Delegation Test in 15 Minutes: Reclaim 8–12 Hours a Week for $75K–$96K Operators
Find 12 hours of delegatable work in 15 minutes. No team required yet. Just clarity on what you should stop doing—and what to hand off first.
The Executive Summary
Operators in the $75K–$96K/month band burn 10–15 hours a week on work others could do for $15–$25/hour; a 15-minute delegation test exposes the top 3 tasks to hand off first.
Who this is for: Founders and operators at $75K–$96K/month who are stuck in 55–60 hour weeks, doing delivery, ops, and admin themselves while growth stalls from lack of real founder capacity.
The Delegation Problem: This article targets the “I can do it faster myself” trap, where 10–15 hours weekly of $150–$300/hour founder time gets spent on $15–$25/hour tasks, quietly taxing you $65,000–$143,000 annually in lost capacity.
What you’ll learn: The 15-Minute Delegation Test, how to build a task inventory from last week’s calendar, calculate a Delegation Score (0–100) using volume, drain, and skill gap, and surface your top 3 delegation targets.
What changes if you apply it: You stop delegating random tasks, recover 8–12 hours weekly by offloading high-score work like email, social, and basic finance, and redirect those hours into sales, systems, and revenue moves worth $15K–$25K/month.
Time to implement: The core test takes 15 minutes total (5 minutes inventory, 5 minutes scoring, 5 minutes prioritizing), with early actions in the first week and full 8–12 hours of recovered capacity within 30–60 days.
Written by Nour Boustani for $75K–$96K/month founders who want a 30–40 hour baseline week and real growth headroom without waiting for a “perfect” team build-out.
You can keep treating 10–15 hours of founder time as non-negotiable or run the test that turns it into leverage. Upgrade to premium and remove the constraint.
Why a 15-Minute Delegation Test Matters
Most founders delegate incorrectly. They hand off the easy stuff they don’t mind doing. They keep the hard stuff that drains them.
Result: You’re still doing everything that matters. Your team does busywork. You’re exhausted. Revenue stays flat.
A 15-minute delegation test reveals:
Which tasks consume hours but deliver zero strategic value
What’s delegatable right now (even without a team)
Are you the bottleneck in a particular area because you won’t let go
Which three tasks should be handed off first for maximum time recovery
Without this test:
Delegating random tasks (no impact)
Keeping high-volume work you hate (burnout)
Building a team around the wrong roles (wasted spend)
Working 60 hours because “only I can do this”
With this test:
Recover 8-12 hours weekly in the first month
Delegate high-ROI tasks first (volume × drain × skill gap)
Know exactly what role to hire first
Free capacity for $15K-$25K monthly revenue expansion
ROI: 15 minutes invested = 400+ hours of clarity annually.
After 15 Minutes, You’ll Have
1. Task Inventory (every activity >30 minutes weekly)
Delivery tasks: Client work, execution
Business tasks: Sales, finance, ops
Strategic tasks: Planning, building, thinking
Admin tasks: Email, scheduling, coordination
2. Delegation Score (0-100 for each task)
Volume score: Hours spent weekly
Drain score: Energy cost (1-10)
Skill gap score: How replaceable you’re
Total score: Identifies highest-value delegation targets
3. Top 3 Delegation Targets (prioritized)
Task #1: [Activity] = [Score] (delegate first)
Task #2: [Activity] = [Score] (delegate second)
Task #3: [Activity] = [Score] (delegate third)
4. First Action (what to delegate this week)
You can immediately:
Hire VA for top task (even before full team)
Batch task for future delegation prep
Stop doing the lowest-value work entirely
This Takes 15 Minutes. Not 2 Hours. Not “Someday.”
You don’t need:
Team in place
Budget for delegation
Systems documentation
Consultant analysis
You need:
Last week’s calendar
15 minutes
Paper and pen
That’s it. Do this right now, before reading the rest of this article. Seriously. The next section is the protocol—but the value is in doing it, not reading about it.
15 minutes. Start timer. Go.
The 15-Minute Delegation Test
Protocol Overview
What you’re doing: Analyzing last week’s tasks to find the highest-ROI delegation targets
What you need:
Calendar (last week)
Paper + pen
Timer (set for 15 minutes)
Expected outcome:
Complete task inventory
Delegation scores calculated
Top 3 targets identified
First action determined
Time breakdown:
Minutes 1-5: Task inventory
Minutes 6-10: Delegation scoring
Minutes 11-13: Priority ranking
Minutes 14-15: First action
Minutes 1-5: Task Inventory
What to do:
Open the calendar, review last week
List every activity that took >30 minutes
For each, write:
Task name
Hours spent
Task type
What you’re looking for:
Delivery: Client work, project execution
Business: Sales, finance, operations
Strategic: Planning, system building
Admin: Email, scheduling, coordination
Don’t overthink categories. Quick and rough is fine.
