It’s not a growth problem, it's a focus problem.
Chris Crump
February 29, 2024

Where is your focus?

I’ve yet to meet a business owner who wasn’t interested in growth.

In fact, most business owners list ‘revenue growth’ as their number one KPI.

Therefore, you’d think that ‘revenue growth’ would be their #1 focus area.

You’d be wrong.

You have a focus problem

I’ve chatted with hundreds of startup founders, business owners, and managers.

At all levels, a majority of working time is spent on various fire-drills, repetitive admin tasks, and operational headaches—not growth.

Most people want to spend more time on ‘high value’ activities (like growth).

In reality, running a business is brutal and time-consuming.

You have a focus problem—here’s how to fix it.

How to find the bottleneck

First question: What is the bottleneck?


A bottleneck is a point of congestion that slows or stops progress.

It’s the root cause issue that prevents the entire system from flowing.

The throughput rate of an entire system is based on the bottleneck.

For example, you can add more lanes of traffic to the freeway, but traffic will always back-up over that narrow two-lane bridge.

So, what is the root cause behind a missed KPI? Let’s find out.

How to use the Eisenhower Matrix

The Eisenhower Matrix is a task management tool that helps you distinguish between urgent and important tasks.

The matrix helps you determine which activities are actually bottlenecks.

The goal of the matrix is to identify tasks that can be delegated (and deleted).

How to fix a bottleneck

Second question: What is the singular process, task, or person that is impeding progress?


Hint: It’s probably you.

In business, short-term bottlenecks are often caused by a labor shortage. Long-term bottlenecks are often characterized by inefficient processes.

TLDR: You need to delegate tasks—but to whom?

Solution:
Add labor.

Adding labor to manage delegated tasks will help you breathe so you can then design a better process.

How to delegate tasks

Third question: How do I start delegating?

First, start with the bottleneck.

Then, break the bottleneck down into smaller parts—what are the sub-tasks?

Can you ‘productize’ these tasks into independent, repeatable processes?

I get it—making SOPs is hard. But, what if you recorded a Loom video of yourself completing the task and narrating each step?

Then, feed the Loom video transcript through ChatGPT to create an SOP.

But, you still need someone to complete the tasks.

How to quickly scale capacity

One of the tools to complete tasks is human capital.

At Anavah Talent, we help business owners solve bottlenecks by helping them hire specialized overseas talent—like a 10x teammate that can immediately complete the tasks you need done.

A 10x teammate who will help you breathe so you can then design a better process and fix the bottleneck.

And, shift your focus from operations to growth.

We have years of experience building specialized overseas teams—from VAs to CPAs.

Take 20 minutes with our team and save 20 hours on yours.