Outsourcing is something that has taken me awhile to start doing. While I know that in many cases it is a need, for a long time I did nearly everything myself.
However, I recently started to notice that I was working 12 hour days, nearly every single day, and that I was getting snappy whenever someone asked me something because I was SO FOCUSED on working.
Even when I wasn't working, I was still tired and thinking about work. People aren't kidding when they say that the self-employed really never get a day off. Even though I absolutely love what I do, thinking about your business/job 24/7 just cannot be healthy.
A break every now and then is needed.
Lately though, I feel like I have had more time than ever. I have been eating very healthy, working out more, and I have had actual days off.
And it's all because of outsourcing!
Over the past few months, I have been outsourcing more and more in my life. While I am all about being frugal and cutting your expenses, I am also all about outsourcing tasks so that you can have more time for other areas in your life.
If you can afford (that's the key here) to outsource tasks and it makes your life and/or business better and more successful, then why not?
Some of the things I outsource include writing on the other websites I own/run, technical blog management (thanks Grayson!) on many of my websites, virtual assistant tasks, lawn mowing, and more.
As you can tell, I outsource a decent amount in my life. My life has greatly improved ever since learning to let go and outsource more.
Below are some of the many positives of outsourcing work such as business and household tasks.
1. Outsourcing work is great because you can add more time to your life.
Who doesn't need more time?
Outsourcing work and household tasks means that you can possibly add hours back to your week or even to your day.
The time you save can be used for better things in life, such as spending more time with your family, doing the things that you enjoy, improving your business, and more.
2. Outsourcing allows you to focus on the bigger picture.
One of the great things about outsourcing work and household tasks is that it has allowed me to have more time to focus on what's important for my business.
My business and my blog have been growing rapidly over the past few months, and I think a lot of it has to do with outsourcing tasks that don't need me personally so that I can focus on the bigger picture.
I can focus on creating a better plan for my business, putting more time towards this plan, and so on with all of this extra time I have found.
3. Outsourcing means you don't have to do the things you hate.
Is there anything out there that you absolutely hate and despise doing?
Outsourcing work and household tasks may mean that you can stop doing the things you hate. This then frees up more time for the things you love.
4. Outsourcing work is great when you are not an expert at a task.
One thing I have seen far too many people do is attempting a task when they have no clue what they are doing. This can include being your own lawyer, being your own accountant, and so on. In some instances this can work out perfectly fine, but in others there should be expert help available.
We outsource household tasks if it would take us forever to do (and we know that someone else can complete the task in a lesser amount of time) or if we know that there is a possibility for a big and costly mistake.
5. Outsourcing is great when you can earn more money.
Time is money!
Before you decide to outsource your life, it is usually a good idea to calculate how much the task would cost you if you were to do it yourself.
For example, if you earn $30 an hour doing whatever you do but you can outsource a task for $15 an hour, then it may be a good idea to look into outsourcing the task so that you can earn money instead.
Also, in order for many businesses to grow, at least some outsourcing/hiring is needed. In order for you to grow your business and to grow your income, you will need to have people working for you.
If you can make more of your time available by outsourcing work and household tasks, this can mean more time to make more money at your day job, more time to grow your business, and more.
Do you outsource your life such as with work related or household tasks? Or would you rather save that money instead?
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Ricky @ The Skint Dad Blog says
March 30, 2015 at 4:28 amI don’t outsource anything but I really think I need to. Like you I am working 12 hours a day at the moment (even more on some days) and I am starting to get run down.
Although working for yourself is fun, if you don’t have boundaries with the hours you work, it can end up taking over your whole life. By outsourcing some of it you can be less overrun and stressed with work, and it will probably make you more productive in the long-term.
Done right it may even make you more money as you’ll free up time to spend on increasing your income in other areas.
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:14 pmYes, exactly! Outsourcing has been a lifesaver for us.
Kirsten says
March 30, 2015 at 5:40 amThe moment I started freelancing, I hired a house cleaner. Just twice a month, but something to help us out. Truth was, we needed help even before I took on freelancing and it got worse with less time. They are SUPER expensive because of my location (rural, so I pay for the cleaning plus their trip), but it’s been worth it overall.
