Breaking the Bottleneck: How to Get Out of Your Own Way in Business
- ellis434
- Jul 11
- 2 min read
Practical strategies to delegate, automate, and clarify your processes—so your business runs smoother without everything depending on you.
If you're running a small business and constantly thinking, "I’m the reason things are moving slow", you're not alone. Many entrepreneurs reach a point where growth stalls—not because of a bad product or lack of customers—but because they’re the bottleneck.
It’s a tough realization, but it’s also a powerful opportunity. Recognizing that you’re in your own way means you're ready to build something bigger than yourself.
So what do you do when you feel like the bottleneck?
Let’s walk through three core solutions—delegation, automation, and process clarity—plus how to set measurable goals that help you step out of the choke point and back into leadership.
1. Delegate What Drains You
If everything runs through you, nothing moves efficiently. Delegation isn’t about dumping tasks—it’s about freeing yourself to do what only you can do.
Start by identifying tasks that:
Burn your time but not your brainpower
Could be done 80% as well by someone else
Regularly delay other parts of your workflow
Examples to delegate:
Social media scheduling
Email responses or customer support
Invoice reminders and follow-ups
Editing, formatting, or publishing content
Set a measurable goal:
✅ Hire a virtual assistant for 5–10 hours/week within 30 days
✅ Train someone else to handle customer intake calls by the end of the quarter
2. Automate What’s Repetitive
If you're repeating the same 5-10 steps every week, a system can likely do it for you.
Automation doesn’t have to be high-tech or expensive.
Think about:
Scheduling tools (Calendly, Acuity)
Email templates and auto-responders
Payment reminders or invoice automation
CRM workflows for leads or client onboarding
Set a measurable goal:
✅ Set up 3 email templates and 2 autoresponders this week
✅ Automate recurring invoices for all existing clients by next month
3. Clarify the Process (So You’re Not Always Needed)
Sometimes you’re the bottleneck simply because the process lives in your head. If no one else knows what to do or how you do it, everything waits on you.
Start small:
Write out your core processes (in plain language)
Use checklists, templates, or SOPs (standard operating procedures)
Store them in one shared place—Google Drive, Notion, or Trello
Clarity creates freedom. Even if you’re still doing the work yourself, defining how things get done helps you offload them later.
Set a measurable goal:
✅ Document your client onboarding process in a 1-page checklist by Friday
✅ Create a repeatable weekly workflow for content publishing by the end of the month
Final Thought: You’re Not Lazy. You’re Ready to Grow.
Feeling like a bottleneck is not a personal failure—it’s a signal that your business has outgrown the “do-it-all-yourself” stage.
Set one small delegation goal. Automate one repeating task. Clarify one process that lives only in your head.
Then commit to stepping into your next role—not just as the worker, but as the leader.
Ready to stop bottlenecking your own business?
Pick one area—delegation, automation, or process clarity—and set your 30-day goal today.
Ellis Bledsoe, Principal/Owner
ECB Solutions, LLC
