Outsource It, Baby!

I once received some very wise advice from a female executive in my former corporate world, and I never forgot it. With regards to how to do it all, she simply advised "outsource that which is not memorable." This made so much sense to me as a busy working Mom. Making chocolate chip cookies with my kids is memorable. Washing, drying, folding and putting away their clothes is not. Cooking for my family, memorable! Doing the shopping to get the required groceries, not memorable! 

I changed my babysitter's contract to include laundry and emptying/loading the dishwasher. I use a delivery service for groceries so I can just order online and more easily plan meals. This freed up my time for things that are memorable to me, like playing outside on a nice evening.

The same concept can apply at work, too. Are you the person who has to do everything, and has a hard time assigning tasks to your team? Do you resist a proposal for a new way to approach a task because it cuts out your involvement? Consider the ways you can outsource tasks that don't require your special gifts. For example I had a client who is a realtor. Her true gift was forming trusting relationships with her clients. Although she could also write the contracts and do all of the paperwork for deals, she didn't need to. Hiring someone to do those tasks freed up her time to spend more face to face time building relationships with new and existing clients. 

Another client valued working out and eating healthy lunches, and spent time on Sunday making lunch for the whole week. This wasn't a memorable activity for her, she didn't enjoy making the lunches. She found a company to deliver healthy lunches for the whole week, which freed up her Sunday to spend time with her family. 

If you're now thinking "well it must be nice to have the money to outsource all of that" - question your story. Is there a way to make it work? Could you make up for the $100/year delivery fee for groceries in savings by better planning meals? Would making coffee at home free up Starbucks money to have healthy lunches delivered? Is there someone at work who already works for you who could learn and grow by doing more? Can you "outsource" a task by simply no longer doing it?

Don't forget, having to be the expert on everything and do it all is a trap!