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:19 pmSounds nice Kirsten! We have been thinking about hiring a monthly person as well.
Gina Horkey says
March 30, 2015 at 6:18 amI think outsourcing is smart. I also use Grayson to do all of the web things I don’t have the capacity to do (or desire to learn); he rocks!
Graphic design isn’t my strong suit, so that’s another area that I outsource for work.
As far as home, my SAHD husband picks up a lot of the slack, which I’m very grateful for:-).
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:19 pmYes, Wes helps out a lot in my life. I am so very grateful!
Holly@ClubThrifty says
March 30, 2015 at 6:21 amI’m okay with outsourcing some things at this point in my life. For example, I hired someone to clean my house once per month earlier this year….and it has been great! She cleans once per month and I keep up in between. She even does a better job than I do, which is something I never thought I would say!
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:20 pmAwesome! I am a horrible cleaner and Wes usually just has me stop LOL
catherine says
March 30, 2015 at 7:38 pmThis is something that SOOO tempts me!!
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 7:49 pmHaha yup!
Mrs. Frugalwoods says
March 30, 2015 at 6:24 amI’m more of an insourcer myself, but I totally see the value of outsourcing for other folks. For us, we’re so focused on saving as much as possible in preparation for early retirement that it’s a priority for us to do everything we can ourselves. But, I’m not opposed to outsourcing when it makes sense, which in your case, sounds like it really does!
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:21 pmI definitely used to be more of an insourcer. However, with my business it was holding me back and I was actually saving less money because of it.
MyMoneyDesign says
March 30, 2015 at 6:30 amFor anyone serious about making money online outsourcing has to be a part of their overall routine. You can’t do everything yourself; you’ll burn out trying. I just outsourced 16 articles for one of my websites to 2 freelancers. I can tell you that’s well worth the money!
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:22 pmAwesome!
Taylor Lee @ Engineer Cents says
March 30, 2015 at 6:54 amI’m definitely an outsourcer at heart. I pay someone $50/month to do my laundry and it is totally worth it. I also plan to have someone come by and clean our apartment. If I had the money to outsource other aspects of my life I find tedious, I’d do it in a heartbeat.
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:22 pmSounds great!
BE Pennypacker says
March 30, 2015 at 7:59 amI love outsourcing. One of the best examples is oil changes. I have the know-how to do them myself, but our mechanic charges $18. That’s actually cheaper than what it would cost for me to buy the oil and the filter myself. Plus, the mechanic will throw in a tire rotation and let me know if he sees any other issues. It’s just so much cheaper, faster, and easier to just drop it off at the shop.
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:23 pmYes, same here! We do the same after realizing that buying the oil we need would actually be double or triple the cost.
Fervent Finance says
March 30, 2015 at 9:08 amI’ve been in-sourcing more tasks as I travel down the path to financial independence. I am salary and every additional hour I work does not provide an economic benefit to myself directly. But I can definitely see where out-sourcing some tasks is beneficial. If you have a side-hustle or are self-employed and you are compensated for each hour you put into that task, then I can see why you would outsource things that cost less for someone else to do, since your time is directly compensated (unlike salary).
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:23 pmYes, exactly! If you are salary, it would be a different situation.
Michelle says
March 30, 2015 at 9:34 amI am single right now so I feel like I have the time to do most of what I’m doing. The minute I had a family I will be seriously looking at what to outsource. Probably cleaning!
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:24 pmYes, outsourcing cleaning would be nice!
Paul Latta says
March 30, 2015 at 10:07 amAbsolutely outsource. I wish I would have started doing it earlier in life. When I think of all the time I wasted doing tasks that I didn’t need to do, I cringe.
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:25 pmSame here!
John says
March 30, 2015 at 10:16 amWhen I started one of my new blogs, I outsourced the content creation because I had no time to work for it.
After a while, I realized that I need to enter the game because my blog had no success this way.
Since I write about 50% of the content and the other half is outsourced I can say that the website works much better.
