Q. Dear Meggin, you suggest that we hire someone to do things that can be done by someone else. How does one assess how much money to throw at the problem (as one former professor suggested) in our need for more time?

One of my key principles is that I can always get more money but I can never get more time. The only way to, in essence, give myself more time is to buy myself out of some tasks – by hiring someone else. From the first year I was an assistant professor (and deeply in debt from graduate school, just moved, husband didn’t have a job yet, etc.) I hired a student worker. My husband sort of wondered if I’d completely lost my head but I said, “I’ll never get promotion and tenure if I’m spending my time running back and forth to the library (this was 1988), running copies, etc. I need to be working on my classes and writing.” It was the start of some excellent investments.

Q. I fret over every dollar, wasting time and sometimes spending money on things (better chair/desk/little treats) would save time, but how does one figure out if: 1) one can afford it, 2) how much money it is cost-effective to spend? I heard that one should assess how much one’s time is worth per hour and if someone can do things for cheaper than our hourly rate, that’s one way of getting to the number. What do you suggest?

Part of what you can ask yourself is “What is it costing me NOT to get some help (or a better chair, or a new desk, etc.?” “What am I NOT doing because I’m running copies, calling moving companies, packing boxes, etc.?” “What is the BEST use of my time – in the big scheme of things?”

It’s really pretty amazing how little you can hire people for – and some excellent folks. That’s the good news of 9% (or more) unemployment. There are some great people looking for work. There are also tons of stay at home moms who want some flexibility in their work day. 2 of the women I hire are moms. I also hire project work from people all over the world (using www.elance.com).

1.  Can you pay (a reasonable sum) to have someone else do these tasks? There might be children in your house who would clean up your linen closet/pantry/storage area for $$. Isn’t it worth that to you?

2.  Do you need a professional to help you with a task? What if your carpet is pulling up from the seam and you can’t fix it yourself? Set a specific time every week to make phone calls to professionals to help you with odd tasks like this.

3. Are there tasks that you are afraid of? How about that big project your employer asked you to do? Even if you aren’t going to do the task today, make an outline of what must be done to complete the task. Force yourself to complete one item on the outline before you leave work today.

4.  Are there tasks you hate? Accounting, filing, etc.? Get to work 10 minutes early for the next several days until these items are caught up. Then designate an early morning time to complete the item on a regular basis.

5.  Don’t allow yourself to whine about your procrastination. In the time it takes you to whine, you can often finish the task.

Read Rita Emmett’s book The Procrastinator’s Handbook.

You may also want to access one of the Third Thursday Productivity Time programs:  

Polish Off Procrastination!  Bump Off this Obstacle to Productivity (just $9.97; such a deal!)

• Pick up the phone (vs. emailing endlessly) to try to find a time to set up an appointment.
• Simplify your wardrobe (e.g., choose one color or hue family).
• Make your hair easier to manage (vs. having ‘high maintenance’ hair).
• Use simpler and fewer cosmetics (vs. scores or even hundreds of products).
• Use the simplest of household items (vs. those that are hard to work with due to their complexity or the way they have to be cleaned and put away).

What would you add here?  Please put it in the comment section so we can all benefit!

And if the complexity of your everyday life is just one area that overwhelms you – and you would like to be ‘just whelmed,’ then you’re invited to join others (worldwide) who receive Meggin’s weekly emails (free!) at **I Want to Be Just Whelmed (http://www.JustWhelmed.com)

If you would prefer quick, short weekly tips, then the following site is another place to find suggestions and other tools to support you in your quest for peaceful productivity: **Top Ten Productivity Tips (http://www.TopTenProductivityTips.com)

(c) 2009 by Meggin McIntosh, Ph.D., “The Ph.D. of Productivity”(tm). Through her company, Emphasis on Excellence, Inc., Meggin McIntosh changes what people know, feel, dream, and do. Sound interesting? It is!

Read the following steps…and do them, please.

1. Identify the three areas where you are the most overwhelmed right now. The areas might be big or small, personal or professional, longstanding or brand new. Write down those three right now.
2. Next to each of the three areas, write down just one way that the overwhelm could be lessened.
3. Now, right next to what you just wrote down, note the name of a specific person, business, service, or agency, who could be a source of help.
4. Contact one of these source of help…and ask for the help you need. Please. Just ask.
5. Be brave. You might even trying asking someone for help that you have the feeling that the answer will be “no.” If that’s what the person says, well, you were already thinking that was a possibility. And if the person says, “yes,” then what a wonderful surprise! And it kind of encourages you to ask someone else for help.
6. Either way, please identify the help you need, what would help, who would be a ‘helper,’ and then ask.
7. Start small, but start.

Now, if you are reading this and you are great at asking and trusting others, then I’d encourage you to acknowledge one or more of those people for the help you have received and that they have given. An acknowledgment is much more than a compliment. It affects the person who receives the acknowledgment because it very deliberately touches on what is important and why it matters. For example, a compliment you might give to someone who helped you would be:

“Hey, thanks so much for helping me get this workshop room set up. I appreciate it.”

