Self-Care: 4 Reasons to Outsource as a Small Biz Owner

Being a small business owner has been one of the most exciting yet terrifying things I’ve ever done. Do I get a paycheck every two weeks? Nope. Benefits? Nada. PTO? Forget about it. However, I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

I was running this blog as a one-woman show for the longest time. I wore a lot of hats: creative director, photographer, hair, makeup, stylist, producer, accountant…the list goes on. As time went on, I knew that I wanted to shift my focus more to the creative side of things. And I decided to bring a few more people on my team who could help manage the parts of the job that I’m not skilled at.

It can be challenging as a small business owner to let go and delegate tasks. But it is 100% essential for your growth and well-being. Here are four reasons I chose to outsource some parts of my business.

4 Reasons to Outsource Services to Run Your Small Business

#1 Financial Accountability

Listen: taxes get weird as a small business owner. Aside from that, taxes get more complicated the older you get. Now that I’ve started to invest, make more charitable contributions, and purchase expensive equipment each year for my business, I have many questions come tax time that need to be answered by an expert.

I’ve never been comfortable with doing my taxes, and with services like H&R Block, I don’t feel the need to teach myself the ins and outs of tax. I have plenty of other things on my plate. And I should leave essential things like taxes to the experts.

I started using H&R Block after I got my first job when I was 16. I have continued to use it every year ever since. And they were able to guide me on my taxes from when my business was a small side hustle in 2014 to being a full-time job in 2018. I have learned so much about staying up to date with my bookkeeping throughout the year to make tax time a breeze, and their advice has been invaluable throughout the years.

Currently, you can file your taxes at H&R Block either in-person or online. Yes, you can even do them on the go on your smartphone — which is perfect for someone who is always on the road and constantly traveling. If you’re filing online, you can upgrade for H&R Block tax pros, enrolled agents, and CPAs available 24/7, on-demand, if you ever have any tax questions.

#2 You Can’t Be an Expert at Everything, so Outsource

Another valuable lesson I’ve learned being a business owner? You can’t be an expert at everything.

Running your own business requires you to wear a lot of hats. At first, I tried to do it all. Negotiate contracts, guess what estimated taxes would be, attempt to figure out the ever-changing landscape of SEO, etc. I quickly realized that there were some things that I either wasn’t going to be the best at or some tasks that I just didn’t care enough to do, and that outsourcing was the best way to make sure I was running my business as effectively as possible.

I slowly but surely started to let go of some tasks that I thought someone else might be more capable of handling. For starters, I signed on to a talent agency a few years ago, and letting my manager handle my campaign negotiations and invoicing has been incredible Most importantly, I’ve outsourced e’s algorithm — it’s enough to try to compete with social media algorithms. Most importantly, I’ve outsourced bookeeping for my business since day one, and it’s given me so much more peace of mind.

#3 Outsourcing is Self-Care

I’m all about self-care, especially with the craziness of the world these past couple of years. When I outsource tasks that I don’t enjoy or am not good at, it’s a huge form of self-care for me. Things like taxes, finances, and negotiating always stress me out without fail, so letting someone else take these tasks off my to-do list has been an absolute game-changer.

I always encourage my fellow small business owners, or anyone else who manages a team, to delegate tasks and reduce their workload whenever possible. I’ve noticed that I’m a much more upbeat, happier person whenever I lessen my load.

#4 Outsourcing Leaves you More Time to Create

Sometimes as a small business owner, you feel like you don’t have enough hours in the day. But when you outsource, you gain so much of your time back. Now that I have hired the extra help, I have more time to get to the part of my job that I love the most: content creation.

It’s easy to get into a bit of a creative rut, but when I don’t have to about those pesky administrative tasks, I can thrive and flourish as a creator and have far more freedom to create and inspire people.

Do you consider also these reasons to outsource as a form of self-care? Let me know in the comments below!

Thank you to H&R Block for sponsoring today’s blog post on 4 reasons to outsource as a small business owner! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Photos by Tom McGovern