As a business owner the one thing that is a limited resource is your time.

You can make your life more fun and your business more productive by outsourcing activities.

These days it’s super easy to delegate both personal matters as well as business activities.

Almost anything you are currently doing can be delegated or outsourced.

Doing what you’re not good at or what you can pay someone else to do for much less than your hourly rate, is draining the life out of you holding your business back.

The point of delegating some of what you do to someone else is so that you can focus your precious time on the things that you do well and enjoy and that allow you to create the most value.

Delegation does not equal dumping. Initially, it will require extra time to describe what you want done and how you want it done. In the end you will save time and be more profitable.

You will have a more profitable business if you outsource the things that are not the best use of your time, and you use that additional time engaged in high value activities.

I don’t want you to get overwhelmed by all of the choices here. So decide on one activity you’d love to outsource and then compare your options for getting that done. Start small, you can always outsource more later.

1. Upwork 

At Upwork their motto is, “Find freelancers to tackle any job, any size, any time.” They offer contractors in the following main categories: Web Developers, Mobile Developers, Designers and Creatives, Writers, Virtual Assistants, Customer Service Agents, Sales & Marketing Experts, Accountants & Consultants, and more. You can also browse freelancers by skill.

2. Guru

At Guru they claim it is, “The best place for employers and freelancers to connect, collaborate, and get work done.” They’ve been in business since 2001 and boast 1.5 million members worldwide and 1 million jobs completed.

3. Fancy Hands

Fancy Hands is available worldwide only in the English language and assistants are located all over the United States. You pay per request, not per hour. They offer a subscription based model, you pay monthly. See all packages here (scroll down to the bottom of the page).

4. Get Friday

Get Friday works around the clock 24/7 and caters to busy individuals and small businesses in 30 odd countries across different time zones. You can choose for monthly plans or task based plans.

They offer the following service categories: Calendar Management, Customer Interaction Management, Home Assistance, Online Research, Purchases, Phone, Travel, Data Entry, Database Management, Follow Up and Reminder, Secretarial, and Personal. For more detail visit this page.

5. Brickwork India

Brickwork India offers services in Remote Executive Assistance (Business Support Services, Accounting & Taxation Support), Research & Consulting (Business Research, Investment Research, Healthcare Research, Procurement Consulting India Strategy Assessment, Legal Services, Content Development), and IT Services (Graphics & Animation, Opensource & Microsoft Technology, Internet Marketing Services).

6. Ask Sunday

Ask Sunday does currently service members from around the world but the requests must be English-based (they can’t call a shop in Germany and speak to them in German).

Request Types include: Data Analysis/Entry, Internet/database research, Outbound calling, Social media management, Real-time remote login for technical and general support, Continuous processes, Document Editing, Uploading content onto websites, Managing online postings, Email correspondence, and Miscellaneous – get creative. They are open 24/7 and offer a free trial. Services are sold in blocks of hours per month, more on this here.

7. Virtual Assistants

International Virtual Assistants Association offers a directory where you can search to see if there is someone in your area. Other options for Virtual Assistants include WorldWide101 and Zirtual.

8. Task Rabbit

Task Rabbit is currently only available in The United States: Boston, San Francisco Bay Area, San Antonio, Austin, Chicago, Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles & Orange County, New York City and soon it will be in the United Kingdom.

Task Rabbit offers many specific services under each of these main categories: Delivery, House Chores, Shopping, Office Help, Handyman, Moving Help, Virtual Assistance, Event Help, and Skilled. There are even more categories, see the complete list here. For more on how it works see this page.

9. Niche Providers

You can also search for specialized niche providers related to your industry. For example, a wonderful friend of mine is the owner of Impact Office Management. She provides office support for social entrepreneurs, small grant funds, and non-profits. She offers this virtually and in person.

Still want more options? Check out this post that includes a long list.

I hope I’ve convinced you that there are a multitude of effective options for outsourcing some of your workload. Make the decision today to choose one activity to delegate, take action to find the right partner, and get it done. That way you’ll have more time to focus on the activities that create more value for your business.

© Stephanie Ward

WANT TO USE THIS ARTICLE IN YOUR NEWSLETTER, BLOG, OR WEBSITE? You can, as long as you include this information with it: Stephanie Ward is the Marketing Coach for Entrepreneurs who want to create a meaningful and prosperous business.  Grab your FREE copy of the special report ’7 Steps to Attract More Clients in Less Time’ plus business building tips, at: https://www.fireflycoaching.com.

Who do you use to outsource your work? What is your experience with delegating? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.