The biggest lightbulb moment of my business life was when I learned to outsource...

And this particular gem of a project earned me £120,000 . . . whilst I slept.

That’s not some throw away statement, that’s what actually happened when I finally let go of lower value tasks in my marketing business.

The business had been growing but I'd hit a wall and no matter how many more hours I put in, I couldn't scale any further.

I’d gotten to a point where I was massively overwhelmed and buried in things 'to do' that I could barely breathe.

I was busy being busy.

And when this particular project came along, it was go big or go home...

But there was no way I could do it on my own - and that was a big deal for a control freak like me!

“Mehhh, things are just easier if I do them myself, by the time I've shown someone else, I could have done it myself...” - does that little nugget sound familiar?

But this monster was too much of an opportunity and I was in real danger of losing it with my small minded thinking.

So, I applied my 3 golden rules to outsourcing:

1) See the bigger picture

If you don’t outsource, you can’t grow. 

Steve Jobs didn’t build Apple by trying to do it all himself. He picked the best people to work in their field of expertise whilst he did what he did best.

Solopreneurs trade time for money, whereas those who invest in outsourcing are able to leverage time in order to work on their core genius. This in turn fuels and builds the business.

2) It’s not an expense, its an investment

Any good investment should return more money than you put in. So stop thinking that you can’t afford to outsource, start thinking you can’t afford NOT too.

Every business needs investment to make it grow. If you don’t have the funds right now, look for a partner or a backer who will invest in your business growth.

The benefit of this is that you might just find an investor who will bring even more to the party. If they’re already a success, think about the experience they could offer as well as funding.

3) Success is your responsibility

A contractor is only as good as the brief they are given (boy do I know that!!!), so take time to give this part of the process 100% of your attention.

It seems like a drag to begin with, but once you have a briefing template in place, you’re already creating a system for your business which is essential for growth. Systems also add value to your business which is a double bonus!

When you’re looking for someone to outsource to, ask them if they have a briefing form or some kind of assessment they can provide you. This is a sure fire way to know that they’re serious about what they’re doing.

Which leads me on to my final point…

Do a LOT of homework and research on your contractor.

There are many people out there who tell a good story, but do they have the history to back it up?

Make sure you check out testimonials, references and most importantly their results.

Outsourcing isn't nearly as scary as it seems and once I had my systems in place, the money came in whilst I slept.

Now THAT is a nice feeling to wake up too!