Why do Small Business owners try to do everything themselves
Today I went shopping in a small boutique shoe store. The owner is a true entrepreneur and has just opened her second store.
I asked her how she was managing the new store, as it’s located more than 90 minutes from here. She explained that out sources as much as she can and focuses on what she is good at, so she spent a lot of time carefully planning for the recruitment of her staff and then out sourced it to professionals.
She went on to explain that she is a strong marketer and a good buyer, but she needs help with her book keeping and luckily her partner has a digital multimedia agency, so he helps with the web and online details.
So often, I meet with small businesses that want to do everything and seem frightened to let go, this is often dangerous, as Michael Gerber in his book the E-Myth reminds us, we must work on our business not just in the business.
It is also costly, it is far less expensive to outsource to an expert that can deliver the outcomes in less time and more professionally, than struggling to do it yourself.
Having said this it is important that you know something about everything so that you can manage the project brief and know what you are asking for and that you have received it.
Try writing a list of jobs that you could outsource, start by doing a SWOT on yourself, what are your strengths, your weaknesses, what opportunities are there for your business if you outsourced them, what are the threats if you don’t.