Why Staying In Your Wheelhouse Is The Key To Business Success: Stop Trying To Be An Expert At Something You’re Not!

As a business owner, our expertise and vision are the driving forces behind our company’s success. 

However, the demands of running a business can often pull us in multiple directions, making it challenging to stay focused on what we do best.

This is where the concept of “staying in our wheelhouse” becomes crucial.

By concentrating on your core competencies and delegating tasks to experts in other areas, we can greatly enhance our productivity, drive growth, and ensure long-term success. 

In this blog, I explore the importance of staying in our wheelhouse, how to identify our core strengths, and strategies for effective delegation – so that we stay put.

Understanding The Wheelhouse Concept

The term “wheelhouse” originates from nautical terminology, referring to the enclosed part of a boat or ship where the steering wheel is located. In business, staying in your wheelhouse means focusing on areas where you have the most expertise, experience, and passion. It involves recognising your strengths and leveraging them to their fullest potential while entrusting other tasks to professionals who excel in those areas.

Some Key reasons as to why staying in our wheelhouse is key

  1. Maximising Efficiency and Productivity

When we concentrate on our core competencies, we are more likely to perform tasks efficiently and effectively (none of that YouTubing or ChatGPT-ing research for something that could potentially be a one time thing). 

This focus allows us to make the best use of our time and resources, which ultimately leads to higher productivity. 

For instance, if your strength lies in strategic planning, dedicating your efforts to developing long-term business strategies will yield better results than if you were to spend time on bookkeeping,  IT management or learning how to run our own Google or Facebook Ads.

  1. Ensuring Quality and Excellence

By staying in our wheelhouse we ensure that we maintain a high standard of quality in our work. Because we are focusing on what we do best, we can deliver superior products or services that meet or exceed customer expectations. 

Conversely, by attempting to manage tasks outside our expertise there is a high risk that it may result in subpar outcomes, potentially damaging our reputation and credibility.

  1. Fostering Innovation and Growth

As business owners, when we are bogged down with tasks outside our wheelhouse, it stifles innovation and growth. 

By learning how to delegate these tasks to trained experts, we free up time and mental space to think creatively, explore new opportunities, and drive your business forward. 

This approach enables us to stay ahead of the competition and adapt to changing market dynamics.

  1. Enhancing Work-Life Balance

Running a business can be all-consuming, often leading to burnout and stress. By staying in our wheelhouse and delegating other responsibilities, we can achieve a better work-life balance. This balance is essential for maintaining our health, well-being, and overall satisfaction, ultimately contributing to the sustainability of our business.

How to Identify Our Core Strengths

But …. What is our wheelhouse?

Here are some steps to help you pinpoint your areas of expertise:

  1. Self-Assessment

What do you get excited about?  What gets you all animated and excited?  Where does your brain turn to when left to its own devices.

In my business – playing and designing cool automations is like a computer game for me – I can spend hours tweaking and refining.

One of my automation colleagues demonstrated this beautifully with this parody video from Queen’s Gambit – this is literally what is going on in my brain when I’m daydreaming

  1. Feedback from Others

Seek feedback from colleagues, employees, mentors, and clients. Their perspectives can offer a different viewpoint on your strengths and areas where you add the most value. Constructive feedback helps validate your self-assessment and highlights any blind spots you may have missed.

There is a fantastic exercise in the Multiplier’s book by Liz Wiseman – “Name the Genius”.  This is great as a team bonding exercise too (I speak from first hand experience)

The “Name the Genius” exercise involves a series of questions that help leaders pinpoint and articulate the distinctive strengths of their team members. The goal is to understand what each person does exceptionally well and how they can contribute most effectively to the team’s success.

Questions to Identify Native Genius

  • What do they do better than anything else they do?

   – This question helps to identify the activities or tasks where the individual excels naturally and performs with ease.

  • What do they do better than the people around them?

   – This focuses on distinguishing the individual’s unique strengths in comparison to their peers.

  • What do they do without being asked?

   – This question aims to uncover the tasks or activities that the individual naturally gravitates towards and takes initiative on without needing external prompts.

  • What do they do readily without being paid?

   – This reveals the passions and intrinsic motivations of the individual, highlighting what they love to do even in the absence of monetary incentives.

  • What do they do voluntarily?

   – Similar to the previous question, this focuses on the activities or tasks the individual willingly undertakes without coercion or external pressure.

  • What do they do where there appears to be an unlimited supply of energy?

   – This helps identify activities that energise the individual, where they can work for extended periods without feeling drained.

  • What do they do that they can’t stop doing?

   – This question targets the individual’s deeply ingrained habits or routines that they consistently engage in, often without conscious thought.

  1. Analyse Your Successes

Review your past successes and identify the common factors that contributed to them. Whether it’s a particular skill, knowledge area, or approach, understanding what has worked well for you in the past can guide you in recognising your core strengths.

Take a moment to reflect on the significant milestones and achievements in your career. Think about those standout moments when everything came together perfectly. Was it a successful project, a goal you hit, or perhaps an award you received?

