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Business Process Outsourcing: Finding a Virtual Assistant – GM29

Having trouble delegating? On this episode of Grey Matters, learn about business process outsourcing and why you need a virtual assistant.

Business Process Outsourcing: Delegating Work to a Virtual Assistant

[0:00] – Introducing this episode of the Grey Matters podcast: business process outsourcing and why you need a virtual assistant.

  • Anyone who has been in business long enough knows that entrepreneurs tend to be better at certain tasks than other aspects of their business. However, being able to do everything by themselves can become a badge of honor of sorts.

  • While being extremely self-reliant serves to stroke the ego, learning how to delegate and trust team members is a better way to put oneself and others in a position to succeed.

[3:09] – Leaning on one’s strengths with business process outsourcing.

  • Outsourcing some of the work will alleviate the need for entrepreneurs to do repetitive tasks and free up time for tasks that only they can accomplish.

  • Michael Hyatt does a terrific job of explaining the entire concept of understanding which tasks to do and which ones to delegate. Spending time on writing and editing a blog post, for instance, may not be the best use of an entrepreneur’s resources. Instead, the entrepreneur can hire someone else to do it. 

  • There is something in an entrepreneur's DNA that makes offloading tasks one of the most difficult things to do; perhaps, it comes down to trust.

  • Being unable to delegate limits an entrepreneur, and does a disservice not just to themself, but also to their business.

[5:56] – What to do at the beginning of building your own platform, and the limiting factors of business growth.

  • As you build out your business and plan out what's happening, you should always have an eye on what you can outsource.

  • For many, the single most limiting factor for the growth of the business would be themselves and their insecurities; their inability to defer responsibility to those who can do it more cost-effectively.

  • Having a virtual assistant can take a considerable chunk of this burden off an entrepreneur’s shoulders. There are many tasks one can outsource to a virtual assistant, from project scheduling to the entire project management process.

[7:27] – What to delegate to a virtual assistant.

  • One area is email inbox management, as this can be a massive time vampire for a busy entrepreneur.

  • A virtual assistant could also manage your diary: your schedules, meetings, and appointments, making sure you have all of the details in place.

  • A virtual assistant can also book trips for you, as well as handle other important appointments and commitments. This emphasizes the need to build a strong working relationship with the virtual assistant.

[9:09] – Outsourcing content creation.

[10:07] – Other tasks to outsource.

  • Some of the other tasks a VA can do us to format in SEO, prepare all of your blog posts, find and source graphics for your blog post, write episode descriptions and show notes for your podcast, download bonus modules, and more. 

  • Having a community manager means someone can focus on handling your social media pages and growing your following.

[11:49] – Working with an outsourced team of virtual assistants and creatives.

[13:18] – The cost of having a virtual team, and why it actually saves you more money.

  • Filipino virtual assistants exhibit excellent English skills and aren’t expensive due to the lower cost of living. 

[15:09] – The key to success in training a virtual assistant.

  • The key to success is training with a virtual assistant is not the skills, the dedication, or the quality of the virtual assistant, but in getting the principal to properly articulate exactly what they're looking for from a virtual assistant.

[16:41] – Additional benefits of outsourcing and delegating work.

  • If you’re an entrepreneur who still doubts the merit of having outside assistance, ask yourself:  How much is your time worth?

Resources

 

We have all been in business long enough to know that we are good at some things and not good at others. But there seems to be a “badge of honor” amongst entrepreneurs that we do it all ourselves.
 
While that might salve the ego, in practice it is a bad idea!
 
I know that one of my challenges is shared by many entrepreneurs, a reluctance to delegate tasks that can easily be accomplished by others.
 
This may be one of the biggest roadblocks to success.
 
Adding outsourced talent to your team, in the form of Virtual Assistants, or contractors will free the principal up to do the things that only they can do, if they actually let go of some control.
 
Trusting team members to take tasks off your plate will make a marked difference in not just your profitability, but your energy. 
 
Here are a few resources we mentioned in this Podcast:
 
  • RescueTime – This is my video on using RescueTime, which will monitor your activities and help you identify area you can outsource support. https://youtu.be/qVHNpGVICvw

 

  • VA Services – I have never hired from a service so I can't vouch for which ones are best. However, I know Chris Drucker, who runs Virtual Staff Finder and have learned a lot from him. Virtual Staff Finder specializes in Lower-priced overseas VAs from the Philippines. https://www.virtualstafffinder.com/

 

  • I also have spent time with Travinia Barber, the founder of PriorityVA which is  a premium service, offering North American VAs at a higher cost. https://priorityva.com/ I think they are both great places to start your search. 

 

  • Free Evernote QuickStart! I am really proud of this training! It is free, it will take you about 30 minutes and in those 30 minutes, you might just discover a way to improve your memory. time well spent!
 

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Meet The Rest Of The #GreyWave

Enjoying Grey Matters?

Let us know what you think

THE DOTTO TECH TOOLKIT

Swipe my toolkit and start building your own

Click here to subscribe

WANT EXCLUSIVE

PERKS & BENEFITS?

OUR PATREON COMMUNITY RECEIVES DISCOUNTS TO OUR ONLINE COURSES & EXCLUSIVE ACCESS TO OUR CONTENT.

WE'D LOVE FOR YOU TO BE PART OF OUR COMMUNITY!

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