The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss has been floating around our office. As Sūmèr grows, I’ve been trying to set systems in place so I don’t work myself to death. Two weeks ago, I decided to reread this book and, this time, implement Ferris’s advice.
On a Monday, I made the decision to start delegating more. Two days later, at a networking event, I was introduced to Sarah Hays, co-owner of YuDu, a personal concierge company that helps business and individuals fulfill their daily to-do lists.
I cannot do it all. As much as I’d like to think I can, I can’t. So, I hired YuDu to help me with some business tasks and asked co-owner Sarah Hays if she’d share her expertise and services with our blog readers. Below is the interview.
Sūmèr: What benefits do YuDu’s services bring to a business?
Sarah: YuDu’s benefits to businesses are twofold. On one hand, we are an alternative to part-time or temp employment, allowing businesses to have “on demand” temporary assistance with specific jobs such as filing, invoicing, mailings, supply runs, etc. This allows more flexibility for a business that is not in a position to permanently increase the size of their staff or team. Letting YuDu perform these tasks also allows businesses to better utilize their full-time team members in other areas, such as marketing, sales, or design.
YuDu can also help a business to increase the productivity of employees by taking on their personal errands. This allows employees to focus their time and efforts on work, rather than stress over external errands. For example, YuDu can do a company’s dry cleaning run, a bank run, a Post Office run, meet contractors at employees’ (or owners’) homes to start repair projects or even obtain reliable estimates for work around the home.
Sūmèr: What’s the main struggle you see business owners dealing with?
Sarah: The main struggle we encounter with regard to business owners is time management. Many business owners have a hard time saying no, thus causing them to become inundated with places to be and things to do. As a result, some of the every day (or weekly/monthly) tasks that keep the company running are ignored. Typically, we find that entrepreneurs burn a candle at both ends. It does not take them long to realize that there are areas of their personal and professional life that simply need help. That is where we come in and help alleviate the stress and work to get things back on track.
Sūmèr: Business owners have a tendency to micromanage everything. Letting go of managing and doing specific tasks and delegating to others can be difficult, even though it’s necessary to grow a thriving business. What can you do for them to make their lives easier?
Sarah: Business owners are people, too, and we run into this problem as well with nonbusiness clients who are used to micromanaging their families’ (and even sometimes friends’) lives. Usually we find that if clients are in need of help, especially if they have a lot of tasks, it takes them some time to wrap their brain around their to-do list and explain each task. The great thing is that once they explain their tasks one time, whether in person, by phone, by email, or through our website, we can tackle the tasks without intruding much in their day. The best part, for ongoing clients, is that we work hard to learn their personalities, expectations, and likes and dislikes so that we are able to take on their to-do lists with fewer questions.
Our website and client pages also allow our clients to submit new tasks at any time as well as monitor the status of those tasks and the time it takes to do them. We know our clients are busy so this form of communication allows us to keep them abreast on what has been completed without inundating their day with nagging phone calls and updates. Ultimately, we use the clients’ preferred form of communication whether it be text, email, internet, or phone. We just like to provide them with convenient options.
Another way we make their life easier is making our service “on demand.” Clients buy a block of time (from 30 minutes to 5 hours), and as they need us, they contact us. The time does not expire, and we work in 6-minute time increments so that we can accurately fulfill the time they have purchased. By being “on demand,” clients can contact us immediately, and their tasks can usually be completed within 24 hours or less.
Sūmèr: Do people have a hard time delegating tasks to you even after they’ve hired you? If so, how do you help them cope with their decision and the work you do?
Sarah: Yes, on occasion we come upon clients who have difficulty delegating their to-do lists. Usually, we try to get them to talk a bit about what led them to contact us and take notes on different areas where we can help. Sometimes, clients are not even aware of all that we do, and they are pleasantly surprised that we can help them in so many ways. There are some people, though, who feel bad about asking someone else to do things for them. They think it reflects negatively on the type of person that they are. What I tell them is that we are really just facilitators who work to be their extra set of hands, or essentially an extension of themselves. We work to minimize the stress caused by nagging to-do lists and allow them to focus on more significant obligations in their lives, whether it’s board meetings, extra patients, or even quality time with their friends and family.
Sūmèr: What would you say to an entrepreneur who needs your help but is hesitant?
Sarah: Think about what your time is worth. Literally calculate the value of an hour of your time. Then consider your to-do list and decide which of those things is worth an hour, or more, of your time versus spending your time focusing on other priorities. You may rather spend an hour of your Saturday afternoon at the park with your kids, rather than grocery shopping. There may also be times when weekday meetings run late and your dogs have been waiting since breakfast to be let out. All clients have to do is prioritize their obligations and give YuDu a list of those things that need to be done, thus allowing them to focus on other areas of their personal and professional lives.
Sūmèr: How have your clients’ lives changed after working with you? Specifically, what do many of them say helped the most? Has it helped their business grow? What have they had more time to do because of your services?
Sarah: We received this comment from a business client of ours on Friday: “You are a life saver—who knew how much stress could be released simply by having a little helping hand? I’m already compiling a list for the next set of hours I buy! I’m recommending you to all my clients and colleagues.”
I know that this particular client had reached a point in her life where she was consumed by stress. As a local book publisher, she was trying to figure out how to best serve her current clients, manage the day-to-day stresses of her business, and still grow her company—all the while enjoying out-of-town weekends with her husband. We do simple things like mailings, local deliveries, and grocery runs that give her several extra hours per week to edit her clients’ work and make art and print decisions. This allows her to have the extra time she needs to relax, refocus, and reenergize.
Sūmèr: What’s the oddest request you’ve ever had?
Sarah: We have not had an odd request yet. Now that we say that, I’m sure one will come our way soon! Most of our requests involve local errands (dog walking, grocery runs, mailings, meeting contractors at clients’ homes, etc.). However, every now and then we get asked to do special things such as getting estimates for a custom picture frame from local framers. We just need to make some phone calls and present the information to the client in a form that would allow him or her to make an informed decision.
We were also asked to travel with a client to Columbia to load and unload boxes/materials for an event.
Sūmèr: What area do you serve specifically?
Sarah: We cater to clients in the Charleston Tri-County area and will soon be franchising to other parts of the state and country. We will travel for local clients at their request.
Contact YuDu today at (843)972.4008 or send Sarah and Abby an email at contact@yudulist.com.
Sūmèr: How do your blogsites differ from traditional websites?