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:26 pmSounds like a good plan for your situation 🙂
Shannon @ Financially Blonde says
March 30, 2015 at 10:18 amOutsourcing is a HUGE goal of mine in 2015. I have had interns in the past and I always lament that I spend more time training someone than if I just did it myself, but I need to get better about identifying the tasks that are not that important to me and accept someone else doing it. A key is finding a great resource to outsource to and I am currently in the search for that person.
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:28 pmGood luck Shannon! I hope you have good luck with it. I’ve outsourced a lot so far, and I can say that it has helped tremendously.
Kristin says
March 30, 2015 at 10:26 amI have slowly started outsourcing a few things for my niche website. It’s a huge timesaver and well worth the cost. It frees up my time so I can focus on my main blog and life in general. I was working ALL the time! Now I am much happier and can have a life again!
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:28 pmGreat job Kristin!
Ellen Edwards says
March 30, 2015 at 10:37 amOutsourcing is also a goal of mine in 2015! It has been on the “To Do” list for quite some time. Thank you for making me think about all the benefits this would add to my life and business. -Ellen
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:29 pmWelcome! What do you plan on outsourcing?
Ellen Edwards says
March 30, 2015 at 1:02 pmA portion of my blog articles that are not very complicated. Do you have any recommendations for excellent financial blog writers? Thanks in advance.
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 2:41 pmHey!
Yes, I know of many 🙂 Please send me an email if you are interested with the budget you have for a writer, and I can send some writers your way 🙂
Amy @ DebtGal says
March 30, 2015 at 10:59 amYou make a lot great points about the value of outsourcing. Because we’re focused on paying down debt, we don’t do a lot of it right now, but we do pay someone to do our taxes, car maintenance, etc. When I finally pull the trigger on redesigning my blog, I’ll definitely be looking for someone to help me do that. I would love to pay someone to plow our driveway in the winter, but it’s not in the budget at the moment.
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:30 pmYeah, there are a lot of factors that go into whether you should outsource. Sounds like you have a good plan.
Brian @ Debt Discipline says
March 30, 2015 at 12:11 pmIt really depends on the item and the cost. I’d love to free up the time, but not will to pay a premium to do so. Recently I’m taking the in-sourcing route.
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:30 pmI see exactly what you mean. For me, I am actually able to make more and save more money by outsourcing, so I am fine with it.
Jack @ Enwealthen says
March 30, 2015 at 12:16 pmThis is one of the largest areas where my wife and I disagree.
I’m fine with outsourcing when it saves money or time better spent elsewhere, e.g. house cleaning. Mrs. E. can’t stand the thought of paying someone to do something she can do herself. She hasn’t quite come to terms with the idea of limited time and reducing stress by having someone help. One of these decades she’ll come around… Perhaps if we add another baby to the mix…
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 12:31 pmThis is something that my husband and I struggled with as well. He is fine with outsourcing a lot, and I am slowly coming around 🙂
Dan @ Our Big Fat Wallet says
March 30, 2015 at 12:41 pmWe have outsourced our groceries and now get the delivered to the front steps each week. It’s been great, no more long lineups or dealing with items that are sold out. The time it saves makes it worth it as grocery delivery is so convenient and it means one less chore to do on weekends
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 2:49 pmThat’s awesome! How much does it cost to do this?
Janet Fazio says
March 30, 2015 at 12:47 pmMy biggest challenge with outsourcing has been finding someone reliable. The really good people seem to get full-time jobs, then I have to start all over with training someone.
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 2:49 pmYes, it can be difficult. They exist though! 🙂
Mark@BareBudgetGuy says
March 30, 2015 at 1:30 pmMy kids are just starting to get old enough to outsource some of the chores to them. Totally beats paying someone!
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 2:50 pmAwesome!
Fig says
March 30, 2015 at 2:22 pmI don’t outsource anything right now but I’ve definitely thought about it and plan to in the future. There are lots of little things I hate doing and would much rather pay someone to do so get that time back!
