Let Go or Stay Stuck Behind the Counter

Let’s talk about something we see quite a bit in our industry:

Owners (maybe you?) working themselves to the bone, handling every little detail, and wondering why there’s no time left to actually grow the business.

I remember spending 5-6 days/week at my store dealing with daily operations. But today? I’m down to just a few days a week with more time to focus on service, growth, and new opportunities.

Delegation makes a difference.

I get it, it’s easier said than done. We built our businesses from the ground up. Every process, client relationship, and machine has our fingerprints on it. Letting someone else take control feels like handing a baby to a stranger. After all, no one will care about your business as much as you, right?

If you’ve thought that to yourself or concluded “it’s faster if I just do it myself,” you’re stuck in the same trap I was, and it's a tough trap to be in.

When you refuse to delegate, you’re paying a steep price:

• Your business stays small. Research shows CEOs who excel at delegation generate 33% higher revenue.
• You’re constantly putting out fires. When you’re buried in day-to-day tasks, you become reactive instead of proactive.
• Burnout is inevitable. The laundry business already demands long hours. Trying to do everything yourself puts you on the express train to exhaustion.
• Your team never develops. Without responsibility, your team stays dependent on you, and you stay in the never-ending cycle of doing it all.

When laundromat owners get it right, they typically spend a max of 12 hours/week on management.

I’ve almost got it right for me, but it wasn’t easy, and it’s a constant evolution.

What Worked For Me

• Promoted a team member to Team Lead (not Manager – we’ll cover that in another editorial). This person handles team schedules, call-outs, time-off requests, client support, invoicing for commercial clients, and a few other things.
• We purchased support ticketing software to help resolve client issues.
• We implemented a communication platform for the team to quickly reach me, the team lead, and each other.
• We linked our scheduling software to our payroll system, which cut my payroll time from 50 minutes to 10.
• My Team Lead and I created clear processes for team members and clients, then documented them. This allows tasks to be done consistently without my input.
• We treated mistakes as learning opportunities. Instead of micromanaging, we focus on fixing the issue and moving forward.

The most important part was trusting the process and my people. Watching someone do a task differently than I would was tough at first, but I realized that different doesn't mean wrong. In fact, sometimes different ends up being better.

Thinking about the thinking of laundry:
If you want something done right, you have to do it yourself. Said no one with ten or more laundromats.

Five Tasks to Delegate in Your Business

1. Daily operations management
   This includes opening/closing, machine maintenance checks, and supply inventory.
2. Staff scheduling and basic HR tasks
   Time off requests, shift swaps, and payroll can all be handled by a trusted team lead.
3. Client service and complaints
   With proper training and clear guidelines, your team can handle 90% of client issues.
4. Routine bookkeeping
   Basic invoicing, receipt tracking, and expense categorization can be delegated (but still review the numbers).
5. Social media and basic marketing
   Someone on your team probably has the skills and interest to take this on.

When you delegate, it becomes a part of your business’s DNA. You have more time to focus on growth, your team becomes more engaged, and the business becomes more valuable.

That's all I got for you today.

Waleed

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Echoing the thoughts of Richard Branson.

If you really want to grow as an entrepreneur, you’ve got to learn to delegate.