Minutes 6-10: Delegation Scoring
What to do: For each task, calculate the Delegation Score:
Formula: Delegation Score = (Volume × 2) + (Drain × 3) + (Skill Gap × 5)
Volume (0-10):
0-1 hours weekly = 2
1-3 hours weekly = 5
3-5 hours weekly = 7
5+ hours weekly = 10
Drain (0-10):
Energizing work = 1
Neutral work = 5
Draining work = 10
Skill Gap (0-10):
Only you can do = 1
Others could do 50% as well = 5
Others could do 100% as well = 10
Example calculation:
Task: Email management
Volume: 5 hours weekly = 7
Drain: Very draining = 9
Skill Gap: Anyone could do = 10
Score: (7 × 2) + (9 × 3) + (10 × 5) = 14 + 27 + 50 = 91
Task: Client calls
Volume: 6 hours weekly = 10
Drain: Slightly draining = 6
Skill Gap: Only you (relationships) = 2
Score: (10 × 2) + (6 × 3) + (2 × 5) = 20 + 18 + 10 = 48
Task: Strategic planning
Volume: 2 hours weekly = 5
Drain: Energizing = 2
Skill Gap: Only you (vision) = 1
Score: (5 × 2) + (2 × 3) + (1 × 5) = 10 + 6 + 5 = 21
Calculate scores for all tasks. Higher score = delegate first.
Minutes 11-13: Priority Ranking
What to do:
Rank all tasks by Delegation Score (high to low)
Identify Top 3 Delegation Targets
Calculate time recovery potential
Priority Formula:
Target #1: Highest score = Delegate this week
Target #2: Second highest = Delegate this month
Target #3: Third highest = Delegate next month
Time recovery calculation: Top 3 tasks = 5 + 3 + 2 = 10 hours weekly
If you delegate these three tasks over 90 days, you recover 520 hours annually.
At $150/hour, the founder rate = $78,000 annual capacity value.
Minutes 14-15: First Action
What to do: Decide what to delegate THIS WEEK (even if you don’t have a team yet)
Option 1: Hire VA for Task #1
Upwork/Fiverr for high-score task
5-10 hours weekly
Cost: $300-500/month
Recovery: 5+ hours weekly
Option 2: Batch for Future Delegation
Document process for Task #1
Create SOP (30 minutes)
Ready to hand off when you hire
Option 3: Eliminate Task #1 Entirely
If the score is high but the impact is low
Stop doing it, see what breaks
Most admin tasks: nothing breaks
Choose one action. Do it today.
Read Your Results
If Your Top Score Is 80-100 (Critical Delegation Target)
What this means: You’re spending 5+ hours weekly on draining work that someone else could do perfectly.
Immediate action:
Hire a VA this week for this specific task
Budget: $300-500/month
Expected recovery: 5-8 hours weekly
ROI: $3,000-$6,000 monthly capacity gain
Example: Paz scored E-mail management at 91. Hired a VA for $400/month. VA handles inbox triage, meeting scheduling, E-mail responses.
Result: Recovered 5 hours weekly. Used time for strategic work. Revenue increased $8K/month in 60 days because the founder's time was freed up for high-value activities.
If Your Top 3 Scores Are 60-80 (High-Value Delegation)
What this means: You have 8-12 hours weekly of work that’s moderately draining and mostly replaceable.
Immediate action:
Delegate the top 2 tasks within 30 days
Either hire a part-time VA or document for the future team
Don’t wait for the “perfect” time to delegate
Quick fixes:
Batch Task #1 for one week (build 5-hour SOP documentation time)
Post VA job listing (Upwork, specific to Task #1)
Trial period: 2 weeks, 10 hours total, evaluate fit
Example: Top task: Social media posting (3 hours weekly, score 84)
Action: Hired VA for $15/hour, 3 hours weekly. Documented process in 90 minutes. VA posted content, scheduled posts, and monitored engagement.
Result: Recovered 3 hours weekly = 156 hours annually. Founder time reallocated to sales = $12K additional revenue.
