Let’s talk some more about the business of interior design. In my last blog post, I covered the top 3 things you didn’t know about running an interior design business. We talked about having a business owner mindset, achieving work-life balance (and, most importantly, avoiding burnout!), and becoming a pro at managing distractions.

Today, I want to talk about some behind-the-scenes business: OPERATIONS.

As an independent interior design professional running a small design firm, I juggle many roles. I’m talking accountant/bookkeeping, marketing manager, business development, customer service, purchasing, project management, and the list continues. Think that running an interior design company is about being an interior designer all day? Think again! This job is full-on and many-faceted. There’s a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes to keep everything running smoothly.

As I grow my business, I’ve been able to start hiring team members to support me. Over the years, as I have taken on more clients and bigger projects, it has been impossible to do it all alone. Having a team has helped me to do more – and better – work.

But what is it smart to outsource? What is it best to keep doing yourself? And how to even get started!?

If you’re an entrepreneur who’s used to doing it all, it can be a challenge to decide which jobs (if any) to outsource. And it can be a challenge to give work, and therefore control, away. It can also be financially scary to make this jump. But outsourcing is truly the BEST way to increase your productivity, growth, and bottom line.

Now this topic is personal and there are no clear-cut answers, but this is what I’ve learned over the years, and these are the principles that work for me:

#1: Determine what’s core to your business

Whatever is core to your business – your key strengths and values – are the main things you want to keep doing yourself. Think of this as the essentials. Your core competencies and capabilities are how you can add the most value to your business and how you can focus on being the best at what you do and the best in the industry.

As the owner of a small design firm, for me that means anything related to interior design activities.

Things that are NOT core to my business are things like payroll services, IT and so on. If there are highly-repetitive tasks that I don’t need to be doing – like accounts payable, data entry, or ordering and tracking shipments – then these can also be beneficial to outsource.

Sometimes, you need jobs done that require a lot of skill, expertise or specialized knowledge that you may not have – like financial analysis or IT support, for example. This is another great area to outsource.

#2: Take your time and trust your gut

Whether you’re hiring an employee or a freelancer/contractor, it’s super important to have the right team members when you’re handing over important responsibilities. If you hire someone and they don’t work out, it wastes a lot of valuable resources, including time and money.

I always recommend starting with your own network. Think of people you’ve enjoyed working with in the past, ask work colleagues or other business owners, or reach out to your extended network to see if they can recommend a provider offering the services you need. If you’re active on LinkedIn or another social platform, ask your network for recommendations.

Once you’ve found some candidates, take your time when selecting your partners. Make sure you’re very clear on what kind of help you’re looking for and what their responsibilities would be. See examples of the work they’ve done in the past, and get to know them a bit to see if you two would be able to forge a good working connection. Taking the extra time to ensure a good fit will save you a lot of work down the line.

#3: Take a deep breath and let go

Once you’ve got the team member(s) and they’re trained up, you have to let go a little. As Type A entrepreneurs who are used to running the show, this can be hard! But to be a successful outsourcer, you really do have to step back, loosen your grip, relinquish a bit of control, and let your new team members do the job you’ve hired them to do. If you spend a lot of time micromanaging their every move, you won’t be saving as much time as you could be, and it may also hinder them from taking more responsibility and stepping fully into their role. So let go, and let them shine!

When you know what to outsource and what to hold close, you can put more of your time and energy toward your key skills and competencies, and add the highest amount of value to your business. Onward and upward!

Are you an entrepreneur juggling it all? Have you found success with outsourcing and hiring team members? Connect with me on Instagram or Facebook, and let me know!