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	Go vs. Grow Exercise for Hirers

On the "GO" or on the "GROW"?

Stop and think for a moment. There is a big difference, we think you’ll agree, between working in a business, and working on a business. Working on the business involves making the business grow (business development), while working in the business involves making the business go (business administration). As a professional, you should be spending the majority of your time working on the business. 

The following exercise will help you develop a sense of “where the hours go,” and will also serve as a guide for drafting a job description for your VA.

Exercise One: Your Personal Time Audit

To understand where your time goes, you must first determine how you actually spend it. One of the best ways to do this is to take a moment for a day or two and keep a simple log of your activities. (The log will also help you maintain your objectivity, rather than “guessing” or “assuming.”) 

On the next pages, you will find “Time Audit Worksheets” that will help you to accurately track what you actually do over a two-day period. And while it’s true that monitoring your activities will require a certain amount of your valuable time, keep in mind that it will pay benefits for some time to come, by providing the foundation for your “virtual action plan.” 

Using the Time Audit Worksheets (TAW):
Download Time Audit Worksheet here. (PDF file will require Acrobat Reader)

1.) Select a two-day period (or two non-consecutive days) that you expect to be typical for you, and keep the TAW handy so you can track actual activity rather than “remembered” activity.

2.) The two columns to the right of the time increments are marked “P” and “B”, and should be used to indicate whether an activity was Personal or Business-related.

3.) In the Activity column, briefly note the task you were involved in during the time specified on the left. 

4.) If the activity is a “GROW”-oriented task, place an “X” in the “GROW” column. If it is “GO”-oriented, place an “O” in the “GO” column.

5.) Each time your activities are interrupted, mark the “I” column with either an “X” (if the interruption was a “GROW” activity) or an “O” (if it was a “GO” activity). If the interruption takes on a life of it’s own and consumes 30 minutes or more of your time, be sure to add it to the Activity column. Also, make a brief note about the nature of each interruption in the “Interruptions” section at the end of the second sheet.

As an example, a TAW might look something like this:

Looking at the Outcomes of Your Time Audit
Now that you have a “snapshot” of your typical day, it’s time to draw conclusions, set goals, and take action toward achieving those goals.

Based on what your time audit revealed, answer the following questions:

Do you spend the majority of your time on “GO” or “GROW” activities?

Were you surprised at how many interruptions you deal with every day?

Are your professional skills being underutilized on a typical day?

Are you in control of your activities, or in their control?

If you outsource many of your “GO” activities to a competent assistant, how many hours in a week do you estimate you could reclaim for “GROW” activities?