3 Tedious Tasks All Young Business Visionaries Should Delegate
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When it comes to running a small business, most young professionals tend to fall into one of two categories: “detail” people or “big-picture” people. Both are critical to keeping the world’s businesses functioning and thriving. Recognizing which category you most identify with can help you understand and overcome your weak areas, making you a better business leader.
“Detail” people are excellent at keeping up with the crucial but tedious day-to-day tasks of managing a business, such as bookkeeping, payroll, and inventory; however, people in this category can sometimes get caught up in these details and fail to notice bigger trends, changes, and opportunities. “Big-picture” people, by contrast, tend to be visionaries, great at coming up with fresh ideas, engineering creative solutions, and steering the business in the right direction. These people often struggle with focusing on details and keeping up with administrative chores.
If you’re a big-picture person, you likely already know that falling behind on these detail-oriented duties can tank even the best business idea. Fortunately, you don’t need to become a different person to make a big difference in your company’s daily operations. The key is recognizing that while these tasks must be done, they don’t have to be done by you. Delegating jobs to a specialized, dedicated professional ensures the work gets done and allows you to focus more on your health and self-care, which are paramount for achieving business success. If you’re not sure where to begin, start by using this advice from Pittsburgh Young Professionals on how and why to outsource these three administrative tasks.
1. Payroll
Handling your business’s payroll packs a double dose of trouble for people who find it easier to focus on the bigger picture. First, proper payroll management requires keeping up with a host of detailed records and numbers. Second, there are also issues like exemptions, garnishments, and withholding to contend with. Don’t get bogged down with these tasks; instead, take advantage of a payroll service.
A wide range of payroll services are available, both online and in-person, offering anything from no-frills paycheck processing to full-service, turnkey operations. Take the time to choose a service level with features that make sense for your business, such as auto-generated tax forms, time-tracking software, or a direct deposit option with same-day capability. If you struggle dealing with the calculating hours from timesheets, payroll services will make the process much smoother via a timesheet calculator, which allows you to fill in your employees’ timesheet data. The payroll service will then calculate how many hours have been worked and how much you need to pay your worker. This takes away the hassle of processing numerous time cards and makes it more likely that your employees will be paid the right amount.
2. Marketing
Promoting your business is essential for growth, but in today’s world, handing out business cards just won’t cut it. Standing out from the competition requires extensive marketing knowledge and a multifaceted approach that covers, at a minimum, social media, email, website content, and customer engagement. From big-league advertising firms to single-service freelance consultants, there’s a marketing option out there that fits your needs. If you’re not ready to make this step, consider software programs that schedule and automate some of the processes, such as automatic email management and social media post scheduling.
3. Accounting
If careful and consistent bookkeeping isn’t your strong suit, you’re not alone: There’s a reason accounting exists as a full-time profession. From hiring a local CPA to subscribing to an online accounting service, plenty of choices exist to meet your company’s accounting needs. Complete and accurate record keeping throughout the year will make things much easier at tax time. Plus, most accounting services feature other benefits, such as at-a-glance financial reports, which will help you track your bottom line.
As a big-picture person, you have the vision and intuition to guide your business to success. Let someone else handle the details so you can focus on what you do best.
Delegating tedious tasks will also free up more time for networking. Join Pittsburgh Young Professionals today to be invited to high-quality networking events in our community!
Authored by Brad Krause. After spending most of his time in a corporate setting and neglecting his own self-care far too long, Brad embraced his calling and decided to become a full-time life coach. He now spends the rest of his life helping people get a better foothold on their wellness above all else.