We understand how hard it is as a small business owner to run a business
We've written a series of blogs to help guide business owners get things back on track and allow you to do all those things you dreamed off when you first set out on this journey.
Balancing business responsibilities with much needed downtime is not always easy but you can do a few things that will help and we’re here to support you too!
Use these series of blogs as a steer towards getting your business on track and you being more in control.
Delegate and empower
Sir John Harvey Jones once said that the owner of a business should only do what only they can do.
If you began your business with just you at the helm, delegating is often one of the hardest things to do. You may feel that no-one else is sufficiently capable but that’s usually a perception and not a reality (think Strategic Account Director, rather than Account Manager! Refer to our blog Detach yourself from your business).
A good way to start is see if there are some activities within the business that don’t require your level of expertise. Is there someone who, with the right type of support, could fulfil the requirement?
It’s also important to entrust the members of your team with more responsibilities if they’re keen and enthusiastic. We all remember getting that buzz from a job well done and receiving positive feedback. It should be your aim to maintain that level of job satisfaction from your employees since it’s a win win for both sides.
[Top Tip: There is a very big difference between delegating and abdicating. Delegating is about effectively entrusting responsibility to someone else; abdicating is about giving up responsibility to someone else. As a business owner, you can never abdicate responsibility!]
Maintain your positivity - it's good for you - and your team
As Shawn Anchor, author of ‘The Happiness Advantage’ explains, “When we are positive, our brains become more engaged, creative, motivated, energetic, resilient, and productive.” And he should know having conducted one of the largest studies of happiness and potential at Harvard plus UBS and KPMG.
So here's our summary:
Identify tasks that can be delegated to capable team members.
Empower your employees with responsibilities and trust them to handle certain aspects of the business.
Remember your functional org chart
Delegation only works if people understand that they have the autonomy and authority to make decisions.
Understand the difference between abdication and delegation.
Stay positive! You've got this!