Start-up business are driven by an entrepreneur or business owner’s focus and attention; much like parents nurturing their babies. Both invest in every milestone of their off-spring. The first six months “the parent” spends all their time fussing over the little things and may miss their babies take the first big step. There comes a moment when the company actually walks on it’s own. This is usually when the entrepreneur panics and is unable to let go of control and over-manages every step.
As a business owner the desire to be in control is a valuable trait to have but it can also stunt your business’s growth. Not to mention it’s exhausting!
I hate to break it to you… babies grow up and so do businesses. That means you have to trust your team and let it walk on it’s own. Your guidance, knowledge and principles are the foundation; trust that and be the leader that fosters an environment of growth and innovation.
An African proverb reads, ”It takes a village to raise a child.” Apply this to your business. You are only ONE person, there are ONLY 24 hours in a day and NO you CANNOT work ALL of the time. If you want to let your business grow, let go of the inner control freak and DELEGATE.
In 4 easy steps, lose the control freak and delegate, here is how.
1. Lose the Superman Complex
Clark Kent made the “reporter by day superhero by night” look way too easy. As glamorous as it seems to run your own business and save the world all at the same time…we are not Superman. We can’t do it all alone.
As you build a business it becomes more complex and difficult to manage for one person. Sooner or later you will get a sign that your business has become to big for you to handle; you’ll lose a client, miss an opportunity, your business partner gets frustrated and leaves, family time suffers and spouses get fed up…something will happen. This is the time that you realize you can’t do it all and you MUST delegate.
Start by writing down what you do for an entire day and the amount of time spent completing each task. What time traps do you notice? Can an assistant complete these tasks? Spend more time with YOUR area of expertise and allow others to take over the menial tasks.
2. Check your Ego at the Door
Enter in the superman syndromes cousin, your ego. The control freak in you whispers in your ear….no one can finish a task the way YOU do, no one is as dedicated as YOU are, no one can work harder or more efficient that YOU do. Resist the urge to stroke your ego with such flattery. If you have not honestly assessed your strengths and weaknesses, you will not be able to let go and delegate tasks. What other skills, talents and personalities would compliment your strengths to grow your business? Make a list and look for those attributes when hiring others to help you.
3. Hire Good People and Leave them Alone
Delegating responsibility in your business requires you to have people to delegate tasks to. Hiring trustworthy employees with the qualifications and skills you need is your first step. Give them your vision, train them well, then assign them their tasks and then leave them alone. Let them do the job you hired them to do. It doesn’t make sense for you to do their job too, right? Micromanaging your employees can turn you into a bottleneck, slowing down the process.
4. Delegate, Do Not Dump
“You have to empower people and give them status. You can’t just dump a job on people with the attitude that you can’t be bothered to do it so you’re asking them,” said Don Dymer founder of SingleSource Services. Dymer also emphasizes the importance of making sure your employees take on the mission and values of your business. By setting an example and defining those values during the hiring process a business owner can ensure they have a strong base of employees to delegate to. Empowering employees and allowing them to make decisions based off of the example you have set allows you to have more freedom. You will not be bogged down by constant questions regarding approval for different decisions.
Delegation is an art form. If you want your business and productivity to grow, follow these four easy steps. Let go of the control freak! A successful business is waiting to flourish, give your baby a chance to run!
© 2012 Inspired Living, LLC
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Keri Murphy and the Inspired Living team is on a mission to empower people to use their unique talents in a way that allows them to Dream, Live and BE all that is possible through speaking, coaching, celebrity interviews and original on-line content. Get Inspired at inspiredliving.tv
