As a busy mom, my time is uber limited and I have to prioritize my business very strategically for it to feasibly fit into my home life. My husband works in law enforcement, so his hours are extremely long, not to mention that he goes to work early afternoon and gets off after midnight most nights. So basically, he gone all day and never gets a chance to eat dinner with us, except on his off days :-(. That means I’m at home with my son all day and night, with little help unless my mom is off work and wrangles him for a few hours while I take a shower and work. Limited time is something that I’ve had to come to accept, especially with another baby on the way in just two months time. Once baby #2 gets here my time will be even more limited and I will have to pull back across the board to focus on the little guy or girl, as well as my toddler son.
Whether you’re married, have kids, work full-time, or simply live an extremely business and active life, time will always be a limited commodity. There are only 24 hours in a day and there’s nothing we can do about adding a few more. The thing is that out of those 24 hours, we have to find time to eat, sleep (at least 5+ hrs a night), bathe, socialize, and whatever else life throws at us + work. When you’re a work at home entrepreneur, especially a mom or caregiver, it can be so easy to get either sidetracked or overwhelmed with the tasks that come along with being in those roles. If you’re lucky enough to be able to afford daycare or in home care, some relief comes with that, however if you’ve made the decision not to employ those services or don’t have a choice, you may find yourself constantly frustrated feeling like you don’t have the time to work in your business.
Those who work full-time, but have dreams of becoming their own boss may find themselves in a similar situation, because they are at work for 8, 10, or maybe even 12 hours a day. I’ve been there! By the time you get home, your night pretty much consists of dinner and going to bed. On your off days, you’re busy running errands, paying bills, and going grocery shopping, as well as spending time with family and friends. This leaves little time to work on that dream business that you feel is just a mere arm’s reach away, if only you have more time!
Well, I’m here to be honest with you, more time isn’t the magic answer or solution. It comes down to prioritizing, planning, and using the time that you do have wisely. This may mean that you need to outsource some things, because its legitimately may not be tangible for you to get certain things done that you need done in your business.
[Tweet “Its not about having more time, its about prioritizing, planning, & using your time wisely.”]
Being an entrepreneur is no easy feat and its not for everyone, because it requires a lot of work.
Establishing processes and systems can help with this, however you need to have the time or help to actually create, establish, and implement them. You can get this help in the form of hiring an intern or virtual assistant. Depending on your budget, an intern may be more feasible if you can’t afford to pay. However, if you can you can hire a virtual assistant, who will most likely have a larger skillset and more experience, and be able to really get the work done that you need them to do in your business.
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[Tweet “Establishing processes and systems helps decrease workload and stress.”]
Virtual assistants come with a slew skills from social media management to blog content creation.
Say you run an online shop, that virtual assistant can help you maintain it by posting products and descriptions, as well as processing orders and customer service inquires. This would free you up for more time to actually create whatever it is that you sell. When you’re not having to feel the overwhelm of having to do it all, you allow your mind to operate at its optimal creative level. Any creative entrepreneur knows how important this is, because when our brains are full, we experience mental blocks, which results in being unproductive.
[Tweet “When you’re not feeling overwhelmed, your mind can operate at its optimal creative level. “]
So what specifically can a virtual assistant do for you? Well, let’s break it down! Traditionally a virtual assistant does the following, but isn’t to:
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It may be hard to think of handing off a lot of your administrative work at first, but it really can help. Delegating is a huge part of running a business and something successful business owners know is a must. You can delegate to one person, a team, or outsourcing work completely, whichever situation your business calls for, you are doing so in order for your business to running for efficiency and to increase productivity. Efficiency and productivity go hand in hand, so if they are out of balance, odds are that your business may be as well. Even worst, if your business is missing one or the other, or not hitting the mark on them, it can be financially detrimental for it.
[Tweet “Efficiency and productivity go hand in hand”]
You may think that hiring a virtual assistant will be an expense, but they should actually be looked at as an investment and asset. They are there to make things run more smoothly and do work that allows you to do better work. The time you expend trying to do it all, may end up costing you more in the longrun, because you’re not getting work done. Time is money, so all that time, just cost you money! Although its a harsh reality to face, I know that when I can’t get things done for my business that I’m missing out on the money I could be making in it. Delegating tasks via a virtual assistant can keep you out of this situation and into to making the money you need to support your lifestyle and business.
[Tweet “Hiring a Virtual Assistant should be looked at as an investment, not an expense.”]
DOWNLOAD YOUR FREE VIRTUAL ASSISTANT DUTIES CHECKLIST BELOW!
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To learn more about what you should look for in a Virtual Assistant and how to hire one, be sure to sign up for updates on my upcoming course Build Your Best Team. I’ll be giving you everything you need in the course to recruit, screen, evaluate, and hire a team (which can be one person) that will add to your business’ productivity and profitability.
Can’t wait and looking to hire someone right now? I can help! Contact me today, I’d love to consult with you on how to find the best VA fit for your business.
[Tweet “Looking to hire a Virtual Assistant, and not quite sure what or where to look for? @blissandfaith can help! “]
Tenns!
Oh my gosh I just found your site and it is ah-maz-ing
your posts are absolutely awesome! quick question – in the image of your personal assistant checklist, is that used on something like place.it? or did you take the image, i’ve been trying to find a better way to show off my content upgrades!
Thanks
Tash x
Thanks so much Tash! I really appreciate your kind words and you stopping by. 🙂
The image is a mockup PSD (Photoshop) file. I can’t remember the website site I got the one I used in this post from, but if you search Google for PSD mockups you will find a slew of websites that have free ones. They are a great way to show off design work or content upgrades for sure! 🙂
Tenns, this is a very interesting subject. You have answered a lot of my questions on VA. Come share your post at Snickerdoodle Sunday. The party is in full swing. We start at 3 PM Saturday. Here is the link. http://www.sewtravelinspired.com/home/snickerdoodle-sunday-94 The more the merrier! While you’re there share a comment on a natural wonder near you.
Thanks so much Maria! I’ll be sure to stop and link up next week. I really appreciate you stopping by and inviting me!
Wow, I never knew anything about virtual assistants. I’ve never thought about being one, because…. let’s be honest here.. but hiring one seems to have many benefits. I’m not in a place for that right now and I just love doing my stuff every step of the way, but sheesh – outsourcing is amazing. I do it with photography all the time. Sometimes graphic stuff in Photoshop is too much for me.
VA’s are definitely something that have exploded on the scene lately, but I think its because a lot of people were keeping it under wraps that they use them. Seems like people are being more open about it now, and that opens the door for more knowledge and jobs for VA’s. Wouldn’t it be lovely to outsource?! I think that a lot of people who are in a place where they can and should outsource don’t know to do so or how to find the help.
I totally understand outsourcing your Photoshop work…its so robust and can be overwhelming at times. I don’t do much editing in PS, but when I do it definitely takes a good bit of time!