Small business owners frequently feel that their successes and failures rest squarely on their shoulders. However, sharing that heavy load with other professionals, like a fractional chief operating officer (COO), helps them identify the most pressing tasks versus the to-dos that can wait till later. In other words, learning how to prioritize and delegate your personal and business needs keeps your venture moving forward.
After assisting numerous clients with diverse businesses through my business optimization consulting and fractional COO services, I know for a fact that prioritization and delegation are essential skills for progressive business ownership. We will explore how you can cultivate these abilities below.
Is Getting Your Priorities in Order Easier Said Than Done?
As a business owner myself, I fully empathize with why my colleagues struggle with prioritization and delegation. Throughout my experiences providing part-time COO services, I uncovered a few reasons why a client might wrestle with these elements:
- They interpret delegation as relinquishing full control of a task to someone else.
- They cannot accurately gauge what their current staff can take on.
- They feel overwhelmed by the growing list of to-dos.
- Their admirable but lofty goals get in the way.
Do any of these descriptions sound familiar? If so, learning the true meaning of prioritization and delegation with the help of outsourced COO expertise can help you make more effective business decisions.
Create a List of Realistic Priorities
First things first — literally! Prioritizing means putting more pressing matters at the top of your list. You can do this by:
- Listing every task you must complete alongside a deadline when needed.
- Isolating the tasks that have deadlines and ordering them based on when you should finish them.
- Determining which tasks take less time to complete.
- Identifying which items with no deadlines are more pressing.
Then, you can begin delegating each item to your staff members or a fractional COO service.
Determine Which Priorities You Can Delegate to Someone Else
Next, look through the most pressing duties to determine who should handle them. You might feel tempted to handle them by yourself. However, this approach is counterintuitive to your business progress and overall organization.
Instead, try the following strategies:
- Handle tasks that you know for a fact require your authorization.
- Some duties require an experience level your current staff lacks. However, you don’t have to be the one to handle them. Delegate those duties to your temporary COO support.
- Award most minutia, like building or organization maintenance, to your staff members. You don’t necessarily need fractional executive leadership to tackle these tasks when your staff members know the drill.
Be Flexible About Your Needs Vs. Business Priorities
You and your business have needs that can change at the drop of a hat. Your personal life might demand your attention because of a family emergency or a software update or technical difficulty may make some files or data periodically inaccessible.
Adapt accordingly. For example, if your spouse has to go to the hospital because of a car wreck, delegate as much of your high-level workload to your interim COO solutions as possible. Take care of your family matters.
If you encounter technical difficulties, like internet outages or time-consuming updates, that prevent you from completing a time-sensitive task, communicate with your team and outsourced leadership. They might know how to navigate around the issue to ensure you complete the task on time.
Ask for Help! Contact Susan Giddings Consulting LLC for Fraction COO Services
Remember: small business ownership requires teamwork. A team that moves like a well-oiled machine almost always has a business owner who knows how to prioritize, delegate, and ask for help. Call me at 561-933-7163 when you need help from a fractional COO.
