Stop Asking “How"—Start Asking “Who": The Small Business Shift That Changes Everything
- Anna Steinfest
- Jun 22
- 2 min read
Are You Stuck in the "How" Trap? You have the ideas. The drive. The passion. But you’re drowning in details.
If you’re like most small business owners, your to-do list reads like a full-time job (or three): design the website, post on social, run the numbers, manage the team, and maybe squeeze in a lunch break if you're lucky.
And your inner voice? It keeps asking: "How can I do this? How can I fit it all in?"
What if that question is the very thing slowing you down?
The Power of "Who Not How"
Enter Dan Sullivan’s transformational mindset: Who Not How.
Instead of asking, "How do I get this done?" the real question is: "Who can help me do this?"
This subtle shift changes everything. It turns overwhelm into momentum. Pressure into partnership. And time scarcity into time freedom.
Why "How" Slows Us Down
Every time you ask "how," you unintentionally make yourself the bottleneck. You pause to learn something new, figure it out, do it imperfectly—and move slower.
And while that grit may have built your business, it won't scale it.
Real Story: Sarah, the Bakery Owner. Take Sarah, a bakery owner juggling early morning baking, invoices, emails, and social media.
She dreamed of launching catering and expanding online, but kept saying, "I don’t have time."
When she shifted from "how can I do this?" to "who can help me?", things changed. She hired a part-time operations assistant and a freelance photographer. Within six months, revenue doubled, and her work-life balance drastically improved.
3 Simple Steps to Start Thinking "Who Not How"
Audit Your Time Drains - List 3–5 recurring tasks you dislike or procrastinate. These are your first hand-off candidates.
List Roles, Not Tasks - Think: virtual assistant, copywriter, bookkeeper. What "Whos" could take this off your plate?
Take a Tiny Step - You don’t need a full team tomorrow. Try one project. One new hire. One ask in your network.
Ready to Find Your "Who"? To help you take action, I’ve created a simple worksheet called the "Who Not How Clarity Map". It walks you through identifying where you’re stuck and what kind of "who" could help move you forward.
Download the free worksheet here:
Remember, leadership isn't about doing everything. It's about building the right team to do the right things.
Start asking "Who?" and watch your business transform.
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