Casey Cooper, 39, mother of Madeleine, 7, and Thatcher, 5; founder of Botanicals Inc., a floral and event design firm in Chicago. Number of employees: 15 to 50.My story: Acting was my first passion, so working in floral shops used to be my survival job. I loved the flexible schedule, which allowed me to go on auditions and do theater gigs at night. But this pay-the-rent work ultimately left me dissatisfied: Though the creativity of arranging flowers nurtured that side of me, I just didn't like being told what to do. So in 1993, I started a home business, offering event consultations in my dining room and arranging flowers on top of the washing machine in the basement. Word spread like wildflowers, and before long, my business was my new passion.I founded Botanicals Inc. officially in 1995, thinking I'd spend my days designing events and creating one-of-a-kind floral displays. What I didn't realize was that the more my business grew, the further away it would take me from doing what I love. I was neck-deep in operational tasks instead of creative ones. I realized I had to hire help and start delegating, or the business would swallow every hour of my day. Letting go and trusting others was a huge challenge for me, since I saw myself as the heart and soul of what made my business successful. No one could relate to customers, find pristine flowers or bargain with vendors like I did. Or could they? My first step was to accept the fact that because I was trying to do everything, I wasn't doing anything well. I needed a management team. To figure out where I needed the most help, I considered the business tasks I love and the tasks that I, well, hate. The goal was to delegate the less-than-favorite stuff that just ate away at my time. At the top of my list was managing the office. Paying bills, overseeing payroll, paying sales tax-—it was exhausting. To help with these tasks, I hired an office manager. Of course, there were tasks I absolutely had to be involved with (like them or not). So I began to bring on others who could eventually chip in once I had trained them. For example, it was hard to meet with each and every potential customer face-to-face. So I hired a team of four design/sales consultants to handle meetings. Along the way, I have also hired a hard-goods manager, who is in charge of supplies like vases and props, a logistics manager, who figures out who and what is going where and in which truck, and a flower purchasing and processing manager, who finds the highest-quality flowers at the best price.Now, on my Sundays and Mondays off, I can actually relax with my children. I don't even check email! The best part? I spend more time in the studio, doing what I love best—working on beautiful floral designs.   Lessons Learned1: Study. First read The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It, by Michael E. Gerber. This book will give you tips on how to surround yourself with a great team. 2: Delegate. Figure out what you dread doing most and hand it off to someone else as soon as possible. If it's something you like, but someone else could do it, decide how much time you have for it. If the answer is "zero," delegate. 3: Use the help you hire. A lot of people hire managers but continue to do the bulk of the work themselves. Set up expectations and hold your team accountable. The more effectively you employ your team, the more time you'll have for the passion of your business.4: Make your business fit your lifestyle, not the other way around. Decide what you want your life to look like, then build your business around it. When weddings were devouring my weekends, I started going after corporate accounts to better balance our hours.5: Build a home management team, too. Making time for my kids rather than dwelling on the huge pile of laundry requires a home team. Ask yourself what tasks create stress, either because you can't find time for them or because you dread them. That will show you who should be on this team. It might include a babysitter and a lawn or meal-preparation service. You get to decide!Ask a ProHow to Build A Management TeamMost moms create a business around a passion. But as operational needs take over, the bulk of their time is spent building a team to do the very work they are so passionate about. How do you learn how to put the right people in all the right positions? Try these tips from Rita Gunther McGrath, PhD, an associate professor at Columbia Business School and coauthor of The Entrepreneurial Mindset and MarketBusters. If you're a yin, find a yang. Honestly assess your own strengths and weaknesses as a leader and manager. Are you someone who thrives on vision and passion but has trouble getting around to administrative stuff? Are you emotional and reactive? Take too long to act because you like to mull things over? Look for good counterparts on your team. Don't bring on people who operate the same way you do because it's comfortable. This isn't about feeling good—it's about correcting for your own blind spots.Set ground rules. Some good working rules for small companies:

• Be candid.
• Be on time. Keep your commitments.
• Talk openly about mistakes and how to make corrections. Share new concepts and insights regularly. Don't do all the talking. Do speak up if you have a good idea.
• Choose skills over pals. Your friend Suzie who was a crack technical writer in her last job might not have the right background to take over your marketing program. And friendship can often interfere with the discipline you need and the performance expectations you have.
• Hire varied thinkers. If you populate a business with people who are very like one another, you won't get the creativity and new ideas that come when different experiences and points of view interact. You may also miss important ideas about different markets or new technologies.
• Be frank. It may be easier in the short run to avoid giving negative feedback. But it's critical in building an effective organization. Your critiques should be fact-based and honest and should stress results and customer satisfaction.