Consider the feedback from partners, collaborators, and clients. Have you gathered testimonials and case studies? What do your clients celebrate about you? Where do you get results for them that felt easy?

  1. Professional Development

Does engaging in continuous professional development to stay updated with industry trends and enhance your skills feel like fun? 

This ongoing learning process not only strengthens your expertise but also helps you stay relevant and competitive in your field.  If it feels like a chore, or that you’d rather be doing ‘anything’ else, then you’re probably not following your passion.

Embracing Your Native Genius

At our agency, we’ve identified our native genius in the design and build of customer journeys. That’s not to say that it wasn’t a journey to find it.

We’ve been a full service marketing agency.

We’ve worked with the wrong ‘type of client’.

We tried to fit many square pegs into round holes.

Now, doubling down on this expertise allows us to create seamless and impactful experiences for our clients’ customers. 

By recognising and doubling down on this core competence, we delegate and collaborate on areas outside our wheelhouse, such as creative and traffic, copy, to specialised experienced professionals.

Strategies for Effective Delegation

Once you have identified your core strengths, the next step is to delegate tasks outside your wheelhouse to experts. 

Effective delegation involves more than just assigning tasks; it requires careful planning (see this blog on not being LastMinute.com), communication, and trust:

  1. Identify Delegation Opportunities

Start by listing all the tasks you handle regularly and categorise them based on your core strengths. Identify tasks that can be delegated, such as administrative work, technical support, marketing, or financial management. 

Prioritise delegating tasks that consume significant time and effort but do not align with your expertise.

  1. Choose the Right People

Select individuals or teams with the necessary skills, experience, and reliability to handle the delegated tasks. This may involve hiring new employees, outsourcing to specialised agencies, or collaborating with freelancers. Ensure that the chosen professionals align with your business values and goals.

  1. Clear Communication (this is probably the most important point)

Effective delegation requires clear and concise communication. 

Provide detailed instructions, expectations, and deadlines for the tasks being delegated. 

What is the ‘definition of done’ (A Scrum term – more on this in our Sprint blog).

How do you want it handed over to you and what does on track, off track and at risk look like?

Establish open channels of communication to address any questions or concerns that may arise. 

Regular check-ins and progress updates help ensure that tasks are on track and meet your standards.

  1. Empower and Trust

Empower the individuals you delegate tasks to by giving them the authority and autonomy to make decisions, if you’ve clearly communicated and set expectations and you’re not setting them up to fail by asking them to do something outside of their wheelhouse – they’ll fly.  (Don’t ask a fish to climb a tree)

Trust their expertise and avoid micromanaging, as this can undermine their confidence and efficiency. Provide the necessary resources and support to help them succeed in their roles.

Again the Liz Wiseman book Multipliers is a fantastic eye opener for this.

It’s important to trust your team, it’s also crucial to monitor progress and provide constructive feedback. Regularly review the completed tasks to ensure they meet your quality standards and align with your business objectives. 

Offer feedback that highlights strengths and areas for improvement, fostering a culture of continuous learning and growth. 

And ALWAYS – Acknowledge and Appreciate

Recognise and appreciate the efforts and achievements of those who contribute to your business. Acknowledging their hard work and dedication not only boosts morale but also strengthens the relationship and encourages ongoing collaboration.

Real-World Examples

To illustrate the importance of staying in your wheelhouse, let’s consider some real-world examples:

Steve Jobs – Focusing on Innovation

Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple Inc., was known for his visionary approach to technology and design. He stayed in his wheelhouse by focusing on product innovation and user experience, leaving operations and technical details to experts like Steve Wozniak and Tim Cook. This focus allowed Jobs to drive ground-breaking innovations, such as the iPhone and iPad, propelling Apple to global success.

Warren Buffett – Investment Strategy

Warren Buffett, one of the most successful investors of all time, attributes his success to staying in his wheelhouse. Buffett focuses on investment strategy and decision-making, leveraging his deep knowledge of the financial markets. He delegates operational tasks to managers within his companies, allowing him to concentrate on high-level investment decisions and long-term growth.

Elon Musk – Technological Visionary

Elon Musk, the entrepreneur behind companies like Tesla and SpaceX, stays in his wheelhouse by focusing on technological innovation and strategic direction. Musk’s expertise lies in envisioning and developing cutting-edge technologies, while he relies on specialised teams to handle manufacturing, logistics, and day-to-day operations. This approach has enabled Musk to revolutionise multiple industries.

Staying in your wheelhouse as a business owner is essential for maximising efficiency, ensuring quality, fostering innovation, and maintaining a healthy work-life balance. By identifying core strengths and delegating tasks to experts, you can focus on what you do best and drive your business towards sustained success. Remember, effective delegation is not just about offloading tasks; it’s about empowering others, building trust, and fostering a collaborative environment. Embrace the power of staying in your wheelhouse, and watch your business thrive.