When I created the W-O-N-D-E-R system (TM), it was designed to help clients find out which tasks they really needed to take off their to-do list. Now, I’m sharing it here so you can also learn how to delegate tasks to your new subcontractor.
Preparing To Use The W-O-N-D-E-R System
In preparing to use this system before bringing on your first subcontractor, there are a couple of things you should know. The system is best used after you have already made a list of all of your daily tasks. This can be a general list overview for now. Then my “W-O-N-D-E-R System (TM) will serve you well.
I created the system to help clients and other online service providers to easily decide what they can delegate. In the past, when I was working with my agency clients (those I am helping build an agency model business), I found that one of the biggest stumbling blocks before ever bringing on a subcontractor is knowing what to delegate.
Often, they didn’t know where to begin. That’s when I came up with this system, as it makes it much easier. It will help you figure out the highest to lowest task priority. All you need to do is label your tasks with one of these letters: W-O-N-D-E-R.
“W” Is For Tasks You Do Not Do Well
Let’s start with the letter “W”. This stands for tasks you do not do well. Meaning those tasks you feel you do not perform well. These tasks often end up taking too much of your time.
For example, if you do not like social media or getting on any social platform, but you know your brand must have a presence on these platforms. This is a task you should mark a “W”.
We need to label these not because it is admitting you do not do them well, but rather because it will take up more time than someone else who understands the social platforms and what is needed to help your brand on these. You need to know what tasks you perform really well and those you do not.
Tasks You Wish To Outsource First
The letter “O” in my system stands for the task(s) you want to outsource first. You know them, the tasks that cause you stress, and they are the reason you finally decided to get help.
They are the tasks you already know have to go and that you need to get off your ‘to-do’ list.
These tasks are the ones that come to mind immediately when asked if you need help. You know them, whether or not you realize it.
“N” Tasks Are Necessary
Next are the tasks you will label with an “N”. These tasks are those necessary for you do. You cannot hand these off or delegate to someone else. They are usually tasks related directly to your business, like payroll (or paying your subcontractor team), for example.
Hopefully, you have a thorough list of tasks so that you know the ones that should be labeled with the letter “N”. Go through each task and label it with one of these letters. Try not to skip over any, as it will also help you plan well in the future.
Task You Really Dislike
The tasks you will label “D” are those you really dislike doing. You know what they are; again, they probably came to mind right away, similar to those you marked to “outsource”. These are the type of tasks we often put off doing until the last minute or end of the day, when you can no longer put it off and must do it, but you do not like it.
Tasks that come to my mind are bookkeeping tasks that I must do. I know I need to go into QuickBooks and update my receipts and deposits, but I just do not want to do it. This is a task that I would label “D”.
This does not mean you will hand these off to someone else (I know I heard that, “Darn”). Although you could do it much later (after the client tasks have been taken care of first).
Having these tasks labeled is part of the system. The idea is to plan out all of your tasks, in general, at first. Then, after labeling them, you should go back to those you will outsource first and add in the details of completing those tasks (step-by-step). This is necessary so that in the future, your team will know exactly how to do these tasks.
You will save yourself time by labeling all of the tasks. As you will not have to stop when you get busier to figure out which tasks are next to hand off to a team member.
Mark Tasks With An “E” For Tasks You Enjoy
These, of course, are the tasks that you enjoy doing and do not want to hand over to your team members. Eventually, you will come to a place where you need to outsource (to your team members) all client tasks if you want to really scale and grow. If there are client tasks that fall under this category, you may continue doing them until you’ve outsourced most everything else.
Then you will need to hand over your client tasks as well. There comes a point when your revenue will or may have flatlined already. This is because you can only work so many hours in a week. No freelancer can put in 40 billable hours without working 45 – 50 hours total each week. There are many other things that get added into the hours you work, including answering emails that are not client-related work, paying yourself and your team, bookkeeping, and many other tasks.
Often, freelancers or solopreneurs think they can create a multi-six-figure business on their own. The truth is that you must have a team of subcontractors in order to achieve these higher-level incomes.
Revenue Producing Tasks
The revenue-producing tasks that only you can do are important to mark. There will be revenue-producing tasks that your team can manage if you provide online business services to clients, especially if you are building an agency.
There will also be these tasks that only you want to do. For example, you may want to continue onboarding new clients. These revenue-producing tasks should be marked with an “R”.
Tammy S. Durden is an award-winning business coach who specializes in helping women online service providers grow a business to fit their lifestyle rather than squeeze a life around their business. This generally means she helps women build and grow an online agency or add a subcontractor to their solopreneur business.
She is also a thought leader, course creator, and speaker in the online service industry.
Tammy has established herself as an authority figure over the last 18 years while creating and growing several online service businesses.