If Your Top Score Is 40-60 (Medium Delegation Priority)
What this means: Your highest-score tasks are either:
Lower volume (2-3 hours weekly)
Moderately draining (bearable)
Require some founder expertise
Immediate action:
Don’t force delegation yet
Focus on eliminating or batching first
Delegate when volume increases, or drain worsens
Quick fixes:
Eliminate low-value parts of the task (cut 30-50% of the time)
Batch task into 1-2 hour blocks (reduce context switching)
Automate repetitive components (tools, templates, systems)
When to delegate:
Task volume grows >5 hours weekly
Drain score increases to 8+
Revenue hits the point where $500/month delegation spend is negligible
If Your Top Score Is <40 (Keep These Tasks)
What this means: These tasks are either:
High strategic value (only you can do)
Low volume (not worth delegation overhead)
Energizing work (you want to keep doing)
Immediate action:
Keep doing these tasks
Protect time for them
Don’t delegate just to delegate
Examples of Keep tasks:
Client relationship calls (high trust value)
Strategic planning (founder vision required)
High-stakes sales conversations (conversion depends on you)
Creative work you love (energizing)
Focus delegation energy elsewhere.
Make It a Monthly Ritual
Why Run This Test Monthly
Task allocation drifts slowly. What was delegatable at $50K might need to stay founder-owned at $100K. What drained you 3 months ago might be energizing now.
Monthly 15-minute test:
Catches new delegation targets (as business grows)
Prevents task creep (you taking back delegated work)
Maintains 8-12 hours weekly capacity
Takes 3 hours yearly, saves 400+ hours yearly
ROI: 133X time investment
Run this on the first Monday of every month. Calendar it now.
Monthly 10-Minute Delegation Check
First Monday every month:
Minutes 1-5: Quick Inventory
Last week’s calendar
List tasks >2 hours weekly
Note any new draining activities
Minutes 6-10: Score Check
Rescore the top 5 tasks from last month
Compare to previous scores
Identify drift
Action:
If a new task scores 70+: Delegate within 30 days
If the delegated task score dropped: Reclaim it
If score stable: Continue current allocation
Track monthly:
Hours delegated: _
Tasks delegated: _
Capacity recovered: _
New delegation targets: _
When to Go Deeper
If delegation targets persist after 3 months of attempts:
You need a systematic delegation infrastructure.
The Delegation Map: Complete framework for what to delegate at every revenue stage
The Quality Transfer: How to delegate 15 hours weekly while maintaining your standards
The 30-Hour Week: Build systems that run your $50K business without you
What You Do in the Next 15 Minutes
Minute 1-5: Pull up last week’s calendar. List every task >30 minutes. Don’t overthink categories.
Minute 6-10: Score each task. Formula: (Volume × 2) + (Drain × 3) + (Skill Gap × 5). Calculator optional.
Minute 11-13: Rank tasks high to low. Identify the top 3. Calculate time recovery potential.
Minute 14-15: Choose one action. Hire a VA, batch for delegation, or eliminate the task. Do it today.
This week: Delegate Task #1 or document process. Don’t wait for perfect conditions.
This month: Delegate Task #2. Build momentum. Recover 8+ hours.
Every month: Run a 10-minute check. Catch drift. Maintain capacity gains.
The Real Cost of Not Delegating
Paz was doing everything. Client calls, project work, admin, social media, email management, financial tracking, and strategic planning.
Revenue: $68K/month. Hours: 58 weekly. Energy: depleted.
The pattern: “I can do it faster myself” became “I can’t scale because I’m doing everything.”
She ran the 15-minute test.
Results:
Email management: Score 91 (5 hours weekly)
Social media: Score 84 (3 hours weekly)
Financial tracking: Score 76 (2 hours weekly)
Total delegation potential: 10 hours weekly
Week 1 action: Hired VA for email management. $400/month. VA handled inbox triage, meeting scheduling, and basic responses.
Result: Recovered 5 hours in first week.
Week 3 action: The Same VA took social media. An additional 3 hours recovered.
Month 2 action: Bookkeeper for financial tracking. $300/month. An additional 2 hours recovered.
Total recovery: 10 hours weekly = 520 hours annually.
Impact on revenue: Those 10 hours went to sales and strategic work. Revenue grew from $68K to $79K in 90 days. $11K/month increase.
Cost of delegation: $700/month.
ROI: $11,000 ÷ $700 = 15.7X return on delegation spend.
The shift: From “I can’t afford to delegate” to “I can’t afford NOT to delegate.”
