I was speaking to a therapist this week who was expressing her incredible disappointment in the outsourcing solutions she had engaged in. She was going through something I see and hear so many therapists experiencing, that being —
When we exchange money for someone else’s time, we don’t always get the result we were expecting.
You know what I mean, right? – Time is Money. Or at least that is what we have learned to believe.
It’s like when you hire a gardener for 2 hours a week and when he leaves each week, you look at your garden and your first thought is,
Wait – what did he actually do?
I see a pile of leaves raked over here, and part of a hedge trimmed over there, but nothing seems to be finished.
However he has been in your garden for two hours, his “allotted time” is up and you watch your hard-earned money walk away – YET you remain dissatisfied, may I say, even betrayed.
That’s NOT what you were expecting.
I hear this story again, and again, and again with Therapists outsourcing in their private practice. Now don’t get me wrong, I am not against outsourcing. For goodness sake, outsourcing is a MUST. You can’t do all the things, for all the people, all of the time (well you can, but that might mean never sleeping, and well, that is just bad).
So it stands to reason that when we simply exchange time for money, something is getting lost in the translation of this exchange — that being – the OUTCOME and the expectation of the quality of results.
Let me explain…
For so many years we have heard the phrase… ”Time is Money”. But I want to challenge that because I strongly believe this mindset limits our ability and thinking when it comes to being entrepreneurs.
So what is Time?
Well, Webster defines it as the following…
noun
- the indefinite continued progress of existence and events in the past, present, and future regarded as a whole.
- a point of time as measured in hours and minutes past midnight or noon.
verb
- plan, schedule, or arrange when (something) should happen or be done.
- measure the time taken by a process or activity, or a person doing it.
Ah ha! So if that is true, then just anyone could be “assigned” to do a task or job by a certain time right? Of course.
But that doesn’t necessarily mean it will translate into money! WHY?
Because you CAN NOT measure quality service and successful results by time.
Here are some common ways I hear this being expressed:
- Have I used up all my allotted hours of time this month?
- Can I have a minute-by-minute report of how my time was used?
- What happens if all that time isn’t used?
These are the WRONG questions, my friends.
The questions you really want to be answered are:
- Is my revenue increasing?
- What value is this person bringing to my business?
- What are the results I am getting? ROI or Conversion?
- How is this person adding to the growth of my practice?
As Entrepreneurs, we need to move away from the transaction of time for money. It keeps us small, it keeps us limited and it isn’t helping anyone.
My challenge to you is this – what RESULTS do you want from an outsourcing solution?
Is it enough to simply have someone answer a phone call? Or, do you want a skilled person answering a call that results in Intakes being booked, payment information is taken, and the EHR being updated? – Translation – revenue coming in.
It’s NOT a matter of answering a phone, it’s about booking an appointment and a new client turns up too. This results in a calmer, more present therapist who is ready to meet their new client where they are at and is confident there will be money in their bank account.
You CAN NOT measure quality service and successful results over time.
What are you waiting for?
Stop thinking of buying time, and start thinking about building results. That, my friends, is one of the BIGGEST differences between a VA and an Online Business Management Service.
So then, what is the value of time? – It is spent with family and friends, knowing that your business is getting service, results, and revenue!
If you are ready to move to the mindset of quality service and successful results, click here to schedule your Free consultation today!