DUPLICATING YOURSELF… MAKING THE MOST OF YOUR TIME AND ENERGY

Last week, we talked about Time Management and what an important component it is in our lives. Part of time management is delegating tasks to others. Not only does it help us, but it empowers others. Duplicating ourselves saves us time and gives us peace of mind when we can’t be on-site.

The first thing to understand is that duplicating ourselves doesn’t necessarily mean that we are cloning an exact replica of ourselves. You want to have someone on your staff that can handle things to free you up. Maybe they don’t do things precisely the same way you do, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t effective! Even better than having one person to handle things, is having two. This allots for when the first person is away or out sick, you have someone that can easily step up to the plate. It’s your designated hitter, if you will.

The freedom this will give you when you’re on a business trip or vacation is priceless. If you want to start spending more time in the field, someone’s there to rely on to keep things moving. The key here, is to pinpoint who that person(s) is. You want someone that doesn’t need constant hand holding and that you trust completely. You probably have someone in mind right now that comes to mind. If you don’t, perhaps it’s time for a new hire. A person that has genuine leadership qualities without flaunting their “power” to the rest of the staff. That’s important. Otherwise, you’ll be dealing with office drama. That is NOT a time or energy saver.

Once you’ve found your right-hand person, make them your side-kick. In the beginning, it’ll take some time but the payoff will be worth it. You want to go into this with a clear idea of what you want to designate for them to take over. Be very clear about how you want them to handle these tasks. Patience is something you’ll need when passing the baton. You’ll likely choose someone that is a quick learner. However, there should be a learning curve. Assume they’ll pick things up quickly (that’s why you chose them), but not immediately. You want the job done right. If you’re impatient with them, they won’t feel comfortable letting you know they don’t understand something.

Lastly, make others aware whom you’ve selected to take over some of your workload. This will get everyone on the same page and avoid confusion. After that, get excited about having your time freed up to do… anything else.

P.S. Should you need capital to hire a new employee, give Fast Capital a call at 800-735-6107.

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