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Outsourcing and Checklists - Without Both You Are Lost

by Chris Lagarde
4 replies
You can do it all. Just kidding!

You can't.

Constantly ask yourself: "Can I outsource this?" Chances are you can outsource much of the work you do whether it be for your business or the work you are doing for a customer.

Don't get hung up on the details. You may read it's smart to create training videos for your outsource help.

Yet you aren't comfortable with creating videos on your own. That's okay. Outsource training videos are nice, but not required for outsourcing your drudge work.

Clear written instructions work well also. Try not to put hurdles in front of yourself.

Create checklists of the work you do, and give those checklists to the outsource help you hire.

In case you're wondering, most of my outsource hires come from Odesk.com. While some have complained about the quality of outsourcers from Odesk, in general, I've done well. One reason for my outsource hiring success is that I give clear instructions for the work I need done.
#checklists #lost #offline consulting #outsourcing
  • Profile picture of the author Alexa Smith
    Banned
    Originally Posted by Chris Lagarde View Post

    Constantly ask yourself: “Can I outsource this?”
    That was - in some ways - what I did, not long after I started.

    For me, it was a huge mistake.

    I ended up "getting stuff done" (not that outsourcing is itself an easy skill - and it requires quite a bit of judgement), and depriving myself of many important parts of the learning-curve because of (a) technophobia, (b) incompetence, (c) being in a hurry, (d) laziness, and (e) the ability to afford outsourcing. A bad and dangerous combination.

    Even now, there are still things I don't know enough about because I outsourced them unnecessarily.

    Nowadays, I know that before trying to outsource things, it's hugely advantageous to know how to do them yourself, whenever possible - and you learn that by doing them, not by reading about them and outsourcing them.

    Just a different perspective.
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    • Profile picture of the author Chris Lagarde
      Originally Posted by Alexa Smith View Post


      ...Nowadays, I know that before trying to outsource things, it's hugely advantageous to know how to do them yourself, whenever possible - and you learn that by doing them, not by reading about them and outsourcing them.

      Just a different perspective.
      I agree with you wholeheartedly. The challenge is not to keep digging (learning) when you can outsource much of the work. Absolutely, one would find internet marketing and offline consulting to be overwhelming without an underpinning of tech knowledge.
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  • Profile picture of the author J R Salem
    I'm a big proponent of outsourcing as well. However, I sometimes find that finding telemarketers is the hardest thing to outsource.

    Seems like finding local ones are better than national just because they can connect with businesses in that area.

    Everything else though, I agree. Well worth it...
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  • Profile picture of the author mattjay
    i outsource very little, simply because i like to micro manage too much for my own good outsourcing removes a level of control on some things i'd rather take on myself. somethings are useful though. i suppose if i really want to grow my business i'll have to learn how to take my hands off most of it eventually, but oh well. i also agree that doing it yourself is much better than outsourcing as far as getting the hang of something.
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