With the hustle and bustle of life as a female entrepreneur, bothering some burnout is unavoidable. That’s why I want to discuss how you can get yourself a fairy godmother in business, apart from business mentors, who will help you to lighten your load.
A virtual assistant can be your saving grace. They are an affordable, remote team member who take over the tasks you don’t want to do or don’t have time to do. It could be anything from responding to customer emails, organizing your calendar and events, helping with research and data entry, managing social media accounts, and more!
Ladies, it’s time to accept that sometimes we all need assistance. Too many entrepreneurs feel overwhelmed and stressed by the sheer work required to keep their business in running once it starts growing. We must focus on improving our unique skills which make us valuable and will help you to generate maximum returns for your hard work.
Enough of sacrificing family time and fun activities to complete routine administrative tasks; say goodbye to rewriting captions or spending hours on scheduling social media posts. It would be best if you also said farewell to the days you curse at your computer when every time reports don’t add up. Get a Virtual Assistant today, they can do all these for you!
Our women business coaches believe that anything which you repeatedly do in your business, which you don’t enjoy at all, should be passed on to a virtual assistant.
By hiring a VA, you can find an expert to accomplish your business tasks in just a few minutes. Instead of spending hours and hours on boring work that takes away the joy of completing the work free up some extra time by delegating those duties to someone who specialized in them. You could see significant improvements already with as little as two hours per week!
A virtual assistant can be affordable and can significantly reduce your burden by taking tedious tasks out of your hands. In addition, they will likely become more skillful in their role than you ever could, allowing extra time to focus on other aspects of your business.
When managing a Virtual Assistant, the most significant hurdle for many entrepreneurs is that they feel obligated to “train” their VA. While this may be true in some cases, there are ways around it, as our international business mentors suggested! Begin with more straightforward tasks and work your way up; anything you can show someone how to do quickly or something they already know should fit this criterion perfectly. Furthermore, by adding new tasks at regular intervals – weekly/monthly, depending on your budget, you’ll save yourself plenty of time in the long run!
To be a successful Virtual Assistant you need to comprehend your vision, mission, values, and brand. Seek out for the person who can genuinely understand these components, they need to know how to complete the required tasks and present them in line with what your business stands for.
I am aware that I take my time. Unless a task is urgent and approaching its deadline, procrastination is usually the way to go for me; cramming has been something of an old habit. Having a Virtual Assistant, however, forced me to start producing systems and processes they could use while helping out. Rome wasn’t built in just one day, but it’s best if we try! With that mindset, starting with more straightforward tasks felt like the best approach this will not only give her an idea of how I work but also help to build our trust over time.
I was pleasantly surprised that I discovered many improvements when I documented my operations to transfer them. Automation applications and software allowed me to streamline specific processes while getting another set of eyes on the project enabled us to generate fresh ideas with which we could expand our prospects. As a home business coach, I am familiar with many advantages of obtaining an outside perspective on projects.
So don’t get overwhelmed – get excited!
What you must accomplish? Be aware of the tasks and estimated completion times. Here are some activities a VA must take care of:
- Checking emails
- Preparing proposals
- Following up with clients
- Making sure projects and tasks are complete
- Post to social media
- Create social media posts
- Basic graphic designs
- File taxes
- Update QuickBooks
- Make sales calls
- Follow up on unpaid invoices
- Communicate with clients to understand what you need to do.
Create a Virtual Assistant Roadmap
To ensure that you’re optimizing your day, keep track of all your tasks and activities, give each one an energy rating, and then decide what you should delegate. Imagine how more energized and productive your days would become if those draining obligations were no longer a part of them!
Streamline this process by downloading the Ultimate VA Task list, highlighting your current tasks. Chances are that there may be more to add to this checklist! When you see a visual representation of everything you’re doing and can easily outsource it with a VA’s help, your mind will likely be blown away. With one glance at your completed list, understand which duties need no longer take up space in your daily free time for other endeavors.
Our small business mentors suggest that you must take notes of how long it takes you to accomplish each task over your day. Count these amounts – are you stunned? You can devote the amount to more fruitful endeavors rather than being drained away in mundane activities.
Do everything as if it’s the last time
Start your day off as if it’s the last one you’ll ever have by writing down all steps in a workflow, making sure that someone with even basic skills can comprehend what you need to do. And on the top of that, it would be beneficial for your new Virtual Assistant if you record a video of yourself doing each task. In this way, they will have access of the tutorials without visiting and asking!
Investing in business mentor programs and training videos are among the most profitable decisions you can make for your business. While recruiting staff it may not always go according to the plan, that’s okay! Hiring personnel is an inaccurate science, and it isn’t uncommon to employ a few individuals before finding the perfect fit.
Create a Job Role
To ensure your virtual Assistant succeeds, you must create a clearly defined task list of setting responsibilities. Additionally, decide how the two of you will communicate (e.g., phone calls, video conferencing) and determine an effective strategy to establish expectations and maintain accountability between the two parties. It’s also essential for both parties to meet so that you can discuss your progress and the expectations outlined. Unless you take these steps carefully, it may be difficult for them to grasp what exactly happened.
