Color Code to Offload

Getting out of your own way as an entrepreneur is one of the toughest parts of the journey. It’s also the part that most people don’t tell you much about.

The  refrain of “grind harder” is common in entrepreneurship and consulting. Grinding is fine, but one can only do it for so long.

Look no further than the dictionary. Grind” (v) reduce (something) to small particles or powder by crushing it. (shout out to Miriam-Webster).

Sounds terrible, right?

Like you, I love my work. I spend all my waking hours thinking about how to grow my business. I pontificate on the smallest details. I put in hours and, hours so that I can level up. It works - sometimes.

Other times it leads to burnout.

Exhaustion, unclear thinking and anxiety. 

Can you relate?

This isn’t the way to scale up operations.

After years of "grinding"and not seeing the level of results I know I’m capable of, I knew something had to change.

I couldn’t do it alone.

I had to get help.

Making this realization took me longer than I care to admit.

Leveling up takes time, attention to detail and ruthless self analysis. Getting help and hiring is tough. It’s not easy to allow others into your business.

Clarity on which tasks to do or not do is the difference between growth and spinning your wheels.

Once I realized that,  I started to put in the work to understand what I needed to do to be able to get out of my own way. 

Entrepreneur's always say “If you want a task done right, do it yourself.”

I contend that the saying should be: “If you want it done at all, delegate it.”

You should only do the work that is your best work and that is the highest leverage to your business. Period.

Play to your strengths and to your genius. Get rid of everything else.

You’re asking:  How, Stephen?

Don't worry, I got you.

Three of the most common questions I get from my clients about delegating are:

What do I delegate ?

How do I keep organized and keep my projects moving forward?

How do I delegate?

It is my hope that this guide will give you a framework to help answer these exact questions.  As well as help you to save time, energy, money and cut anxiety as you grow. 

This system helps me know exactly where I am with my goals and how to pinpoint where I need help or clarity.*

*Please note that this is a work in progress. I’m refining this system regularly so subscribe if you want updates and new tips as I develop them. Lastly, feel free to adjust, iterate and as ever, make this system  your own.

Let’s dive in.

It all started a few years ago when I stumbled onto this document:

The Difference between $10, $100, $1,000 r and $10,000 an hour tasks.

Credit to Perry Marshall’s book 80/20

(Side note,  I’m excited to see that Public speaking is one of those $10k/hour tasks. Public speaking is a passion of mine. My clients all agree: Communicating authentically through storytelling adds tens of thousands to their bottom lines each year.

If you want to learn how to make storytelling your newest superpower, send me a message!)

Upon viewing it, I was amazed to see the difference between the types of tasks. I saved it to my files. Forgetting about it until fate would intervene.

A few years later, in the middle of a $10/hour task of “cleaning and sorting” my files, I found the picture again.

And in a “Eureka!” moment it struck me how much of a roadblock I’d become in my own business.

It dawned on me that I was spending too much time on tasks worth too little in the overall picture of my business.

I was spending time away from my level of genius.

Once I realized that,  I decided to understand what I needed to do to get out of my own way.

Here’s what I did.

Your Tools

Post- It Notes

You’re going to need a brick of Post-it Notes. Make sure there are many colors: yellow blue, purple, pink, red, orange etc.

Whiteboard 

If you’re like me, a whiteboard is one of your most trusted friends. My whiteboard helps me organize ideas and concepts and to frame them in a clear and cogent ways. It’s also a to-do list of sorts.

Dry Erase Markers

Find a set of dry erase markers that have the same or similar colors to your Post-it Notes. These will make ideation easier on your whiteboard.

Step 1: Make your Key:

Start your first Pomodoro: Put 25 mins on the clock and let’s make your key.

Color-code each of the tasks for yourself. 

Here’s my break down as an example:

Blue  = $10,000/ hour tasks

Blue means that the task is the highest priority and can be one of the biggest levers in my business. $10k/hour tasks are task that only I can do.

Think of these as your zone of genius. 

Purple = $1000/hour tasks.

I like $1000/hr tasks but I need to define what they are and how they work so that I can get them off of my plate. This takes a bit of time. Getting the $1000/hour tasks into SOPs is where the rubber starts to meet the road.

The goal is to spend the majority of my time on Blue and Purple tasks

Green = $100/hour tasks 

After a careful review of my daily reports, I noticed that I spent too much time on $100/hr tasks. These are the tasks that “feel good” and give me those warm feelings of “I’m getting so much done!” When it comes down to it though, while they’re important, they’re not high leverage tasks and don’t move the needle. My time is better spent elsewhere.

I chose green here because this is my biggest area for growth.

Orange = $10/hr tasks

I choose yellow because it’s a bright color that’s difficult to read on a whiteboard. If it’s difficult to read, it means I shouldn't be reading it and that should get it off of my plate - quickly. I need to recognize these tasks immediately and delegate them,.

Step 2: Perform a task audit 

Start another Pomodoro. With 25 mins on the clock, write down all of your projects and their components.

My time is worth much more than $10 an hour and if you’re reading this, yours likely is as well.

Making $100/hour is OK, making $1000/hr is better, but making $10,000k/hr? That’s where we should all strive to spend our time.

Once you have your key created, go over your projects, break them out into steps. Get clarity on their individual components.

Organize project components into the corresponding color buckets. Once you have clarity, you can start delegating so you never have to do them again (the dream).

Step 3: Schedule your genius time

Once I identify a task as a $10k/hour task, it gets a Blue Post-it Note, is referred to on the whiteboard in Blue and gets locked in on my calendar in a Blue block. 

And so on and so forth for each level of tasks.

Here’s a sample from my calendar. The real one is full of calls within the gaps.

When I’m done at the end of a sprint, It’s clear where I should spend my time.

I find myself flipping between $1000/hr and $10,000/hr tasks.

This matches with the current size of my operation.

For your journey, consider the current size of your organization.

Growing too quickly can cause trouble because that’s when things get sloppy.

Get your systems locked in first. Then you can grow as fast as you like.

The process In action:

Since implementing the system, I’ve noticed the surge in clarity of action. I know exactly where my business is at with just a glance at my Post-it Notes, whiteboard, and calendar. 

Vertical columns are projects, each post it note is it’s own step based on my key

I know what projects are in-progress and what needs delegating. I’m able to think about the overall picture of growth and be less in the weeds.

I discovered that performing $10k/hour tasks first thing in the morning works best for me. That's when I have the most brain power.

As the day winds on, I can take on a few $1000/hr tasks (Purple) and review $100/hr tasks (Green) and $10/hr (Yellow) tasks as they roll in.

This system keeps me honest.

It allows me to bring my highest leverage skills to the forefront of the business. It also gives me a method to put everything else into the hands of someone more capable.

It’s changed the entire way I look at projects and growth.

Hopefully, it changes the way you do as well. 

Give it a shot!

What are your thoughts?

I’d love to hear from you and learn how you stay organized and productive.

As ever, feel free to share this with anyone who would benefit.

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