An acknowledgment for help would be:

“Lisa. You have no idea how much your dependability and attention to detail make this event possible. I could not possibly do this on my own. You think about the participants, you think about the budget, you get to know all the employees at the hotel, and you do all this smoothly and naturally. I notice the way you have everything set ‘just so,’ and I know that everyone who walks in the room knows that he or she is being taken care of. I especially know that and I appreciate it more than you know.”

See the difference (and it’s not just the number of words). And I really do acknowledge and appreciate all the help that my chief productivity assistant, Dr. Lisa Cady, gives to me.

And if you know you are overwhelmed – and part of it is because you never ask for (or expect) help, and you would like to learn more so you can be ‘just whelmed,’ then you’re invited to join others (worldwide) who receive Meggin’s weekly emails (free!) at

**I Want to Be Just Whelmed (http://www.JustWhelmed.com)

If you would prefer quick, short weekly tips, then the following site is another place to find suggestions and other tools to support you in your quest for peaceful productivity:

**Top Ten Productivity Tips (http://www.TopTenProductivityTips.com)

(c) 2009 by Meggin McIntosh, Ph.D., “The Ph.D. of Productivity”(tm). Through her company, Emphasis on Excellence, Inc., Meggin McIntosh changes what people know, feel, dream, and do. Sound interesting? It is!

There are upsides and downsides, depending on your personality, for asking and not asking for help. Here are some possible considerations surrounding asking for help:

• When you ask for help you may now owe someone else some help. AND, when you ask for help, it may be that others feel great about it because you have helped them in the past and now they feel that they’ve been able to repay you to an extent.
• When you ask for help, you no longer can say, “Well, I handle everything myself; I don’t need anyone else.” AND, when you ask for help you can be relieved that you live in an interdependent world rather than an independent one.
• When you ask for help, the other person might say ‘no’ AND you can graciously say, “No problem. Thanks for considering it.”
• When you ask for help and the person helps you, there’s the possibility that s/he might not do a very good job (or at least not up to your standards) AND there’s the possibility that s/he will do a fabulous job.
• There are many other possibilities…and I want you to notice the word AND in each of the ones above. Try getting rid of the word “but” from your language and replace it with “and.” You’ll be surprised, I think, with some of the results.

Few things help an individual more than to place responsibility upon him, and to let him know that you trust him. ~Booker T. Washington

And if you know you are overwhelmed – and part of it is because you never ask for (or expect) help, and you would like to learn more so you can be ‘just whelmed,’ then you’re invited to join others (worldwide) who receive Meggin’s weekly emails (free!) at

**I Want to Be Just Whelmed (http://www.JustWhelmed.com)

If you would prefer quick, short weekly tips, then the following site is another place to find suggestions and other tools to support you in your quest for peaceful productivity:

**Top Ten Productivity Tips (http://www.TopTenProductivityTips.com)

(c) 2009 by Meggin McIntosh, Ph.D., “The Ph.D. of Productivity”(tm). Through her company, Emphasis on Excellence, Inc., Meggin McIntosh changes what people know, feel, dream, and do. Sound interesting? It is!

I would like to start delegating things like going to the store, either for personal or business purchases. If we want to use a credit card for these purchases, how can the people who work for us use the credit card if their name is not on the card? Also, some stores only allow “members” to shop. If I am a member at one of these stores, how can I get access at this store for the people who are working for me? 

I have several possible answers (all of which I have used) to this series of questions:

1. For someone who is a “new” person in terms of just starting to work for you, just give them cash and then they can give you the receipts. I have found that this works fine for purchases under $100 or so. For the people who are long-time independent contractors, I have them keep petty cash on hand.
2. If the person you are delegating to is going to make a larger purchase for you, then make arrangements at the stores to have them charge your credit card or to have the store bill you. This is part of why it’s nice to have relationships with people you do business with. For example, I have worked for at least 15 years with my local printer so when I make requests about handling the bills, there is no question about it because they know me.
3. Once you have found someone who will be working extensively with you, I suggest getting a credit card for this person. I don’t do that right off the bat, needless to say, but once I know someone and know that she will be working for me for some time (and is trustworthy, etc.), then I get her a credit card on my account. This allows that person to go to stores and make purchases and to go online and do some of my ordering for me. So I love this option. It’s not one to rush into, but it’s been fabulous to know that I have a few people that are trusted at this level and they can take care of more tasks than if they didn’t have a credit card that was billed directly to my account.
4. Most of the “big box”/membership stores, like Sam’s and Costco, will allow you to get another card, especially if you have a business account with them. So one possibility is to do that. The other is to check with the people you’re hiring to see if they have a Sam’s or Costco (or whatever) kind of card. Sometimes, they already have a membership and they can get into the store with their card.

Remember, to grow your business, delegate out as much as you possibly can so that you can focus on your primary functions. Finding others you can trust with cash and credit cards is worth the effort (and the checking out!)