Using A Mind Map To Open Up Possibilities
Are you familiar with a mind map? This is a rather interesting piece of software that enables you to, essentially, let your mind roam free and plan a business process by using arrows, drop down boxes and other elements. If you lik
e, it’s a more visual representation of the spread sheet and is certainly much more fun to work with. When you get an hour or so to spare you should download and get to grips with a mind map. I know that you’ve no time whatsoever to spare, as after all this is part of running a small business, but you owe it to yourself to make time here. Experiment with your mind map – you can’t break it. Start off with the concept and go off in a variety of different tangents. Each one is a “what if.” In this case, let’s imagine that the starting point is you. Put your name in the box in the centre of the screen and then start to draw lines and further drop down boxes, populated with all of the tasks that you have to perform, in business terms. You will find that you quickly start to develop quite a comprehensive mind map. Try and put everything in order so that it makes sense, but you’ll soon come to quite an eye-opening realisation. How on Earth do you get all of this done in a typical work week? That’s a very good question.
A better question to ask yourself, however, is where is the time that you are supposed to allocate to business expansion and growth? Do you even have a drop down box for that? Running a business is a logistical operation. Maybe I should qualify that to run a particularly successful business you have to be a master logistician and understand business processes, delegation and outsourcing. Why not modify your mind map, or even start off with a new project? You can compare this to your current situation later on. In your new mind map, you will be able to see how delegating to a team of virtual assistants makes a tremendous amount of sense. After all, this is where some business owners start to question the whole process of outsourcing. They feel that their jobs will somehow or other become lost in the ether when they eventually delegate, not understanding that a good team of virtual assistants is led by a first-class online business manager.
In your new mind map, there will be a level immediately below your level which signifies the supervisory level at the virtual assistant enterprise. Now you can see how the power of delegation, together with the logistical application can work wonders for your business operation. Now you don’t have to worry about doing it all yourself and you don’t have to worry about a lack of supervision either. Your work will be accepted, delegated and supervised by an online business manager within the virtual assistant operation. Your next mind map will allow you to brainstorm about all those business expansion projects that had been just sitting dormant, or outline all those long overdue trips that you plan to take with your family this year.