Stop doing everything yourself

Earlier this week, I had an Intro call with Kevin, a solopreneur who’s been drowning in tasks.

He’s tried hiring a full-time VA, but still found himself stretched thin, owning everything from editing his podcast to doing his own social media writing, scheduling, publishing, analyzing, and more.

Sound familiar?

IMO, most hopeful solopreneurs misunderstand solopreneurship.

Yes, it’s about having one employee: yourself. But that doesn’t mean that you can’t get any help!

Relying on part-time helpers is a smart way to create more time for yourself. This kind of system makes it possible for you to focus on the most important parts of your business and still have time for things you love outside of work.

So if you're stuck trying to do everything yourself, or relying on a single assistant to handle a mountain of diverse tasks, I want to help you make a simple change.

It’s called micro-outsourcing.

And today I'm going to show you how to use micro-outsourcing to grow your business, save yourself some time, and utilize top talent — without adding a ton of expense.

What is Micro-Outsourcing?

When most people think of “outsourcing,” they consider hiring a catch-all helper, or paying agencies to manage one-off projects. But I’m talking about a more specialized and systematized approach to getting help.

Micro-outsourcing means tapping into the world of freelance specialists to manage specific, recurring parts of your business.

For example, you could outsource the creation of monthly reports to a data analyst. You could hire a podcast editor to produce your weekly episodes. A graphic designer can create your social media visuals, and a customer support specialist can handle your email inbox.

Each of these people might only work a few hours a week. But because they have specialized skills, they can drastically improve the quality and efficiency of your business. And they’ll cost a fraction of a full-time employee.

The Micro-Outsourcing Strategy

List out all of your tasks

Start by identifying all your regular tasks. Review your schedule, and jot down everything you do. Consider stuff like content creation, marketing activities, analytics, reporting, accounting, customer support, and any other administrative tasks you do.

And when your list is complete, prioritize each thing based on the impact to your business and the expertise required. Ask yourself: How much impact does this have on my business? And how specialized is the skill set required for this task?

You should own all of the high-impact tasks that give you a “moat” in your business. For example, nobody can write my content or newsletter like me, so I don’t outsource those tasks. I prefer to manage the creative parts of my business myself.

But there are plenty of high-impact tasks that require specialized skills, that aren’t the best use of my time. Data analytics, graphic design, partnership management, customer service, and more. Those are easy wins for me to outsource to specialists who work just a few hours a week.

Build your dream team

When you have your list of high-impact tasks you can outsource, it’s time to find people with the specific skills to help you.

Look beyond the usual freelancing platforms like UpWork and Fiverr. Try searching for specialized skill sites and/or agencies that are excellent at one specific thing.

And don't overlook LinkedIn! There are tons of freelancers who have the exact skills you need. But my favorite place to find talent? Referrals from other entrepreneurs in my network. A glowing reference from someone I trust means a lot to me.

And when you’re evaluating potential people for jobs, don't just look at their portfolios or resumes. Start by giving candidates a small paid test project to evaluate their ability, and to see if their working and communication style matches up with yours. This extra step can save you a lot of headaches down the road.

Create standard operating procedures

For each task you outsource, create a detailed SOP (standard operating procedure) document with a Loom video that walks the person through the work by showing and telling.

Make sure each SOP includes the exact steps to complete the task, your preferences and brand guidelines (if applicable), how and when to communicate with you, and the tools they'll need to use. Be overly detailed and explain exactly what success (and failure) looks like for every task.

This upfront work can feel like a lot, but it will save you a ton of time in the long run. And if a helper doesn’t work out, you’ve already got the process documented for the next person.

Finally, set up a management system to keep track of all the moving pieces. I use Notion for project management and SOPs and Slack for communication. That’s pretty much it. Nothing too fancy or complicated.

You just want to make sure you have a central hub where you can see all your ongoing projects without getting bogged down with all the details.

The Results

I implemented micro-outsourcing back in 2022, and the results have been pretty terrific.

I’ve reclaimed about 15 hours a week to focus on high-level strategy, content creation, and newsletter writing. And that feels good, because those are the things I care about the most and enjoy working on.

It’s time well-spent growing my business, instead of being stuck in the administrative weeds.

Takeaways for Your Micro-Outsourcing Strategy

If you want to give micro-outsourcing a spin, start small. Pick one task to micro-outsource, and perfect your process before moving on.

And remember to be clear about your expectations and preferences because helpers can’t read your mind. The more specific you are, the better results you'll get. And keep in mind that these freelancers are a big part of your operation, even if they only work a few hours a week. Focus on building strong relationships so you’re not continuously hiring new people that need to be brought up to speed.

And always be on the lookout for talent, even when you don't have a need.

Lastly, make sure to review and optimize your strategy regularly. As your business changes, your standard operating procedures will need to evolve.

The bottom line is that your job as a solopreneur isn't to do everything. It's to focus on the highest impact tasks that bring your unique vision to life.

That's all for this week.

Now it’s time to identify your first micro-outsourcing opportunity.

P.S. When you’re ready to dive deeper into strategies to build a lean, efficient online business, check out The Creator MBA. This course is jam-packed with actionable tactics to help you work smarter, not harder.