Are you Outsourcing your Power in your Business?

Stop outsourcing your power and get back into the driver’s seat

When you start a business, there’s a lot you don’t know…especially if you’ve never started a business before

That’s why it’s so common to scour the interwebs looking for advice – from experts on Youtube to Instagram coaches – nearly everyone looks to others to see what they should be doing.

While there’s value in hiring an expert to help you, especially when you lack the skillset, information or tools to do the job yourself, you don’t want to become overly dependent on help. 

It’s a slippery slope, but when you become dependent on advice to make key decisions in your business, it’s a clear sign you’re outsourcing your power — and this you want to stop. 

What it means to outsource your power in your business

The common thought pattern is thinking that everyone knows more than you at the start. And while sure, they may have more experience than you, that doesn’t necessarily mean they know exactly what YOU should do in YOUR business.

If you become overly reliant on experts, you may start to put them on a pedestal and start doing everything you’re advised, without question, neglecting your own intelligence, experience, and intuition.

When you hand over the reins of your business to an expert, you can find yourself in a business that doesn’t feel like yours and feeling totally out of alignment with your true self.

But this doesn’t have to happen. Instead, you ensure that you stay in the driver’s seat of your business and utilize your own intuitive power to make decisions, without outsourcing your power.

How outsourcing your power hurts your business

Outsourcing your power in your business ends up hurting you more than anyone else.

• If you stop running decisions and ideas through your own filter, and simply rely on others to tell you whether something is a good or bad idea, you’ve basically given the reins to someone else.
• If you rely on and hire only experts to tell you what to do in every decision big or small, you neglect building your own intuitive business muscle — something that is crucial in making good business decisions.
• If you only follow the advice and guidance of others (without following your own inner guidance and advice), you end up building someone else’s business and not a business that true and authentically you.

 Instead, you want to reclaim your power as the business owner and expert in yourself — and then run any advice and experts through your own litmus test. This is how you stop outsourcing your power in your business.

3 signs you’re outsourcing your power in your business

You probably have a sense as to whether or not you’re outsourcing your power, but here are 3 common signs:

Sign #1: You look outside yourself for answers constantly.

One thing you need to be comfortable with as a business owner is making decisions, even with little to no information at times. When you find yourself outsourcing each and every decision in your business, that’s a sign you’re giving away your power.

Sign #2: You do absolutely everything an or expert says — even if it doesn’t feel right.

Even if something feels “off” or you vehemently disagree, you go with whatever the expert says. You trust since the expert is successful, that you can be, too, if you just follow their steps exactly. You might even override your own gut feelings in favor of the expert advice.

Sign #3: You assume an expert knows you better than you.

Business coaches can do wonderful things for you and your business. But when you assume they know more about you than you know about you, you set yourself up for failure. A lack of confidence can also invite exploitation — someone else seeing an opportunity to influence you or your business without your permission.

With any of these scenarios, you’re outsourcing your power and neglecting your own intuition, intelligence, and experience. You’re discounting what you know about what is right for you and your business and letting someone else call the shots.

What happens over time when you outsource your power

So what’s the big problem with giving away your power? It can result in you losing track of your own thoughts and feelings when it comes to building YOUR business.

Here are some things that can happen when you’re not grounded into your own mission, vision, and values:

You become a shadow of the expert you’re following. Rather than aiming to be the best version of yourself, you’re trying to be the next Marie Forleo or Amy Porterfield (even though you’re vastly different.)

You neglect your own inner power by not utilizing it. When you ignore your intuition, you weaken the muscle. The way you strengthen your intuition is by using it.

You stop enjoying your business. You want your business to be a reflection of you and showcase your skills and talents. You won’t shine if you hide behind someone else’s expertise.

A key aspect of learning and growing as a business owner is learning to trust yourself and rely on yourself to make the best decisions. Obviously, if you outsource your decisions, you don’t experience this growth.

How to work with experts without outsourcing your power

It’s not that you should never hire anyone for help, or trust them when you do hire them. But don’t stop trusting yourself.

Here are a few tips to ensure you don’t outsource your power when hiring help in your business:

• Pay attention. Choose who you hire wisely. Do research, yes, but always run things by your inner guidance system, especially when choosing who to work with.
• Know yourself, your strengths, and what skills gaps you need help in filling. This will help ensure that you’re hiring the right type of expert for your needs.
• Understand the role of the person you are hiring. Are they advising you on what you should do or are they invested in helping you figure out what is best for you? Own your expertise in your business, even though you are still learning.

How to reclaim your power in your business

If you realize you’ve been outsourcing your power and not stepping up to the plate in your own business, don’t worry, it’s not too late. Here’s how to get back on track:

• Remind yourself that you’re the boss. You’re the CEO and you get to decide. Own that role and remind yourself of it as needed.
• Pause and take a step back once you get advice. Take a moment to see how it lands, how it feels, and do a gut check before implementing any advice.
• Don’t neglect the gut feelings you get of “this feels wrong.” Don’t do something that feels out of alignment or integrity with yourself. Tap into your body’s signals that something is off.
• Ask your own intuition and “higher boss” for guidance when you’re unsure. This doesn’t mean you don’t consult anyone else, but make sure you always consult yourself.
• Notice and celebrate the decisions that feel right. When you’ve made an executive decision, give yourself credit for it. Running a business is not for the faint of heart and requires your skin is in the game.

The good news is that if you have been outsourcing your power, you can reclaim that power back in an instant. When you do this continuously, you’ll become even more confident in knowing what’s right for you in your business. You’ll be able to more easily say no to things that don’t fit and say yes to those that do.

Reminder: It’s your business and you have the power.

When you rely on yourself to be the decision-maker and call the shots in your business, you know that you have the power. You refuse to give away or outsource that power to anyone who is not you.

When you trust yourself and own your expertise, you make business decisions that are aligned. When you make decisions that are aligned, things flow more smoothly in your business.

When you take ultimate responsibility for your business and you assume the role of CEO, you create a business that looks and feels like you, from the inside out.