I get questions all the time about outsourcing, building a team, and managing them well. I’ll be honest, it’s a dance that I’ve reconfigured and played with it over the years. I am by no means the best boss in the world (though I do think I’m pretty decent) but I’m constantly honing my skills to be a good leader. I didn’t just wake up one day and hire 8+ women (and badass women, at that) to help me grow, run, and refine my business AND know how to lead them well.

Trade money to get back time

It started with just one, Caitlyn — you’ve heard of her if you’ve been around these digs a while. She came on as my virtual assistant, but basically did… everything that I couldn’t take on or didn’t have the time to do. And she’s still here helping to run the show with so much of our digital content. That first hire for me was hard! I loved control, I had my grip tight on money and didn’t understand the value of trading money (something I could make more of) for time (something I could never get back!)

But it’s changed since then quite a bit. I hire now with passion and continue to add to my crew as our business grows and scales. I now have help with customer care, I have creative women who help me write emails and blog posts and podcast scripts, and I have more strategy-driven chicks who support my launches, podcast and business development. It truly takes a village, and I’m so grateful every day for mine.

Because they work hard to keep the wheels spinning, I’ve been able to spend my time focusing on new ways to grow, come up with ideas for interesting approaches to serving my audience, and not to mention, bask in this time with my sweet Conley girl during these irreplaceable months of her first year here with us.

My position in my business is different than it used to be, but handing off the things I don’t NEED to be doing every day has honestly allowed me to advance and grow like never before. So, let’s get into it — I want to give you the skinny on all the things I take on in my biz vs. my team, so maybe you can feel encouraged to let go of a few responsibilities that could be better handled by a current (or future) team member.

I focus on wearing the visionary and strategist hat

It felt a little funny (and uncomfortable, if I’m being totally honest) when I began outsourcing and hiring a team. It was like I felt bad for handing off chunks of my business that I used to have total control over and pride in running. I mean,  I had been all the things, all the roles for so long and I had tricked myself into believing that there were things only I could do. Handing things over? That didn’t necessarily feel good at first — but it was absolutely vital.

If you think about it, even though entrepreneurs are oftentimes generalists — meaning we CAN figure out and run every aspect of our business — we still have our strengths. We still have those genius spots, those areas that fill us up with so much purpose and joy when we get to work on them.

And then, there are the tasks that we really, really don’t like doing. Or we put off doing. Or we just plain don’t have the TIME to do, and they don’t get done. Are you thinking of a few of your responsibilities that fall into these categories? Those are the things that it’s okay to handoff, and fast because there’s somebody out there whose strengths align with those things you don’t like doing.

And that person can probably do them way faster and more efficiently than you can. So, that’s where I started. I began handing off a few things at a time I didn’t enjoy as much or have the time to do. Eventually, I got to a spot where I could solely focus on being the visionary and the strategist.

My role for my business at this point in time is to brainstorm and dream up big, juicy goals that I can share with my team and then start chipping away at with them. I strategize big picture, and they implement the details, in other words. I still check in with every one of them and give feedback and insight, but I’m less in the rough and tumble of everyday creation and delivery than I used to be.

The only 3 things I HAVE to do in my business are:

Earlier this year I sat down and made a list of all of the things I found myself doing on a weekly basis! Old habits die hard, my friends. My list grew and grew as I found my hands in so many little tasks that were taking attention from the bigger things. Just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should and many CEO’s started and grew their business by doing all of those tasks but when you can let go of those and hand them off you can focus on the bigger spots you can serve. For me, there are only three places I should be showing up in my business.

• • Cast the vision.
  • Be the face of the brand.
  • Be the voice of the brand.

 

That’s it — seriously, out of the million tasks that get done daily for writing to editing to graphics and posting, all of those things can be done by someone else. It doesn’t mean I am hands off, but it does mean I can get help so I can serve in the three places that only I can serve. So, y’all know: I show up on social media. I speak with you and answer comments and questions on Instagram. I teach things that I know will matter in my paid programs and on my podcast.  I dream and scheme our next big projects and do it all with my audience of movers and shakers in mind to continue serving you as BEST as I possibly can.

All the other aspects? I’ve learned I can, and should, get help in those. I get the final say and sign off on everything that goes out of my business and reaches your screens, eyes, and hearts. But treating the company as a media company vs. a personal brand has helped me welcome in more help — AND realize that we’re putting out content that is helping me move toward my vision of more and more impact.

I simply couldn’t do it all on my own. And, neither should you. I believe to my gut that we can’t reach our full potentials alone. No matter how smart or driven or creative you are, there’s always so much more that comes out of collaboration. Out of a meeting of minds. More innovation. More ideas. More possibilities. More growth.

It’s why masterminds and group learning experiences are so powerful, yes, but also another benefit of building out your dream team. When you’re surrounded by the right people to lift you up and boost your business, you’ll become better than ever, and have to do way less hustling day in and out to get there.

 

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Thinking about adding to your team?

Don’t miss my guide: 5 Questions to Ask Yourself Before Hiring