Booked and busy – what every business owner wants. While desirable, it does have its costs: sleepless nights and overwhelming stress.
Heather Harris knows this all too well.
A nationally recognised stylist, salon owner, business leader, and celebrated speaker, Heather brings a plethora of insight around entrepreneurship and leadership. As the Founder and CEO of Spark Pro Global, a company that provides trained executive assistants, Heather empowers professionals and business owners to delegate effectively and live a more fulfilling life.
Known for her relatable style, humour, and sharp business acumen, Heather’s a favourite at industry events and summits nationwide. She recently led a masterclass at our 10th Phorest Summit, sharing real-world strategies for building a confident team and leading with intention.
Standing in front of a packed audience, Heather posed a powerful question: “How would you feel leaving your business unattended?”
Through her interactive approach, Heather’s goal is to help those who can’t confidently say ‘yes’ understand the process and power of strategic delegation.
The Revelation That Changed Everything
About five years ago, during the pandemic and amidst a really difficult time in her life, Heather found herself burning the candle at both ends. She bought the salon she’d been working at, was busy travelling the country as an educator, and was a single mom of three. Completely exhausted, Heather felt like she was drowning and wasn’t sure what to do about it.
That’s when a friend of hers from a totally different industry said, “Hey Heather, have you thought about hiring a personal assistant?” At first, Heather didn’t understand and thought, “For what?”
To wrap her head around the prospect, she showed up to her friend’s office to see how it worked. He showed her processes and gave her ideas, and the wheels in Heather’s head began to turn. “I could get an assistant to help with 2-way messaging clients… booking my travel, an assistant could help there. Our social media and Google reviews could use more attention.”
From Beginner to Professional Delegator
This personal and professional transformation inspired her to help others. She started a training programme where creative professionals and business owners could access the resources they needed without the difficult and time-consuming backend work of training an assistant. That’s how Heather officially became a professional delegator. As she playfully jokes, it’s a role she was naturally suited for, having been “a little bossy since childhood.”
It took Heather a solid year to fully embrace the concept of a virtual assistant, especially for a creative professional like herself. Her preparation involved thoroughly documenting her day-to-day tasks and compiling operating processes. Eventually, she took a leap of faith, hiring an executive assistant from the Philippines. The delegation started small – handling inquiries and social media engagement – but quickly grew to encompass daily operations. As Heather gushed: “It changed my life.”
As a professional delegator, Heather challenges leaders to consider: “What’s the cost when you’re stuck in admin?” This cost isn’t just measured in the 15 hours weekly you spend not generating revenue; it includes the toll on your health – poor sleep, high levels of stress, and strained relationships. Administrative burdens bog leaders down, disabling their ability to act, innovate, or engage creatively, leading to burnout and distraction from their true passion. Heather’s message is simple: Leaders need to be their most authentic selves in order to accomplish ‘the thing’ they’ve been postponing, whether that’s freedom, a passion project, or a major personal goal.
Your Daily Task Audit
If you’re wondering, “Where do I even begin,” the journey starts with Heather’s Daily Task Audit. Her highly interactive approach leverages workbook activities designed to get your creative juices flowing.
To begin, write down everything you do on a daily and weekly basis. The list should include required business tasks you dislike, what you’ve been meaning to complete, and a couple of unfulfilled passion projects. For extra detail, note the time spent on each line item.
When reviewing the final list, ask yourself: “Is there anything here I’d prefer not to do?” This is the moment where Heather (and the Pareto Principle) truly shines.
Pareto’s Principle: The 80/20 Rule
The Pareto Principle, or the 80/20 Rule, states that approximately 20% of your effort will give you 80% of your results. For example, 20% of your clients might generate 80% of your revenue. This principle, widely used in business, productivity, and management, is a helpful tool for identifying the 20% of tasks that create business growth while weeding out the 80% that are simply getting in your way.
Determining what to eliminate is often the hardest part, but it’s Heather’s favourite aspect when consulting her clients one-on-one. While most business owners have a strong idea of how they want things done, they struggle to imagine someone else doing the work well – let alone better. Heather guarantees that while you may be great at many tasks, you don’t do all of them the best. Her superpower is identifying people who can do it better and setting them up for success.
The goal is to pinpoint the 20% of tasks you should be doing and delegate the other 80% you shouldn’t. To find this, divide your tasks into ‘likes’ and ‘dislikes’ – your ‘sweet spot’ lies somewhere in the middle.
The Zone of Genius: Your ‘Sweet Spot’
Shedding the 80% of tasks you shouldn’t be doing immediately grants you more freedom in how you spend your time. This newfound capacity can be channelled into finally tackling a passion project or simply being more present in your own life.
To reveal what Heather calls your “Zone of Genius,” review your Daily Task Audit with three core questions in mind:
- “Do I enjoy doing this?”
- “Am I good at it?”
- “Does it generate significant revenue?”
Time to get visual and decode your ‘sweet spot.’ For the practical exercise, mark your task list using three symbols:
- Circle: Put a circle around each task you’re the best at.
- Dollar Sign: Next to anything that makes you the most money, add a dollar sign.
- Heart: Place a heart next to the tasks you love the most.
If there’s a heart next to something that doesn’t make you money, like driving your children to school or walking your dog, Heather says to always keep it. That’s part of your fulfilling life. Lastly, cross out what you dislike.
The resulting combination is your ‘sweet spot’ – the things you should be spending more time doing.
Putting Delegation to Work
By entrusting tasks to an in-house team or external contractor, you can achieve new levels of efficiency and instantly get more done.
