When you first started out, you did everything yourself. You designed the brochures, you called on customers, and you responded to every e-mail. Heck, you probably even built the website yourself. But in your quest to build a scalable startup you must realize that you are not scalable. There are only so many hours in the day, and you cannot have your finger in every pie as the company grows. To continue to do everything yourself is not only impossible, it’s ridiculous. More than just annoying your team, your reluctance to delegate will be a major bottleneck to your company’s continued growth.
Working with others requires trust and humility. You have to trust your team with greater responsibilities, and you have to be humble enough to see that others can execute as well as you can. Your time is better spent on things that only you can do – strategy, vision, partnerships, and morale.
Most entrepreneurs have trouble letting go of the details, so this might be hard for you. Think of yourself as a movie producer. Your purpose is not to execute every detail of the project, but to get the right people in place, who can execute your grand vision. Show your team the vision, then help them execute.
