I’m Late! I’m Late! For an Important Date (with Myself).
Michele Linn of the Content Marketing Institute emailed me this evening to ask where my article was . . . the one that was due last Friday.
Uh oh. I hadn’t done it . . . because it wasn’t on my schedule (even though I swear up and down I put it there).
In the last six months or so, lots of things have fallen through the cracks. I find myself doing more and more mind-numbing tasks — tasks that eat up tons of time — and less of what I really want to do. I find myself getting flustered and angry and resentful.
Matt Cutts has been writing about his 30-day challenges on his blog. I do 30-day challenges with myself but I haven’t been too public with them.
I’m changing that because I want to make a HUGE change. I want to off load the tasks that make me unhappy and upload the projects that make me happy. (See Kel Kelly’s post, Lick Subway Railing or Attend Networking Event?, about happiness in business.)
Even though it’s not Nov. 1, I’ve already sorta kinda started my 30+ day challenge. I hired a bookkeeper. This is huge for me because I’m one of those people who thinks she has to do *everything* herself.
In other words I have a very hard time asking for help.
But I need help. First off, let me just that I’m a marketer and while I know how to add, subtract and balance my checkbook, anything beyond that makes my eyes glaze over.
Second, I started using Quickbooks Online (huge mistake) and now my books are rife with errors. (The bookkeeper suggested I go back to the desktop version. I’m following her advice — it’s why I hired her.)
Third, I spend hours entering data and pushing buttons and trying to make sense of it all. It never makes sense. It’s like it’s written in Sanskrit.
And last, I HATE ACCOUNTING!
Glad I got that off my chest.
So travel with me during November as I learn how to let go of tasks and make room for the things I do want. As my former coach Sharon Teitelbaum told me repeatedly during my coaching calls, I’m the CEO of DH Communications, Inc. I shouldn’t be doing low-level tasks that I can pay someone else to do. (Sharon, btw, is fabulous. If you’re considering work-life coaching, call her.)
What’s your take on the DIY trap? Do you offload everything you can? Or do you get bogged down in details?
About the author: Dianna Huff
A B2B web marketing expert, Dianna helps B2B companies grow through SEO, marketing writing, and social media. A frequent speaker, Dianna has been quoted in numerous blogs, books, and articles; her client list includes large and small B2B companies across the U.S. Follow her on Twitter @diannahuff. To receive her e-course on creating great B2B marketing content, subscribe to her newsletter, The MarCom Strategist.
October 26th, 2010 at 1:11 pm
great post dianna! i am allergic to details and break out in a rash when someone brings me too deep in the weeds. haha. everything i do has a single motivation — happiness for my family, friends and self. once that barometer is set, decisions become very easy.
October 26th, 2010 at 2:54 pm
Kel — I need your allergy! I seem to collect details like my sweaters do dog hair.
October 26th, 2010 at 6:07 pm
Dianna,
What a timely post. I too have found myself struggling to get everything done. I’ve tried things like turning off my email, trying to reduce commitments, etc, but there are still not enough hours in the day. So, I decided to get serious about outsourcing. I just started working with a virtual assistant, and that has saved a lot of time. I’m thinking about what to do next.
Looking forward to this series!
Michele
October 27th, 2010 at 1:32 pm
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February 2nd, 2011 at 1:41 pm
[...] on Farming Out Unprofitable Tasks Print This Post TweetBack in October I wrote a post about how I was looking for ways to offload some of the mind-numbing tasks that eat up a lot of my [...]