How to Outsource Work and Grow Your Business

Trying to scale your business but feel like you're drowning in to-dos?

If you’re trying to do everything yourself, you're not just slowing down your business—you’re heading straight for burnout. 😵‍💫

That’s why learning how to outsource work is one of the smartest things you can do as a business owner.

Outsourcing helps you get more done in less time, grow your business faster, and finally focus on what actually moves the needle without burning out.

Whether you want to spend more time with family, travel freely, or just breathe without your brain spinning 24/7… this guide will show you exactly how to do it.

Let’s dive in.

Who am I? I'm Demir Bentley, co-founder of Lifehack Method and author of the WSJ bestseller Winning the Week. After burning out in a high-pressure career, I reinvented my lives and created a system that’s helped 50,000+ professionals at companies like Google, Uber, and PepsiCo work less and achieve more. Learn more here.

Why should you outsource work?

First, a quick definition:

Outsourcing means hiring someone outside your business to handle tasks and projects for you.

Now, why would you want to do that?

Here’s why outsourcing is a complete game-changer. You:

• Save time and energy: Save brainpower for the work only you can do.
• Save money: Instead of hiring full-time employees, you pay for what you need, when you need it.
• Get better results: A pro can often do the task faster and better than if you tried to learn it yourself.
• Grow faster: When you shift your focus from busywork to the 20% of tasks that actually matter (hello, 80/20 rule!), you reach your goals so much quicker.

Pretty great, right? But there are also some challenges to be aware of:

• It takes time to find and train the right people
• If you don’t outsource well, you might waste money and get disappointing results
• It can be tough at first to trust someone else with parts of your business

Here’s the thing, though: Once you learn how to outsource work well, you can easily sidestep these problems.

We’ll cover how to do that soon, but first: What exactly should you outsource?

What tasks can you outsource?

I recommend outsourcing anything that supports your business but doesn’t define it.

You’ll learn exactly how to pick the right tasks in a bit, but for now, here are some common ones entrepreneurs tend to outsource:

• Accounting and bookkeeping
• Marketing and social media management
• IT support and tech troubleshooting
• Customer service and billing
• Admin tasks like inbox management, scheduling, and data entry

Notice a pattern?

These are all non-core functions that help your business run smoothly but aren't central to what makes it unique.

Now you might be wondering: “Is it even the right time for me to start outsourcing?”

Let’s find out.

When should you start outsourcing?

You can start outsourcing at any stage of your business. But there are some clear moments when it becomes a no-brainer.

Ask yourself:

• Do I have too much to do? If your days feel like a never-ending to-do list, it’s time to free yourself by systematically delegating lower-priority tasks.
• Am I avoiding certain tasks? If it could easily be done by someone else, it’s a perfect outsourcing opportunity.
• Do I lack specific expertise? You don't have to learn it all yourself. You can outsource it, get better results, and even learn from them along the way.

With this cleared up, let’s take a look at how to outsource work the right way.

How do you outsource work effectively?

Done right, outsourcing makes your life 10x easier and your business 10x stronger.  🚀

Here’s your step-by-step guide to do it well.

1. Identify what to outsource 

When it comes to figuring out what to outsource, ask yourself:

“What tasks suck up my time but don’t need me to do them?”

For me, it was eye-opening.

At first, I worried no one would put in the same effort. After all, it’s my business and my life, not theirs. But as soon as I started outsourcing, I realized how much I had been missing out on by taking on everything myself.

Today?

I have a personal assistant, a virtual assistant, a cleaner, a dog walker—you name it.

Here are the top six tasks I’ve outsourced:

• Customer service and billing requests: Super important but extremely repetitive.
• Annoying errands: Random “life stuff” that eats up your free time.
• Video editing: We standardized the process and got a project manager to work with our video editor. The final output is now better than ever.
• Party planning: I love hosting, but outsource the prepping. I pick the ideas from Pinterest, and someone else takes care of the setup.
• Facebook ads: Running Facebook ads isn’t a set-it-and-forget-it task. We now have better targeting and higher conversions.
• Cooking: I plan the menu; our cook shops, cooks, and cleans. This saves us tons of time and money as we eat out less than before.

The key is to outsource repetitive things that drain your time and that others can do better than you.

I talk about it more in this video:

Now think about it: What are those repetitive or annoying tasks for you?

Got them? Great, then let’s turn them into clear job descriptions.

