As a coach, I often work with clients who consistently hang on to work that probably needs to be passed on to others. This could range from doing their administrative work (i.e. cleaning up files), or doing their billing.
80% of the time, I hear that it just costs them too much money to hire someone else to do the work. There is also the excuse that it takes too much time to teach others to do the back-end work. I actually had a client mention how filing mellows her out, and how she takes this time to recollect the work she did with her clients.
Unfortunately, when we get stuck with work that does not seem to be our core competency, we slow down the momentum of our business and our success.
In the last week, I have been contemplating on when it is it the right time for us to begin doling out work. Should we do this in the offset when we start our business or should we wait till we have too much work to handle?
I met a gentleman last week that helped me understand that the work we choose to do is really driven by what we love to do. His name is Uno. Uno owns a Moroccan themed hotel in LA called Figueroa Hotel.
He can be found at the front desk of the hotel at 7:30 in the morning working side by side with his front desk clerks. He also is in the back office working reservations. No, this is not your small Bed & Breakfast type of place. The Figueroa Hotel has 12 floors and 285 rooms. Uno also can be found wondering the hotel till 10 P.M on almost daily occasions. When I asked Uno why he spent so much time at work, he laughingly replied “So, my wife does not have to put up with me”. Then he later added…”because it is good to have a place to go”.
I later found out that Uno wakes up at 5 a.m. in the morning. He jumps into a cold pool in his home to do his aerobic exercises. He then proceeds to have a bowl of fruits and nuts, reads the paper and heads off to work.
I could easily suggest, that it is time that Uno steps back from his Hotel and spends more time doing something else… but what? The truth is that the Hotel is probably what drives Uno everyday to wake up with such vigor. Uno by the way is 85 years old (Sorry Uno…now everybody knows).
Of course, you must all understand that Uno in fact does have folks covering his back. His hotel probably can successfully continue to exist without him. But he chooses to be there.
So, my advice to those contemplating on hiring others to do work, ask yourself the following questions:
- Have I planned for my growth? Am I putting back into my business the finances to help it go forward? This includes hiring others.
- Am I letting go of work that does not excite me?
- Am I spending time on my value proposition?
- Am I choosing affiliates, partners or employees that truly support the vision I have for my company?
- Looking at my day, do I wake up excited about the work I ‘want’ to do oppose to the work I ‘have’ to do?
- Do I want to be 85 years old and still have the excitement and vigor to do whatever ‘d-mm thing I want to do!’
As for me, I believe that continuing to hold on to what I love to do in my business means being very clear about what I am ready to let go off today.
What is it for you?
