YoungEntrepreneur: Delegation has become increasingly important for my business. As we take on more projects and continue to grow the company, I am frequently becoming the bottleneck. Decisions don’t happen without me and people can’t move forward because they don’t have the training or responsibilities to do so.
Here is what I have done to try and lighten the load. So far it has worked well and has freed up my time to focus on the bigger projects!
1) Give up some control – I liked having everything come through me. Unfortunately this can only work for so long. They can make decisions without me and have the power to implement it themselves on our website. At some point you have to have the confidence that you have the right people on board and give them the ability to run with their ideas. They are happier, I’m happier, and we’re getting more work done.
2) Give them an incentive – The two people I gave significant responsibilities to also share in the profits that are made from their work. They do not have an equity stake in my business but they do have a profit share for their divisions.They know that the more they work, the more money they will make. It has helped get them up and running as well as drive more profitability for my business as a whole.
3) Stretch their responsibilities – I have mentioned a few times about the importance of bringing on student interns as a way to cheaply expand your business. We currently have high school interns working alongside our staff. They are online savvy, energetic, and don’t cost us a dime!
Any entrepreneur who wants to avoid buying herself a job needs to look at delegation. Even if it’s outsourcing a small task that lets you focus on building your business in a more strategic fashion, until you start delegating responsibilities you will not enjoy the freedom that can come with being a business owner.
Delegation at Work [YoungEntrepreneur]
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Delegate-Free Up Your Time
