Have more clothes than closet space? Buy an armoire. Not enough cabinets for your dishes? Think about getting a baker’s rack. Books piling up on your nightstand? Maybe you need a bookshelf.

It’s easy enough to look around your home, see things that need organized and take action. So why is it so hard to do when it comes to your business? I’m not talking about the papers on your desk, the voicemail light blinking on your phone or the emails sitting in your inbox. I’m talking about the clutter in the actual work you’re doing.
How many hats do you wear when it comes to your business?  Think about it. Are you spending your time on overarching important business challenges? Or are you spending hours on the schedule? Do you take your weekends to relax and recharge? Or are you clocking in every weekend to make sure the business runs smoothly 24/7?

If asking those questions has led you to see that you’re wearing more hats than you should, then maybe it’s time to treat your job like your house and invest in a hat rack. Well, maybe not an actual hat rack, but you should definitely consider making an investment in the organization of your business – something that will help you take off all those unnecessary hats. As the business owner, you need to make sure you have the time and ability to step back and run your business from the top. There aren’t enough useful hours in the day for you to have every job and wear every hat after the first year or two of business.

Take some time in the next couple of weeks to think about which low-value tasks you can pass along to someone else or what strategic decisions you need to make to hand those hats off to others. It’s not just about finding time for yourself – it’s about improving the long-term success of your business. If you are spending your time on tasks that can be handled by someone else, you’re not taking the time to focus on the future.

As I’ve said before, as the business owner, it’s your job to create jobs, not to work jobs – and certainly not to add more jobs to your already long list. Figure out which tasks can be handled by others and then focus on hiring and training people you can depend on to do their jobs so you don’t have to. It will help you to be successful and avoid burning yourself out as a business owner or entrepreneur.

If you’re having trouble figuring out which tasks you can assign to others or what strategic steps you can start taking to become a business owner instead of just a business operator, consider talking to your local growth coach: www.TheGrowthCoach.com.