Do an Admin Stock take
Are you overwhelmed by the administrative work you need to do in your business? Take a step back and assess what tasks you need to complete, what goals you are trying to reach, and whether these goals are realistic or not get it done without any external help. Once you have established this, create timelines for each task while exploring which responsibilities you can outsource or if you should get business mentoring to help you complete them.
Give Your VA Time to Learn How to be like You
If you plan to hire a Virtual Assistant, ensure that you have made ample time for training. Your VA won’t be able to work with the same efficiency as yourself until they are proficient in what is expected from them, so make sure it doesn’t take more effort than help! Start your VA off slowly by providing smaller tasks and gradually adding to their list once they become well-versed. It will benefit both parties and result in the successful completion of projects.
Meet your VA regularly
It is essential to connect with the new VA daily during the initial weeks and at least once a week afterward, as they are not physically present in your office. As per the mentors in business, you need to ensure that they feel included as a part of your team even though they work remotely. Additionally, take some time getting to know them, beyond just their job responsibilities – remember, VAs are also human beings!
Is Money Stopping You from Hiring a VA
It is essential to take the time to review your budget and decide how many hours per week you can afford for your VA. It’s important to note that although there may be an initial dip in profits as training takes place, this is an invaluable investment. Once trained and able to work independently, you will have more availability, whether for family activities or highly profitable tasks within the business.
“Bringing great people into your team is about demonstrating that size doesn’t matter – people do.”
Jess Campbell
When I was younger, my mother told me, “It takes a village to raise a child.” Nevertheless, it didn’t sink in until I had my children. Being part of the Navy, we moved around everywhere for one or two years without being close to family our members.
When I finally returned to my hometown after a long absence, I had to find ways of adapting things without anyone’s help, it was an arduous task. To make matters worse, not even the presence of family and friends could ease this difficult transition for me. Then disaster struck, my mother needed to go to the hospital for a minor operation that went wrong. In just three months, she passed away before being able to celebrate her 50th wedding anniversary with all of us, it was devastating indeed!
It dawned on me that I had come back to my hometown not solely for myself but also for the sake of others. I have never felt that much isolated and alone as I felt at this moment. However, it didn’t occur to me at the time at which I was seeking for the help, instead, I concentrated all my efforts on simply staying afloat. Though complex and intimidating to ask for aid during a tumultuous period like this one, it is crucial – no matter how capable we may feel that we reach out when we require assistance!
Women often struggle with money, time, clarity, and support issues when achieving their goals. The situation can feel overwhelming when obstacles arise and solutions seem impossible. But here’s the truth: me and my top business mentors are here to help you to find answers that work – all you have to do is ask! A virtual assistant (VA) could be just what you need if it fits into your budget and lifestyle, but first, make sure you know how to hire a trustworthy one who will help you to move your business forward.
I firmly believe that the power of team effort and collaboration can genuinely bring success. It rings accurate not only in raising children but also in building businesses as well. As a women, our strength lies within our willingness to form strong relationships with one another – this creates an invaluable network of support that we can rely on when it comes to achieving success for ourselves personally or professionally.
You may already have an extensive support system, but a Virtual Assistant can give you something priceless which it “time”. They’ll take on the tasks draining your resources and causing stress, allowing you to focus on other areas of your business! Consider how much of a difference it would make by delegating those duties – is it worth the cost per hour?
“Your value will not be what you know; it will be what you share.”― Ginni Rometty
Here are some points to contemplate when looking for a virtual assistant that meets your requirements and budget.
While money is essential, consider your job description before making decisions. Think about the assignments you want to complete to determine which can be successfully outsourced offshore compared to those better suited for domestic VAs. While hiring someone in Australia may cost more upfront, the benefits could far outweigh any additional cost if specific tasks need a local touch.
My team of Virtual Assistants is a combination of local and offshore workers. All their assigned tasks are according to their expertise and on the base of hourly rate. My Australian VA is especially fast-working, with the added benefit of higher education that makes her very effective when it comes to communicating with my clients – she brings an invaluable level of knowledge about the region due to her local experience!
My remote team is incredible! They not only have the technical capabilities to accomplish their tasks, but due to their educational background, each member is more capable of contributing up-to-date ideas and knowledge. Although my mentoring business does not struggle with the time difference between countries, this could be a potential issue for yours.
Outsourcing overseas can be done through numerous ways, like Upwork and Fiverr, for short-term projects or via an agency to find permanent employees. Different agencies offer different services, some give you a chance to recruit candidates then you’ll train them, while others do all of the training and provide supervision. Plus, there’s always a choice between having someone work from home or in a managed office environment if necessary.
Now, the choice is yours. Will you stay on your current path and hope that one day, things will become more accessible? Or will you seize this opportunity to make up for lost time? The decision of how to move forward lies in your hands, you won’t find any easy answers here!
