When you first start your business, whether you are set up as a sole proprietorship, partnership, a corporation, or a Limited Liability Company (LLC), you may take on all the work yourself. After all, you consider yourself a great multitasker, so why not do it all yourself?
You’ll learn this lesson sooner than later, but I’d rather you do it now and save yourself a lot of headache later: you’ve got to delegate to be an effective entrepreneur. That means that from Day 1, you should have the right people on your team that will help you skyrocket to success.
Identify What You Need Help With
To that end, you first have to determine what areas of your business you need help with. Start with the areas you’re less skilled at, or that take more time than you’ve got. For example:
- You might need someone to answer phones so you can work on other tasks.
- You’re not great at accounting, so you need professional help.
- You need a web designer to initially create your website.
- Maybe you dislike managing people, and need to hire a manager
Not all of your needs will require you hiring a full-time employee. But we’re not there yet. Just start by identifying areas you need assistance with.
Next, Look at Your Options
Okay, now you can see what your options are to fill your needs. For that web designer, you can hire a freelancer to work on a per-project basis. Then you don’t have the overhead of paying for a full-time employee and benefits. For that accountant, you can find a small business accountant who can charge you a monthly retainer based on your needs.
For menial tasks, consider hiring an intern. The labor is affordable, but keep in mind you may need to be more hands-on in training them.
Save your full-time employee budget for the really big stuff. If you’ve got 40 hours a week worth of admin work, hire a receptionist or assistant. If you can’t afford to hire full-time, start with a part-timer and work your way up.
Be Honest
I know that, as an entrepreneur, you’re probably Type A, like me. But resist the ego trip of thinking you can do it all! There’s no way you can do everything in your business…at least not effectively, so you’re better off focusing on what’s most important for you: strategizing and launching that business. It’s fine if you do some of the work upfront, but have a plan from the start about how and when you’ll grow your team.
