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So what's a Small Business Lone Ranger to do? Here are 6 tips:
1. Make a list of all
tasks that don't require your specific expertise or talent (things like sorting mail, buying office supplies, and filing).
2. Make a second list of
tasks that consume a lot of your time but are OUTSIDE your specific area of expertise (things like maintaining your web site or managing your business finances and accounting).
3. Determine how many hours per week you spend doing these tasks.
4. Determine what additional sales and marketing, or other business-building activities you would have time for if you didn't have to do these other tasks.
5. Estimate how many additional clients or sales you could generate with this extra time spent on marketing and building your business.
6. Make a decision to hire an assistant, bookkeeper, web site manager or whatever specialists are appropriate to handle these tasks. Determine what you can afford based on your results in Tip Number 5.
I know you're probably wondering how you'll be able to afford it. But really, we can't afford NOT to hire help. Unless we are satisfied with keeping our business small. And don't get me wrong, there's absolutely nothing wrong with that — I've done it for seven years. But if you have a bigger vision (like I do now), then you need a team to help you make that vision a reality.
To start with, your team should include an assistant to do
work that is not a good use of your time. This doesn't have to be a full-time employee; I'm starting out with someone just a few hours a week. You'll also want to get a bookkeeper and a CPA to manage your finances — they'll not only free you up from your accounting tasks, they'll also help you keep more of what you do make.
So take a moment to get a clear vision of what kind of business you want to create. And if that vision is larger than you can accomplish on your own, take
six steps above to get a team to help you make it a reality.
(C) Copyright 2005 Debbie LaChusa
