What I Prioritize Outsourcing
Here's the lie you've been told: you have to do everything yourself.
Especially as a small business owner. Especially if you're neurodivergent. You wear all the hats because... that's what you're supposed to do, right? Marketing, sales, client delivery, admin, bookkeeping, content creation, customer service, tech support, graphic design—all of it.
You're supposed to be a one-person operation until you "scale enough" to afford help. You're supposed to DIY everything until you've "earned" the right to outsource.
Wrong.
The Real Question Isn't "What Takes the Most Time?"
Most outsourcing advice asks: "What takes the most time? Outsource that."
But for ADHD brains, that's the wrong question.
Because time doesn't equal energy. A 10-minute task can drain you for hours if it creates enough friction. A 2-hour task might energize you if it's in your zone of genius.
The real question is: "What causes the most friction?"
What tasks make you avoid your business? What creates pileups? What makes you feel overwhelmed before you even start? What drains your capacity to show up for the work that actually matters?
For me, the answer is always the same: content and finances.
Content
Taylor handles my Instagram content. She plans three posts per week, tells me what I need to film, and drafts my captions.
My job? Just film.
That's it. I don't strategize. I don't plan. I don't agonize over captions or hashtags or posting schedules. I just show up, film what she tells me to film, and move on with my day.
Why Content Specifically?
Content creation used to cause massive pileups for me.
I'd avoid it because the planning felt overwhelming. Then I'd feel guilty about avoiding it. Then I'd scramble to create something, anything, just to feel like I was "showing up." Then I'd burn out and avoid it again.
The cycle was exhausting.
The friction wasn't the filming. I actually like filming. The friction was the planning, the strategizing, the decision fatigue of "what should I post today?"
So I outsourced the friction.
The Surprising ROI
Here's what I didn't expect: the ROI isn't just time saved.
It's the pressure that's gone.
I fuck up while filming all the time. I stumble over words, forget what I'm saying, have to start over three times. And I just... keep going. Because there's no perfectionism attached anymore. There's no overwhelm. There's no "I have to get this right or I wasted all this planning."
Content feels fun again instead of obligatory.
I show up more consistently because someone else is holding the structure. Taylor keeps the wheels turning so I don't have to white-knuckle my way through content creation every week.
That's worth way more than the hours saved.
Finances
Karen handles my bookkeeping, tax prep, and financial coaching.
This is a newer development for me, but it's already been game-changing.
Why Finances Specifically?
Finances cause friction because they require a level of consistency I don't naturally have.
I'm great at the creative, strategy, client-facing parts of my business. I'm terrible at remembering to track expenses, categorize transactions, prepare for tax deadlines, and generally keep my financial house in order.
So things would pile up. I'd miss deadlines. I'd scramble at tax time. I'd have this constant low-grade anxiety about whether I was doing it "right."
Karen keeps it rolling so I don't get a pileup.
The ROI
I'm not scrambling at tax time anymore.
I actually know what's happening financially in my business. I have someone who can answer my questions, who keeps me on track, who removes the mystery and the panic.
One less thing causing background anxiety.
And honestly? That peace of mind is priceless.
What I Don't Outsource
I don't outsource everything.
I don't outsource editing. Even though it takes time, even though other people could do it, I keep it.
I don't subcontract my client work. That's the heart of what I do—I'm not handing that off.
Why?
Because these things don't cause friction. They energize me.
Editing is meditative. It's where I get into flow. Client work is why I'm in business in the first place, it's the most meaningful part of what I do.
Not everything needs to be outsourced. Just the friction points.
One-Off vs. Ongoing
Taylor and Karen are ongoing support. They're part of my business rhythm now.
But I've also worked with people on specific projects:
Kal is writing my sales pages
Kim designed my brand
Is that outsourcing? Kind of? It's definitely getting expert help for things I couldn't (or didn't want to) do myself.
The point is: you can get help without committing to forever.
Sometimes you just need someone to handle one specific thing. A launch. A rebrand. A tech setup. A website overhaul.
You don't have to hire someone permanently to benefit from outsourcing. Even if you technically can do all these things yourself, it’s worth really investigating whether you should.
For ND Brains Specifically
Here's what neurotypical outsourcing advice misses:
It focuses on time management. "Outsource so you can scale. Outsource so you have more time. Outsource the low-value tasks."
But ND brains don't need time management. We need friction management.
We don't need to "batch better" or "be more consistent" or "optimize our schedules." We need to remove the obstacles that make us avoid tasks in the first place.
Outsourcing isn't about scaling. It's about sustainability.
It's about identifying the tasks that drain you, that cause pileups, that make you dread opening your laptop, and asking: who could hold this for me?
Let's Talk About Money
Yes, this costs money. Let's not pretend it doesn't.
I have privilege that allows me to invest in outsourcing, and I want to name that. Not everyone can afford to pay someone else to handle parts of their business, and that's a systemic problem, not a personal failing.
BUT.
If you do have some budget, even a small one, here's how I think about it:
Start with ONE thing causing the most friction.
You don't have to outsource everything at once. You don't even have to outsource ongoing. Maybe it's just a few hours a month. Maybe it's a one-time project. Maybe it's one specific task that's been sitting on your to-do list for six months making you feel like a failure.
Think about ROI beyond money.
What do you gain in energy? In peace of mind? In creative freedom? What would it be worth to not dread that task anymore? What could you create, or build, or offer if you weren't spending all your capacity on the thing that drains you?
There's no "right" amount to spend.
It depends on your business, your budget, your friction points. Someone might outsource $100/month for bookkeeping. Someone else might invest $1,000/month for content support. Neither is wrong.
The question isn't "Can I afford this?"
The question is: "What am I losing by NOT doing this?"
You Don't Have to Do Everything Yourself
Paying people for their expertise isn't failure. It's strategy.
And here's something I didn't expect: outsourcing has grown my network in ways I never anticipated.
Working with Taylor, Karen, Kal, Kim, these aren't just transactions. They're relationships with people whose work I trust deeply.
Now when clients or community members need help with content, finances, design, copy, I have people to recommend. People I've worked with. People I know will take good care of them.
Outsourcing didn't just lighten my load. It connected me to a web of trusted collaborators.
It's community-building, not just capacity-building.
So: find your friction points. Ask yourself what's draining you, what's causing pileups, what you're avoiding.
Then ask: who could hold this for me?
The ROI might surprise you. And it probably won't be financial.
Need help identifying your friction points and building systems that actually work? That's exactly what I do. Book a Crystal Ball for a deep-dive audit, or apply for Systems Grove if you're ready for a full systems overhaul.