2. Create a detailed job description

Before you outsource anything, get crystal clear:

• What exactly needs to be done?
• What does success look like?
• What are the deadlines and deliverables?
• How will you communicate and track progress?

Set clear, measurable goals. And spell it all out—like a recipe someone else can follow.

For example, instead of saying:

❌ “I need help with customer service.”

Say:

✅ “I need someone to answer customer emails and support tickets within 12 hours, using our FAQ templates for common questions. Any technical issues should be escalated to the team lead immediately through Asana. Weekly performance will be tracked based on response time and customer satisfaction ratings.”

See the difference?

This clarity is how you’ll get exactly what you want without the endless back-and-forth.

3. Find the right person

Today, outsourcing is easier than ever before thanks to platforms like:

• Freeeup: Our go-to site for hiring contractors. Every freelancer must pass an extensive skills test, which means you have a higher chance of finding good talent. (Click this link to get $25 off your first invoice.)
• UpWork: Great for specialized and long-term projects. You can filter by skill, rate, and location.
• Fiverr: Best for simple one-off gigs.
• Toptal: Offers an exclusive network of high-end, vetted freelance talent.
• TaskRabbit: Great for in-person errands and projects.
• Social Media: There are tons of private Facebook groups and Reddit communities focused on job hunting and freelance work. Private groups tend to have higher-quality candidates than public postings.
• Networking: Word-of-mouth referrals offer an extra guarantee since your contacts can vouch for the person’s skills and reliability.

Online job boards let you tap into a worldwide talent pool. 🌎 And because the cost of living varies per region, many skilled freelancers can offer competitive rates that fit your budget.

In this video, Demir shares his tips on outsourcing affordably and ethically:

Now, there are also some potential challenges when it comes to hiring globally:

• Time zones: Set clear expectations around deadlines and working hours. Tools like World Time Buddy help you easily coordinate across different time zones.
• Cultural differences: Be extra clear, avoid slang, and double-check that instructions are fully understood.

4. Interview with a test project

A quick interview is your chance to make sure you’re aligned before investing more time (and money).

Here’s what to focus on during the interview:

• Communication skills
• Experience and expertise
• Availability

Found someone promising? Great!

Now it’s time to run a small paid trial task. This means giving them a mini version of the real job.

For example: If you’re hiring a graphic designer, have them create one Instagram post before handing over your entire social media.

A test project lets you quickly check their:

• Skills (can they do the work at the level you need?)
• Communication (do they ask useful questions and keep you updated?)
• Attention to detail (do they follow your instructions carefully?)

💡Tip! Make sure your test project is ethical. It should be a small task for a smaller fee, not a way to get free work.

5. Manage the relationship

Hiring someone is a great start. But if you want things to run smoothly (and actually get the results you’re paying for), you also need to keep managing the relationship well.

Here’s how to do that:

• Contract: Set up a simple contract outlining expectations, payment, deadlines.
• Communication: Stay in touch regularly using task management tools like Asana or Trello.
• Performance: Set clear KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) and goals to measure progress. Think: “X number of posts per week” or “Edit and deliver videos within 72 hours.”
• Feedback: Praise what’s working and gently correct what’s not.

Besides creating high-quality work, managing well also helps you scale. Let’s talk about that next.

6. Automate to scale

Once you find your dream team, nurturing long-term relationships is key. 🤝

Yet as your business grows, you’ll probably increasingly more people you’re outsourcing to.

So, how do you scale up without burning out?

The answer: automate and systematize.

Here’s how to do it:

• Create simple SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) that document how everything gets done. For example, we send our freelancers quick video tutorials, showing how we organize and run tasks.
• Set up a task management system. Every freelancer joins our Asana board during onboarding. This way, projects can move forward automatically without us needing to manage every little step.

Building systems early saves you hundreds of hours later—and allows you to grow without growing your stress.

💡Tip! Over-explaining trumps under-explaining. A 10-minute screencast that answers every question is better than days of confusion and endless emails.

Next steps 

And that’s how to outsource work!

Outsourcing can seem pricey at first, but you generally end up making all that money back (and then some) by freeing up your time for high-value work.

If you want a simple but proven way to get even more mental freedom starting today, I’ve got you:

👉 Grab the Winning the Week worksheet for free right here: 

In just 30 minutes, you’ll be back in control of your schedule.

Read more:

• What to Do When You Feel Stuck in Your Business
• Best Ways to Overcome Overwhelm in Business
• The Best Time Management Strategies for Business Owners