Balance and mindset: the challenges of a busy entrepreneur
JACK MOORE, PARTNER AT PAGE KIRK CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS IN NOTTINGHAM, ARGUES THAT THE COSTS OF OUTSOURCING ARE OFTEN OUTWEIGHED BY THE BENEFITS, IN TERMS OF THE FOCUS YOU CAN GIVE TO YOUR BUSINESS AND YOUR ABILITY TO FIND VITAL TIME FOR YOURSELF.
The demanding lifestyle of entrepreneurship can be incredibly testing - whether you have recently taken your first foray into business or you are a seasoned veteran when it comes to juggling various ventures. Finding enough hours in your day for working out, eating properly, taking holidays (yeah, right!), and even getting a healthy amount of sleep, can feel like a labyrinth to navigate. Ignore the old adage about diamonds being formed if exposed to enough pressure. If you want to avoid the inevitable burnout from having too much on your plate for too long, you need to consciously maintain a balanced lifestyle.
One of the first questions I ask my clients when they mention that they don’t have enough hours in their day is: “What tasks are you currently doing which you aren’t appropriately experienced at or sufficiently qualified to do efficiently?” Both business newbies and long-in-the-tooth tycoons alike often maintain this idea that they need to have their hand in - or the final sign-off – on each and every task within their business. The truth is, you don’t.
In the very early stages of growing your business, sure, you will almost always need to wear all the hats. The buck stops with you and you will need to dedicate time to every aspect of your enterprise if you want to succeed. however, continuing to scale a business is only sustainable if you learn how to delegate efficiently, and thereby manage your own time resourcefully. Otherwise you build a concrete ceiling right over your growth potential.
The first step to tackling this obstacle is to map out each of the functions of your business. Managing sales channels and/ or responding to leads is a core activity for most firms. Manufacturing or purchasing and dealing with suppliers is another for any goods-based business. Then there’s customer support and/or client relations once you start selling your product or service; hR when you begin taking on staff; and marketing and social media management if you need to build awareness of your brand. What about finance and accounting? These give you real-time oversight of your business’ performance to allow for strategic decision-making, as well as to comply with quarterly/annual reporting requirements. The list is almost endless, and the functions of each business are unique.
Delegate or outsource any function of your business when your time would be better served doing something else. Those hours you spend in your evenings tapping receipts onto a computer to complete your VAT return?
Outsource it. The weekends spent in the office planning your Facebook and Instagram posts for the upcoming month? Delegate it.
Once you are able to offload the burden of these types of responsibilities, two options open up for you. First, you can redirect that time to areas of your business where your time is most valuable, which would promote the best growth. Outsourcing costs money, but if the time you save can be used to make more money, it will be a worthwhile investment. Second, you can spend that time you save doing something you enjoy, or just taking some time away from the grindstone, even if that is just for an hour or two per week. Spend that time taking care of your physical and mental health and you will refill the tank, so that when you’re working on your business, you’re able to give it one hundred percent.
Page Kirk aren’t your standard accountancy firm. Their aim is to add real value and insight for their clients by sitting alongside them as trusted advisor. If you would like an accountant who can take on that role and discuss the practicalities involved in running your business, contact them on 0115 955 5500 or email enquiries@pagekirk.co.uk. To find out more, visit their website, www.pagekirk.co.uk.