additional Information
If you found value in this blog post, you may be interested in setting up a free 30 minute consultation to help you navigate the outsourcing waters and determine which tasks you can outsource and/or automate, and the best way to get the help you need.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Tiffany Michelle Patterson is an Online Business Manager and the Founder of Tiffany Michelle & Co., a business support service that provides consulting and implementation of administrative and marketing solutions to small businesses with BIG ideas. Prior to her role at Tiffany Michelle & Co., Tiffany provided administrative support to attorneys and executives in law firms and fortune 500 companies for a 18-year span. Being true to her entrepreneurial spirit, Tiffany was also a real estate sales consultant who enjoyed assisting homeowners and home buyers with the sale and purchase of residential property. Because of Tiffany’s background in administration, law and real estate, and her passion for creative writing and the arts, Tiffany has blended a unique set of services to offer her clients.
