GQ productivity hacks

For media entrepreneur Scott Bidmead, the time he saves through personal outsourcing frees him up to work on his book and practice yoga.

Like many, he started outsourcing his business and gradually stepped it up as he grew more comfortable with not doing things himself. 

“At first I was insourcing: I got better at delegating tasks. Then I started to outsource more of my business, such as my day-to-day duties. Then I thought, ‘Let's go one further and start doing this in my personal life. And it's been a game changer.”

Bidmead uses Fiverr, Freelancer, Airtasker and Gumtree for both one-off and routine tasks, as well getting chef-made meals delivered several times a week. About a year ago he hired a personal assistant via Freelancer. 

“It’s not just a business assistant – I call it having a ‘life admin’ assistant. If there's annoying or time-consuming things that need to be done, like following up with people, paying bills, booking flights, or getting refunds, I get my assistant to do it.” 

“I might think, ‘Oh no, I've got to do this thing, but I also have to do this other thing, which is more important. No worries. I’ll send a quick email to Sandy. Boom – done. Easy.”

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