And you’ve likely tried to fix being “it” by asking friends and family to help. You might have even tried hiring someone. But, still, it all came back to you.
So then you tried to get a handle on your calendar, believing it would help you get more hours back, and maybe it did. But you’re still the bottleneck despite how color-coded and organized your calendar is.
Now you’re wondering, “Is this just the price I have to pay to grow my business? Do I just have to do it all because no one else can do what I do?”
That might be the case, but I doubt it. I’ve been there, done that, and figured out what really works when you’re tired of being the only one who can get it done.
How I Set Myself and My Assistant Up to Fail
I had tried hiring several times over the years. My hires were all friends and family. Working together didn’t work for us.
When I was ready to try hiring again, I decided to work with an agency known for finding the exact right fit. They ran background checks and thoroughly vetted people before they ever handed me a resume to review.
So, the VA I hired was screened before I ever met her. Her resume was presented to me as someone who could do the work, and I believed it. Why wouldn’t I?
And I liked her. She was bright, interested in doing the work, and had a very pleasant personality.
After a brief training period, she performed well for me. So, I let her start working with 2 of my clients doing the same tasks she had been doing for me.
At first, it seemed to be working. My clients were happy, and the work was getting done.
Then a client mentioned that she hadn’t been showing up and wasn’t delivering her assignments.
This surprised me because she was always there when I reached out. She was also on time with her assignments for me.
I told my client that was surprising and that I’d check in with her. Because this client was difficult at times, I assumed poor communication was the issue.
When I asked her what was going on, she agreed that poor communication.
Boy, was I relieved!
This could be easily fixed.
Here’s the sad part. I led the witness! I was relieved because I had finally gotten this off of my plate, and I didn’t want it back. So when she agreed with my suggestion of what must have happened, I felt all was right with the world again.
It also helped that she always showed up for me. Every time I called a meeting with the client and the 2 of us, she was there, ready to get things done, or at least promised to get things done.
So, I didn’t worry about it. I assumed things would be all better now that we had met.
Unfortunately, when I wasn’t there, she wasn’t either. Her promises were empty, and she stopped showing up for both my clients. As far as they were concerned, she disappeared.
It wasn’t too much later that she stopped showing up for me too. She ignored calendar invitations, phone calls, Slack messages, and texts. She went completely dark.
And by then, I’d lost 2 clients.
Wasn’t She Just the Wrong Hire?
No, that’s the easy and, frankly, naïve answer. She was capable and vetted. The problem was me.
Even if I had hired someone else and put them in the same position, they would have failed too.
Why Doesn’t Delegation Always Work?
Delegation only works when the work already exists somewhere outside of your own head. And mine wasn’t.
What’s even sadder is I was aware of this.
The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber has been on my shelf for years. I read it a long time ago.
In it, Gerber says that most of us start out as technicians, good at the work itself, so we build the business around our own doing of it. He even names the exact trap I walked into. He calls it managing by abdication instead of delegation.
Despite having read it and knowing exactly where the book is on my bookshelf, I still fell into the trap. Simply knowing this information didn’t prevent me from making the mistake.
Everything that VA needed to do the work well was only in my head. She didn’t understand how I think through clients’ problems or all the little things I’m unaware of that I do every day to make sure things run smoothly. With nothing written down, she was left guessing.
All I did was give her a job with no real definition.
What Happens When the Help You’ve Received Doesn’t Work?
You take it all back on yourself. You’ve got to because your business still has to survive. But what are you supposed to do now that you have proof that no one can do what you do?
First, you make sure you don’t fall into the same trap again. You may even decide to never hire again because now you’re convinced and telling yourself, “How to grow my business is through my own efforts. NO ONE can do what I do, and NO ONE can help me.”
This is your self-preservation talking here. I know because this is the direction I initially took too. It’s easier to do what you know to do instead of asking, “What can I do differently?”
Reinforcing the idea that you’re the only one who can make your business work is a sure way to stay stuck. This is also how your business could wind up costing you everything.
How to Break This Cycle?
You have to escape the pattern that’s keeping you stuck. Your business is growing, but you’re stunting it.
Escape is the first step of the growth cycle: Escape, Expand, Excel.
And until you’re ready to break through what’s keeping you stuck, your business can’t grow.
Here’s how I escaped the cycle.
The next time I brought on a VA who would do client work, I didn’t just hand her the work and hope. I sat down and pulled as much out of my head as I could about how I worked with this client.
Then she interviewed me to make sure she understood the information, and we worked with the client together. All the while, I encouraged her to continue asking questions to refine her understanding.
It took a few months, and at times I felt I was still doing the work while paying someone else to do it too. It didn’t always feel like progress. And it definitely felt like more work than just doing it myself. But it only felt like that in the beginning.
She and I have been working together for 3 or 4 years now. She runs the client with very little from me, takes initiative, and she knows exactly when to ask for help.
Best of all, the client trusts her.
Building the structure that allowed her to be successful wasn’t easy or especially fun. But getting out of my own way and my business’s way turned out to be exactly how to grow my business.
If you’re ready to stop being the reason your business can’t run without you, my book is the place to start. Download your copy now.
About the Author
Karen Finn, PhD is an author and business growth strategist. Download a copy of her book, The Business Growth Plan, to get insight into the low-cost and no-cost strategies she uses with her clients to 2x-3x their revenues.
