You're the department of customer service, marketing, product development, sales, finance, and anything else that needs to be done.
It's all you--at least until profits start flowing and you can afford some help. So, since you can't do everything all the time, where do you start?
In a post called The Many Hats of Small Business Owners, Matt Inglot says,
"Unfortunately the amount of time spent wearing each hat tends to be proportional to the amount of experience a particular business owner has in that area."
Think about it-- sounds like the old comfort zone strategy. We do the things that we're comfortable with. Even entrepreneurs? Us, the risk-takers?
Sure. It's easier. Since entrepreneurship is tough anyway, it seems reasonable to focus on the aspects of your business that are most comfortable.
But realistically, that's probably not what your business needs. Of the ten most pressing jobs that need to be done... start with the one you least want to do, that is the most crucial to the business. Is it finance? Sales strategy? Networking?
Tackle that job first. Make that part of your business strong, set up a process so it doesn't take a lot of time to maintain, and then move on to the next thing.
You can’t afford to waste time doing comfortable tasks-- after all, you’ve got a least nine more hats to wear.
