In the early days of any business, most founders wear too many hats. You're the product lead, marketer, customer service rep and ops manager — sometimes all in the same afternoon.

I've been there. When I was launching my first AI startup, I was writing code, answering support tickets, hacking on SEO and trying to figure out Google Ads at night. Every time I jumped from one thing to another, I paid a tax: ramp-up time, mental fatigue, missed details.

Eventually, I drew a line: if a function had a steep learning curve, wasn't core to the product or customer experience, and could burn cash fast if I got it wrong, it had to go.

Here are the first three things I outsourced — what worked, what didn't and how I make the decision now.

Related: How to Turn Big Business Moments Into Lasting Brand Momentum

I took a real swing at it. I set up campaigns, followed Google's recommendations and even tried Performance Max. One day it would "work," the next day I'd spend $90 to make a $24........

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