Small business owner’s day has 16 hours or more. Yeah, talking about ‘overtime’, CIBC? This is the real overtime, and… no boss to complain.
Starts probably at dawn with planning what employees should do today, taking phone calls and emails, rushing with mail before Canada Post pickup, searching for vendor quotes or materials, delivering goods to your clients, entering expenses, putting together a new promo, dropping business cards, submitting tax installments… The list goes on and on, and a reader does not even know yet what business are you in.

When is the time for what you do the best? – the actual business you started yourself. If I only had time…

Well, the truth is, you have to make the time to succeed.

I know, I know, you can’t trust anyone these days, and you do everything your way, but come on, focus!
What’s your hour worth? If you are so good in your profession, then why you’re doing all these other, low-paying jobs, or struggle with projects, that you have no clue about (like marketing or advertising you were never trained for)?
A professional would spend an hour and produce results bringing you higher revenue or savings you did not know about.

Great people are focused on what they do the best. Some of the tasks entrepreneurs do are suited to them and some aren’t.
Examine your daily tasks and start sorting them in a new way: Check off tasks you perform well, or even better – get excited about doing. The tasks that you are brilliant at should become your focus. Others need to be contracted out, outsourced, because they are not the best use of your time. You can’t get ahead doing them.

Go even further – hire a coach to show you how you can be the greatest you can be. Just recently I heard on BNN TV about “trading coach” – no, she is not teaching you how to trade. She is helping you to overcome the limitations that you placed subconsciously on yourself. Fee – yes, quite high - $7500 for 2 days… one may think. But the results were astonishing – this one guy started to make hundreds of thousands of dollars more, after she thought him how to stop sabotaging himself and just do what he knew already. ROI was written right into the contract.

So where do you start with outsourcing? A student is not always your best option. Cheap does not mean efficient and the supervising time may surpass the benefits. Try small professionals, like you, who work on contract, producing results for every dollar spent and more. You can check Craigslist which is already a world-wide powerhouse in finding services and goods or a local trade association for accountants, tradesman etc.

Networking sites like Ryze or LinkedIn will put you in touch with consultants and professional services, too.

Did you hear about Virtual Assistants? Telecommuting technologies (computer with internet access, plus software supporting professional skills and a home office) allow people to work from home. You can hire a virtual assistant that would do most of the office work for you. Bookkeeping, handling emails, contact lists, correspondence, appointments schedules and travel arrangements – all that a secretary does. Add to this presentations, marketing, web design and photography, customer service, handling shipments, remote computer troubleshooting and maintenance and even shopping – and what’s left for you is ALL THE EXCITEMENT of your core strengths job. Isn’t it what you always wanted to do?

And from motivators like Robin Sharma you can get strength and guidance how to concentrate on your BRILLIANT skills and BRILLIANTLY outsource the rest, so you have time to GROW.

If you want to learn more on what focus can do for your business, read the “The Power of Focus”.

“The one thing that separates winners from losers is, winners take action!” Said Anthony Robins. There is a big difference between being busy and taking specific, well-planned action. Make planned outsourcing your next action.

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