Comments on: Doing things yourself will only get you so far

By: Matt Rhodes

Matt Rhodes — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 14:25:20 +0000

I’d also recommend Michael Gerber’s “The E-Myth Revisited.” As Dan mentioned above, it has a some very insightful ways to systematize your business so that you are not forever stuck doing tactical work (e.g. reviewing files, keeping the books, etc.), but are allowed to do the strategic work (e.g. asking where your business is going, what it will look like when it is done, and when to sell it). As a one-man studio, I’m wrestling with what aspects of my business do I farm out so that I can do the work I love: designing!

By: Rex Chung

Rex Chung — Thu, 12 Mar 2009 00:22:07 +0000

I’ve found somethings come to me naturally and I wasn’t aware all the things I should be teaching while training someone. I’ve learnt what are actually the key things to watch out for from people making mistakes. Did you have a better way of how to train someone?

By: Ellis Benus » Blog Archive » Start Your Own Business Today

Ellis Benus » Blog Archive » Start Your Own Business Today — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 22:01:08 +0000

[...] Doing things yourself will only get you so far [...]

By: Dan

Dan — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 21:58:36 +0000

I recommend you read “The E Myth: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What To Do About It” by Michael E. Gerber. the book came out over 20 years ago, but addresses this exact issue in depth and gives great ways to turn each job into a system that anyone can do. I’ve been reading it for a few weeks now and am applying it to my own business.

By: CreativeNotice

CreativeNotice — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 15:44:51 +0000

Personally I’ve enjoyed watching your growth from freelancer to the New Rich as Timothy Feriss would call it.

It’s been an inspiration for me as I’m about 2 steps behind you on the road.

So thank you. I look forward to this site’s content as it will be able to pick up with 4 Hour Work Week left off… the online new rich.

By: David Turnbull

David Turnbull — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 22:53:16 +0000

Yeah, not doing things is always better than doing things

I love writing, marketing etc but I’m definitely more the ideas person so I’ll usually hire other people to do the grunt work. In the end it’s less stressful and of a better quality that I could do myself. It’s a completely win-win situation.

By: The Tech Angels of New Rochelle

The Tech Angels of New Rochelle — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 20:53:59 +0000

Letting go and delegating are two very difficult skills to learn. We are assisting a client who is being taken advantage of by a web designing company. Either they think they are idiots and can be easily fooled or they are incompetent. Either one is not wonderful when you are paying to delegate the work to someone. Experiences like these just reinforce why it is so hard to delegate. Hiring people to take on tasks for you seems like such a great solution. And probably in most cases becomes essential as companies grow and expand. But we can’t forget to oversee what is being done for us. So we don’t wind up like a current client paying someone to oversee and quietly correct the mess someone else has been paid to create. Definitely not optimal in this economy. But one can only do so much. Help eventually becomes necessary or business bills will pale in comparison to medical bills for exhaustion lol.

By: Piotr Godek

Piotr Godek — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 19:33:43 +0000

true, true, true

By: Bill Jacobson

Bill Jacobson — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 18:11:25 +0000

Nice article… As my freelance work continues to expand into consulting that brings diverse organizations together to save chinook salmon from extinction (www.callingbackthesalmon.com) I am trying to find freelancers I can trust. I know I have to do this as I have a couple dozen clients that require service on their web based apps. But this is where my comfort zone goes way beyond red flags.

For instance, I’m in need of the right person(s) to do css and move a blog to wordpress, but I just can’t find that right place to turn… another is a database project for a virtual history library. There isn’t enough time to do it myself, yet I want a comfortable place to get reliable help.

By: Nikhil

Nikhil — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 16:55:59 +0000

Hi Collis,
I am in the initial start of my business & blog so I am in the same phase.