Personal Outsourcing for Success

Outsourcing is considered a cliché in today’s society.  Surprisingly, I find the culture in Manhattan very open to “personal outsourcing”; that is to say, taking tasks that you would/could normally do and hire/pay someone else to do them for you.  For example, I can go to the store and buy groceries.  Unfortunately, I work 12+ hours per day, want to go to the gym for an hour, better myself, and sleep.  Luckily for me, I can simply spend 10 minute online and order a weeks worth of food and have it delivered next day to my apartment at the time I choose.  This is a huge convenience for me and the people I spend time with.  This leads me to the point of personal outsourcing.

For those that have read The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss , you know that the goal is to delegate a lot of tasks to others in order to gain free time to do the things you want to do.  Personal outsourcing is just that.  Look at what you want to do and find time to do it.  I’ve picked up countless hours throughout my week which has enabled me to explore Manhattan, try new foods, meet new people, and enjoy the activities I love. 

My first step in finding out what I can outsource was simple: laundry.  I have to wear a suit and dress shirt every day to work and washing/ironing/etc. every week is monotonous and a waste of time.  I started with 4-5 loads of laundry per week and now I’m down to 2 (these are very small washers/dryers).  The remainder I take to the dry cleaners and they wash, press, starch, and hang all of the laundry for me.  Yes, I have to pay for that, but this simple outsourcing enables me to focus on what I want to do.

Now I focus on work, helping with a university club, brainstorming new startup ideas, rock climbing, and cutting stress from my busy life.