Here are the key areas Heather suggests for beginning delegation:
- Client Management: Booking confirmations, reschedules, and follow-up messages.
- Marketing & Communication: Email and SMS marketing, social media, and even work anniversaries or client birthday messages.
- Customer Re-Engagement: Delegating tasks like automated rebooking campaigns or customised promotions for seasonal visitors can help you stay on top of shifts in consumer behaviour.
Through her own delegation efforts, Heather freed up time to focus on her business strategy. Realising she wasn’t utilising her Phorest Salon Software to its full potential, she worked with an excellent business coach to gain clarity on her numbers and KPI reports. She delegated the monthly task of pulling and emailing these reports to her assistant. This simple step gave her the visibility she needed to leverage technology across the board.
The Compound Effect of Effective Delegation
The more you get comfortable with delegating, the easier it becomes. Heather’s story demonstrates this profound impact. For example, by delegating reputation management to her salon’s director, her salon’s online reputation soared, growing from 90 to over 1,000 5-star Google reviews in five years.
By handing off the tasks that fell outside of her Zone of Genius, Heather ensures business owners will gain a host of benefits:
- Improved Retention
- Streamlined Operations
- Consistent Marketing
- Achieving Revenue Goals
Most importantly, she gained back 15 to 20 hours a week to herself.
As an experienced entrepreneur, Heather encourages professionals to seek out people who have a knack or excitement for the tasks they don’t have passion for. The full success illustrates the compound effect. You can’t measure impact straight away; it needs time to take effect. Similar to compound interest on an investment, routine acts of delegation progressively develop your team’s skills, build trust, and capacity, resulting in steady, long-term benefits.
The Delegation Formula: 5 Steps
According to Heather, “Speed has become the new currency.” In a fast-paced world, people want an answer yesterday, and if you’re not prepared, they’re going to the next business.
With Heather’s guidance, you’ll save 15 to 20 hours a week. This precious time you’ve gained back allows you to be in a better position to professionally gather and answer inquiries, representing your brand and converting prospects to paid appointments. It also helps you improve retention and streamline processes.
The true reward is that you stop running around frantically. Instead, you show up more empowered, more present, and more engaged, particularly when it comes to recurring meetings with your team. As Heather reminds leaders: “If you don’t have connection, you don’t have leadership, you don’t have culture.”
Your Checklist to “Delegate Like a Boss”
When you’re testing the waters, low-hanging decisions will ease you into the concept of delegating.
Here are the five steps Heather wants you to remember:
- Identify: List out the tasks that are recurring, draining your energy, and are outside your expertise (the ‘low-hanging fruit’).
- Document: Capture your day-to-day processes, giving clear instructions through video recordings, written SOPs, FAQs, or a combination.
- Assign: Select the right person for the job in relation to their specific strengths and capacity.
- Timeline: Set clear start dates, deadlines for completion, and check-in points along the way.
- Let Go: Trust the process and know perfection isn’t required. Sometimes 80% is good enough.
The Power of Letting Go
Needing to delegate means not stepping in or micromanaging and seeing how things play out. Heather explains that it requires being open and willing to accept any mistakes that might occur. Can be challenging, but it is an essential part of trusting the process and letting go.
As a leader, you can accomplish more – and more consistently – when you stop relying on only yourself to get it done.
When Heather decided to let go, her team felt greater ownership of their work. They felt empowered and set up to succeed because she wanted that for them. The need to micromanage melted away.
The bridge between delegating and actually letting go is the hard part. Since trust has yet to be established, intrusive thoughts like ‘will it get done well’ will inevitably seep in. As Heather suggests, taking a deep breath and letting it happen so you can get out of your own way is all you can do. Before you even begin, Heather advises asking yourself two vital questions: “Is it okay that I let go of this and trust someone to execute instead of doing it myself?” and “Am I okay if mistakes are made?”
Delegation Dos: The Pointers for Long-Term Success
Delegation often fails when you do not establish correct communication, expectations, and touch points.
Do: Practice Two-Way Communication
Delegation requires two-way communication, a principle Heather stresses by noting that leaders must stay approachable. The individual you delegate to needs to feel comfortable asking questions, and your clear, open responses will continue to build trust and reinforce your desire for them to succeed in their new responsibilities.
Do: Set Clear Expectations
You must set clear expectations and delivery deadlines. For example, differentiate between tasks that need to be completed by the 1st of the month versus those that can be handled quarterly. Establishing the ‘what,’ ‘when,’ and ‘how’ is crucial.
Do: Measure & Consistently Review
Measure the impact after a month, trusting the process and consistently empowering your team with authority. Take moments to reflect and check in on yourself: “How’s this working for me?”
Do: Acknowledge & Reward Success
Shout outs and praise matter. Acknowledge when delegated tasks meet your standards, as recognition and practice enforce positive results.
A bonus tip from Heather: It’s a good idea to name an accountability partner. This is someone you trust to check on you, especially in those first two weeks of delegating, who can help you stay on track.
Becoming the “CEO of Your Own Life”
When you accept help, you get more efficient, and fewer things fall between the cracks. Generally, you’re a happier person, and people like the experience of working with you more.
Heather wants to cheer you on in this journey to delegation. Whether you choose to empower your in-house team, set up new on-site systems in your business, or work with her team at Spark, she’s a genuine cheerleader about seeing business owners and leaders be successful and living their best lives.
“Now is your time to delegate like a boss and build your plan.”
