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Assess The Pros and Cons of Having a Team
I’ve managed teams before. The difference was that I was not the one paying them out of my own pocket lol!
But in all seriousness, managing teams has its pros and cons.
Pros:
- If you are an extrovert and enjoy the company
- Team members might possess a skill you do not
- Having the help of others means extra hours toward the same goal-aka you’ll get there faster
- Networking. These people know people and word of mouth is huge.
Cons:
- Hiring people when you are barely making money yet is scary
- Finding the “right” fit for each job can be daunting
- Managing people isn’t for everyone
- Introverts may feel overwhelmed by the team’s diverse approach
Obviously, this is a very short list of the pros and cons but you get the idea. You’d need to craft your own list of pros and cons to weight it out.
I’ve managed teams, been financially independent, and owned a business in the past. With that, here’s what I believe…..
….You can make it to five figures a month all alone if you want to forgo any kind of social life and spend every waking hour learning all the skills you need to get it done. You’ll keep all the profits to yourself and can invest in yourself when and if you want. The time commitment is going to be huge. Hiring a coach will speed this up a bit by identifying what you need to do and in what order. Coaches who’ve done it can save you time but ultimately you’re still not managing a team so this is kinda solo.
I do not believe you can make it to six figures alone. AND THAT’S OK.
How Big of a Business Are You Ready For?
Honestly ask yourself, how much money do I want to make? Not giving it much thought most people will say the more the merrier. But this isn’t always the case. More money comes with more responsibilities.
If you are making high four figure or low five figures a month, you can probably manage on your own if you know a thing or two about finances. Once you cross the threshold into a monthly high five-figure income and above things really start to change.
You have an abundance of money that if not managed properly can become an issue.
You’ll likely need to start filing taxes quarterly or even monthly. Hiring a financial adviser or tax consultant can save your bacon. Failure to pay proper taxes will completely crumble money making businesses crushing all those hours of work. Worse, it can crumble your personal life too. The IRS can be brutal.
Take it from a business finance graduate. Hiring a pro is even more important if you want to make sure you are contributing a healthy amount to your retirement and savings, or how to make the most of donations.
Few people can do this alone. Most cannot.
If you are absolutely certain you want to be hauling in six figures a month, you’re going to have to be ready to pull a few people on board.
Business Success Does Not Require a Big Team
Introverts, and all of you who don’t feel like managing a team, I’ve got good news. Running a successful business does not require a big team. In fact, I personally know two online biz owners making seven figures a year with small teams. As in 3 person teams with an occasional independent contractor!
Jackpot!
But here’s the rub: I can’t name a single successful entrepreneur who has built even a high four-figure income alone. Not one. If you can please congratulate them and forward their info my way because I’d love to interview them.
[bctt tweet=”Introverts, and all of you who don’t feel like managing a team, I’ve got good news. Running a successful business does not require a big team” username=””]
Team Members vs. Independent Contractors
This is where things get really good.
How big do you want your income to be? But even more importantly, how soon do you want your income to be there?
That is the real question.
An online business is no less of a real business than an offline business. Offline business owners take out loans for buildings, materials, supplies, inventory, staff, etc.
If you want a successful online business, you are going to have some expenses. Blogs require domains, hosting, email service providers, logos, branding, etc. All in all, blogs are fairly inexpensive. It’s the time that really sets you back. Creating content, social media, advertising, SEO, pictures, and all that good stuff takes up a whole lot of time.
Online businesses or coaching is the same thing. There are expenses involved. I can’t believe what some people spend on Facebook ads.
The good news is that a task that takes us 15 hours because we hate it and have no clue what we are doing, might only take a virtual assistant 30 minutes. So you tell me. Would you rather spend 15 hours struggling through it or pay the VA the $10-15 to have it done.
A team member does not have to be a full-time employee. Many people start out hiring a VA for 3-5 hours a week! This is you taking on one part-time team member that just might save your sanity. Maybe you need some graphics done for a webinar you are doing. You can pick up an independent contractor for a single job. They aren’t part of your team. Just someone getting a one-time project completed for you so you can work on other things you are better at.
Hiring the Right People
This is where you’ll want to do your research and some asking around. Hiring the right people for the right tasks will save you tons of time and get you to your income goals much faster than trying to do it solo.
Hiring the wrong people, unfortunately, will leave you with a bad taste in your mouth and nothing accomplished. eh..hum Upwork! I might be talking to you.
Ideally, you want to hire someone who can do the tasks you don’t want to do or don’t enjoy. If they are skilled at them, they will get it done in a fraction of the time you could and do it right! This means results. These types of people can be invaluable to your success even at a few hours per month/week. I think you can give up your $3 lattes to pay someone to help you really make a go of your business!
It’s also a good idea when you need a one time project that you aren’t skilled for. I have been super lucky that my friend Catherine has donated tons of photos to my blog. I love taking photos but editing is not my thing AT ALL. She graciously let me use so many of her images for my site. Only 20-25% are actually mine.
This is a wonderful example of having an independent contractor, and in my case, didn’t cost me a thing.
[bctt tweet=” Hiring the right people for the right tasks will save you tons of time and get you to your income goals much faster than trying to do it solo.” username=””]
You can always look into trading services too. You might have a skill that someone else doesn’t and you can team up and complete a job for one another. Masterminds can be great for this too.
Knowing What You Need
So a few final thoughts on this. You need to know what you actually need. The last thing you need is your VA sending you an email saying “what would you like me to do today”? This is a waste of their skills and your time and money.
Make a list of all the tasks that need to be done in your business. Put the money making tasks on one side and the non-money making tasks in another. Then identify which ones you enjoy and are good at. Assign those to yourself.
What’s left? Anything left on the money making side you need to pick up some help for asap. Trust me, your logos, fonts, colors, and other “really want but don’t bring income” tasks can wait.
You want any money you are spending for help to bring you some ROI (return on investment).
If you do not know what you need to start making money, you definitely need to hire a mentor or coach.
This can be hella scary and I suggest you make sure you are serious about your business and you are really interested in what they offer but here’s the deal:
Hiring a Coach or Mentor
Hiring a mentor or coach can shave YEARS off your learning curve. If they’ve done it, they can teach you how to do it faster. This could be the difference between you giving up on your business and making a life of your wildest dreams. Is it difficult to pay a coach $10k for four or five months when you haven’t made any money?
A little.
But no more than the person who takes out a loan to buy all the inventory for her salon not knowing how soon she’ll fill her clientele or sell her product. It might take her five years to pay back the loan for her building supplies, etc.
If you hire a mentor or coach and do the work, you should see an ROI in a matter of a few months to a single year depending on the investment.
[bctt tweet=”This could be the difference between you giving up on your business and making a life of your wildest dreams.” username=””]
So don’t be afraid to invest in yourself. Know that you can hire temporary help, contractors, or a single part-time VA. You do not have to manage an entire team unless you are scaling major big, and if that’s the case you can always hire a manager and just keep doing what you do best.
xoxo-Deanna