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 2:51 pmDefinitely!
diane @smartmoneysimplelife says
March 30, 2015 at 3:22 pmThe only thing I currently outsource is lawn mowing. I really, REALLY don’t like mowing the lawn. Having someone else do it relieves me not only of task but the stress of thinking about the task too. So, it’s kind of a ‘two for one’ deal. I reckon that’s a great investment. 🙂
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 3:39 pmDefinitely! 🙂
Jason Butler says
March 30, 2015 at 3:41 pmI don’t outsource…..yet. I know the time will come. Some weekends I don’t seem to have a time to finish everything blog related that I set out to do. Not to mention the e-bay hustle is building up as well.
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 3:48 pmYes, the time will definitely come!
Get Rich Brothers says
March 30, 2015 at 4:48 pmMichelle,
Numbers 3 and 4 are the keys, I believe.
There are certain jobs I wouldn’t outsource such as shoveling snow simply because I happen to enjoy doing it. When it comes to a job that I dislike and have low proficiency with, it gets outsourced!
Take care,
– Ryan from GRB
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 5:15 pmThanks Ryan!
Annie says
March 30, 2015 at 7:25 pmI outsource my house cleaning! I hate to do it anyways, but I have so many other things that I need to do instead!
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 7:27 pmI should look into outsourcing cleaning as well. I am bad at it!
Prudence Debtfree says
March 30, 2015 at 8:03 pmWe are so focused on paying off debt that we rarely outsource anything. We get some lawn care – as our lawn was absolutely dying – but it’s very inexpensive. I would love to hire house-cleaners, but I think that until we’re debt-free, we’ll keep toughing it out. The Frugalwoods wrote a great post on “insourcing”. It’s cool to see how different people make opposite choices – and they both make sense.
Michelle S. says
March 30, 2015 at 8:11 pmYes, there is no right choice for everyone.
Thomas @ i need cash ASAP! says
March 31, 2015 at 4:45 amTo be honest I try and insource as much as I can to help save money. I know it makes sense to out source a task for $15/hr when you make $30/hr but you can’t really work 16hrs a day you just won’t be as productive. I’ve been learning more about cooking and have even started to make my own bread and pizza dough. Does it make sense $/hr? Not really. But it’s fun and it still saves me a few $.
Michelle S. says
March 31, 2015 at 10:52 amIf it’s fun and you enjoy it, then definitely do it!
Christine Berry says
March 31, 2015 at 11:21 amYes, yes, yes. I outsource SO much of my business it’s crazy how much, but my time is valuable. I also outsourcing cleaning and laundry. It helps that cleaners are like $5 an hour here 🙂
Michelle S. says
March 31, 2015 at 12:38 pmGood job!
Kayla @ Shoeaholicnomore says
March 31, 2015 at 12:25 pmI don’t outsource much – cleaning my house (which I pay for out of my monthly budget) and Grayson’s technical services (from my business budget) is about all that I outsource. I try to do most everything else myself to keep expenses as low as possible while I continue to pay off debt.
Michelle S. says
March 31, 2015 at 12:39 pmSounds like a good plan Kayla!
Gen Y Finance Guy says
March 31, 2015 at 1:49 pmWe outsource house cleaning and yard maintenance. My wife and I both work full time and the last thing we want to do when we get home is clean the house or mow the lawn.
Also when I am not spending time with my wife I can make more money in a side-hustle than it would cost me to hire someone to do the things I hate.
I look at it as a highest and best use of my time kind of thing.
Cheers to you for buying sometime back 🙂
Michelle S. says
March 31, 2015 at 3:12 pmGood job!
Shanna says
April 10, 2015 at 5:40 amExcellent post on outsourcing. There are definitely areas in my life that I would love to outsource.Once my business has evolved, I plan to outsource to build my blog and business.
J. Richardson says
March 28, 2016 at 10:40 pmHi Michelle –
I got so used to outsourcing (and so happy with the results) that i decided to pursue a career with a company that provides outsourcing services. I noticed how outsourcing helped improve the quality of my life by freeing up valuable time and allowing me to occasionally relax and not feel like my chores were not getting done. Since it was so beneficial, i decided that i wanted to actually do this for a living so i could help others achieve the same levels of success and sanity that i was able to to.
While i am now mainly focusing on businesses that need outsourcing services, the idea of helping and allowing others to focus on what they truly enjoy is what keeps me going and keeps me motivated 🙂