Your Next Move
You’re spending 10-15 hours weekly on work someone else could do for $15-25/hour.
Your founder's time is worth $150-300/hour.
Every hour you don’t delegate costs you $125-275 in opportunity cost.
That’s $65,000-$143,000 annually in capacity you’re trading for tasks you hate.
Run the 15-minute test today. Hire for Task #1 this week. Recover 5-8 hours in first month.
Or keep doing everything yourself. Watch revenue plateau while you work 60 hours weekly.
Your choice.
FAQ: 15-Minute Delegation Test System
Q: How does the 15-Minute Delegation Test System actually work?
A: You review last week’s calendar, list every task over 30 minutes, score each using volume, drain, and skill gap, then rank the scores to pick the top three delegation targets—all in about 15 minutes.
Q: How many hours can $75K–$96K/month operators realistically reclaim each week with this delegation test?
A: Operators like Paz surface 10 hours of delegatable work weekly and typically reclaim 8–12 hours within 30–60 days by offloading email management, social media, and basic finance.
Q: How much is it costing me to keep doing $15–$25/hour work myself at this revenue level?
A: At a $150–$300/hour founder rate, 10–15 hours weekly of low-level work quietly taxes you $65,000–$143,000 annually in lost capacity and stalled growth.
Q: How do I use the 15-Minute Delegation Test System with its Delegation Score before hiring my first VA?
A: You score each task with Delegation Score = (Volume × 2) + (Drain × 3) + (Skill Gap × 5), then use the highest-scoring task—often 80–100 points like Paz’s 91-point email management—as the single role definition for a 5–10 hour-per-week VA.
Q: What happens if my top Delegation Score is between 80 and 100?
A: An 80–100 score means you’re spending 5+ hours weekly on highly draining, easily replaceable work, so hiring a $300–$500/month VA for that task can free 5–8 hours weekly and convert into $3,000–$6,000 in monthly founder capacity.
Q: What happens if my top three Delegation Scores land between 60 and 80?
A: A cluster of 60–80 scores indicates 8–12 hours weekly of high-value delegation opportunities, so you delegate the top two within 30 days—often reclaiming around 10 hours weekly or 520 hours annually worth roughly $78,000 at $150/hour.
Q: How did Paz’s results change after running this 15-minute test?
A: Paz delegated email management, social media, and financial tracking for about $700/month, recovered 10 hours weekly (520 hours annually), and used that time to grow revenue from $68K to $79K/month—a $11K monthly increase with a 15.7X return on delegation spend.
Q: When should I run the 15-Minute Delegation Test as my business grows from $75K toward $96K/month?
A: Run it once now, again whenever you cross a new revenue band or feel weeks creeping back toward 55–60 hours, and then monthly using the 10-minute check so you maintain 8–12 hours of free capacity and prevent task creep.
Q: What happens if all my top scores are under 40 in this system?
A: Scores under 40 usually mean the work is high-strategic, low-volume, or energizing, so you keep those tasks, protect time for them, and focus delegation on any new tasks that later cross 60–80 as your calendar evolves.
Q: Why do most delegation attempts fail while this 15-minute test keeps working?
A: Random delegation sends low-impact tasks to a VA and leaves founders doing the most draining work, while this system uses a simple 0–100 Delegation Score to consistently prioritize the tasks with the biggest time recovery and lowest skill gap first.
⚑ Found a Mistake or Broken Flow?
Use this form to flag issues in articles (math, logic, clarity) or problems with the site (broken links, downloads, access). This helps me keep everything accurate and usable. Report a problem →
➜ Help Another Founder, Earn a Free Month
If this article just saved you from trading $150–$300/hour founder time for $15–$25/hour tasks, share it with one founder who needs that relief.
When you refer 2 people using your personal link, you’ll automatically get 1 free month of premium as a thank-you.
Get your personal referral link and see your progress here: Referrals
Get The Toolkit
You’ve read the system. Now implement it.
Premium gives you:
Battle-tested PDF toolkit with every template, diagnostic, and formula pre-filled—zero setup, immediate use
Audio version so you can implement while listening
Unrestricted access to the complete library—every system, every update
What this prevents: Letting 10–15 weekly hours of $150–$300/hour founder time vanish into $15–$25/hour tasks.
What this costs: $12/month. A small trade to unlock against the $65,000–$143,000 in annual capacity you lose by never running this 15-minute test.
Download everything today. Implement this week. Cancel anytime, keep the downloads.
Already upgraded? Scroll down to download the PDF and listen to the audio.
