How to Know What to Delegate in Your Business (Before You Burn Out)

Doing It All Doesn’t Scale, It Just Wears You Down

If you run a small business, especially solo or with a tiny team, you’re probably doing a bit of everything: quoting, invoicing, marketing, admin, ordering supplies, chasing clients, updating your website, and squeezing in the actual work somewhere in between.

That’s normal at first. But if it goes on too long, it becomes unsustainable. Burnout doesn’t always come from stress, sometimes it comes from trying to do everything all the time.

The answer? Delegation. But not just randomly handing things off, knowing what to delegate, when, and how.

Why Delegation Feels Hard at First

Delegating feels risky. Maybe you’re worried about:

• Someone doing it wrong

• Having to explain it all anyway

• It costing more than just doing it yourself

• Losing control of your client experience

That’s fair, but doing everything yourself isn’t cost-free either. It drains your time, energy, and ability to focus on growth. The trick is to start small and delegate with intention.

The Signs You’re Ready to Let Go of Something

• You’re consistently working evenings or weekends

• You avoid certain jobs because they’re repetitive or annoying

• You can’t take a day off without falling behind

• You spend more time chasing or copying info than actually doing paid work

If that sounds familiar, it’s time to review your tasks, and delegate the right ones.

How to Work Out What to Delegate First

1. Start With Repetitive Admin Tasks

If it happens more than twice a week and follows a clear pattern, it’s a prime candidate for:

• Outsourcing to a virtual assistant

• Automating with AI or no-code tools

• Creating a reusable process so someone else can take it on later

2. Delegate Outside Your Zone of Genius

You may be brilliant at your trade, but not so keen on writing website copy or creating graphics.

That’s a good thing to delegate. Examples:

• Branding and design

• Website tweaks

• Social media posts

• Copywriting or email marketing

• Bookkeeping

3. Offload What Slows You Down Mentally

These are the tasks you dread. They sit in your inbox for days, take an hour of procrastination before five minutes of action, and drain your momentum.

Often things like:

• Inbox triage

• Invoicing and finance

• Blog writing or content editing

• Organising files or updating listings

Letting someone else handle them can free up hours, and mental energy, without impacting your customer experience.

Delegate ≠ Abdicate

Delegation doesn’t mean disappearing. It means clearly defining the outcome, handing it off with a process, and reviewing it regularly. Start by documenting how you do it, then you’ve got something someone else can follow.

Simple tools like shared Google Docs, Trello, or even WhatsApp voice notes can make delegation easy and personal without building big systems.

Not Sure Who to Delegate To? Start Here

You don’t need to hire a full team. Try:

• A freelance assistant or specialist for a few hours per week

• Automation tools like Make.com or Zapier

• Project-based support (branding, website build, SEO setup)

You’ll Know It’s Working When…

• Your to-do list shrinks

• You spend more time on high-value work (or actually rest)

• You stop dreading emails or the “boring bits”

• You feel like you’re running a business, not just surviving it

Delegation isn’t just about saving time. It’s about building a business that works without breaking you.