So much has been written about the benefits of outsourcing, what businesses should outsource, and how outsourcing is on the rise, but personal outsourcing is talked about far less.
Why don’t we hear much about personal outsourcing? Probably because it’s generally considered taboo to talk about your personal finances with colleagues and friends.
However, while it might be a difficult topic to broach, I think there’s merit in doing so because without talking about where we get professional help, we aid in perpetuating the misconception that business owners can do everything.
I’ve seen this “do everything myself” approach first-hand as a business owner, especially now that I have kids. And by seen it, I mean I do this far too often.
I first started my business in 2014 before we had any children. In its infancy I had a little bit of trouble taking it seriously because I was just working from my home office alone during the day, and that wasn’t nearly as common then as it is now. Initially I didn’t have enough work to fill a whole day, so I would work for a few hours and then do things around the house.
In the days since I’ve gotten far busier and added two kids into the mix. I routinely pull 17-hour days between taking care of our kids and doing client work (frequently managing both simultaneously). However, I haven’t taken anything off my plate.
Why? I just thought that’s what small business owners did.
And then the pandemic hit. COVID disrupted life as usual, and I started to hear anecdotes from fellow business owners about how they were trying to adapt to life where they had to balance housework and work-work now that their cleaning service had to suspend operations, or that they needed a friend to stop by with a mower because their landscaping company was behind and couldn’t do their lawn. These last few months have made me realize that most people aren’t trying to do it all – they’re just not telling anyone that they’re not doing it all.
So, as we start a new year, I’m not going to resolve to do anything else. Instead, I’m going to resolve not to do some things, and you should too!
What should you give up in 2021?
Why don’t we hear much about personal outsourcing? Probably because it’s generally considered taboo to talk about your personal finances with colleagues and friends.
However, while it might be a difficult topic to broach, I think there’s merit in doing so because without talking about where we get professional help, we aid in perpetuating the misconception that business owners can do everything.
I’ve seen this “do everything myself” approach first-hand as a business owner, especially now that I have kids. And by seen it, I mean I do this far too often.
I first started my business in 2014 before we had any children. In its infancy I had a little bit of trouble taking it seriously because I was just working from my home office alone during the day, and that wasn’t nearly as common then as it is now. Initially I didn’t have enough work to fill a whole day, so I would work for a few hours and then do things around the house.
In the days since I’ve gotten far busier and added two kids into the mix. I routinely pull 17-hour days between taking care of our kids and doing client work (frequently managing both simultaneously). However, I haven’t taken anything off my plate.
Why? I just thought that’s what small business owners did.
And then the pandemic hit. COVID disrupted life as usual, and I started to hear anecdotes from fellow business owners about how they were trying to adapt to life where they had to balance housework and work-work now that their cleaning service had to suspend operations, or that they needed a friend to stop by with a mower because their landscaping company was behind and couldn’t do their lawn. These last few months have made me realize that most people aren’t trying to do it all – they’re just not telling anyone that they’re not doing it all.
So, as we start a new year, I’m not going to resolve to do anything else. Instead, I’m going to resolve not to do some things, and you should too!
What should you give up in 2021?
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