Time Management
​The allocation of your time is probably one of the most important factors in business success.

If you plan to grow your business, the way in which you choose to manage your responsibilities will have a greater impact on your success rather than hard work alone. 

Think about what your core role is, the value that only you can provide to your clients.

Remind yourself, why did you choose to go into business in the first place, and are you on track with your business plan and initial vision?

Delegation – To do, or not to do?
Delegation can be a great route forward for many small business owners, it reduces the risk and costs associated with taking on employees and allows you to focus on your core business tasks and responsibilities.

Once you have decided that you need some additional support, you'll need to identify which tasks and projects could and should be delegated.

Prioritise your tasks. Focus on high-impact activities - deciding what NOT to do is as important as what to do.

Set clear goals and define what success looks like for each task.

If you’re bringing onboard external support for the first time, this can be quite daunting. Your business is your ‘baby’ and letting go of some of the responsibilities can be hard.

It’s also very common to know that you need help, but you just don’t know where to start, or how to identify which tasks to delegate. If this sounds familiar, drop me an email and I’ll send you a document sharing 3 practical techniques to help you get started.

Effective Delegation
Take time to find the most suitable person to support your business requirements, it’s not just about skill set and availability.

If this person is going to be an extension of your business and team you need to make sure they’re a good fit both personally and professionally.

Do they portrait the same work ethics and values as you? Most importantly, if you plan on this being a long-term investment and close working relationship, do you get on well? 
 
To achieve ‘effective delegation’ and fully benefit from any assistance, make sure that the person you have chosen to support you has:

• The capacity to accommodate your tasks.
• The appropriate skills and resources in which to carry out these items successfully.
• A good bank of reviews and testimonials showcasing their expertise.
• The ability to work independently and pro-actively, without the need for micro-managing, or failure.
• Fully understood your expectations.
• The scope to document the tasks being performed as they complete them (if you don’t already have these processes in place) as this will form a basic Ops/Training manual which will make any future delegation, training or the need for unplanned cover much easier for someone else to step in and run with and with less disruption to the business.

​Evaluate the Delegation Progress, Reflect and Adjust
Once you have your support in place, you’ll want to diarise regular catchups especially during the first few months so both of you have the opportunity to discuss how things are going.

Evaluating the delegation process is important, don’t be afraid to make changes if something isn’t working and keep an open mind to suggestions of new ways of working or improvements.

I personally know the pressures when trying to grow a business, so finding a way to help remove, or reduce some of the load really does help. Building a ‘team’ around you and documenting core business tasks will add a layer of protection to your business which will help with future growth.

​“In order to grow, you must be able to let go”. -Richard Branson.
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I hope the information in this blog has been useful, I’m happy to have a chat with anyone feeling overwhelmed, or in need of some advice as to the best way to move forward. A good Virtual Assistant will always both support and positively challenge you, fostering a great and productive relationship.

Have you heard some of the common myths and misconceptions about working with a VA? Perhaps you haven't thought about using VA support and assistance services before, or have hesitations because of some of the myths you’ve heard? In this blog, we debunk those misconceptions and prove that working with a VA is one of the best moves you can make to support your business right now.

In the years following Covid and due to the current financial climate, the shape of your business and day to day activities may have changed. Many businesses have kept with remote and flexible working and more business is now completed online as we have all had to find new ways of working and evolving.

Common myths and misconceptions about working with a VA
Using a VA service is a fantastic way to support your day to day activities and maintain the structure of your business to ensure long-term success.
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Common Myth: “I can’t afford a VA – it’s too expensive!”
There is a myth that working with a VA can be costly, but we offer packages starting from only £5 a day – less than the price of two fancy coffees a day (or one if you like them grande!) so most business owners can indeed benefit from dedicated VA support every month.
How often do you buy lunch, coffee, snacks etc. every day without thinking twice about the cost, but the perceived cost of administrative support is too expensive?

£5 a day is a small amount to invest in your business to receive dedicated, experienced administrative support every month.

We offer a range of daily services including checking email, responding to general and client enquiries, flagging important/urgent issues, diary and CRM management and internet research projects.

Our VA and administrative support packages offer attractive and affordable options, plus we also now offer a Taster package for anyone new to working with a VA.

Common Myth: “It’s quicker if I do it myself”
A common misconception is that by completing all of your tasks by yourself, this means that you will get the job/s done quicker.

You know the ins and outs of your business better than anyone so it’ll be faster if you just do everything? Or, maybe you’re concerned you don’t have the time to delegate, so it will be difficult and bothersome to explain what needs doing to someone else?

OK, so doing a one-off task means this myth is actually probably right, but taking the time to teach someone else how to carry out the task on a long-term basis, is a real investment.

Once you’ve taught someone else how to do the task efficiently, you’ll gain more time back in your schedule, plus don’t forget you’re only one person. It can be hard to admit, but maybe you’re great at sales or creative solutions but admin just isn’t your forte. Or, maybe you just find some tasks boring, but they need to be done.

So… if you delegate effectively you can spend your time on the things that you're really good at and enjoy doing and focus your energy and expertise on growing your business instead.

If you’re unsure about where to start, or need help identifying some of the tasks you could, please drop me an email and I can send you our practical short guide which gives three exercises you can work through to help take those first steps to delegation.

Tips to delegate effectively:

• Break down tasks/projects into bite-sized chunks or individual steps.
• Use a free Project Management system like Trello where you create columns for your tasks, adding information and steps to be taken to complete the task.
• Complete a task by 'walking through' it using a screen recording app, or flow diagram so it’s easy to follow.
• The most empowering form of delegation occurs when you are able to give up most of your control over a specific job or project and unburden yourself of extraneous tasks.

Use Trello cards to organise tasks.

Working with a VA is the best way to receive ongoing business support and assistance, plus, you’ll also have a flexible, professional service available to you at very low cost with the benefits of increased productivity and workflow. Hopefully, we have shown that not all common myths and misconceptions about working with a VA are true!

We specialise in working with established, owner-managed businesses, those with a driven growth-mindset and have seen numerous times how our regular Virtual Assistant support has made a difference.
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For more information on the benefits of working a VA and how we can help support your business needs please contact us.