Similar to how she teaches strategies for moving away from junior tasks to allow room for career-growth opportunities, “I realized I needed to [figure out] the things that need to be ‘me’ in my business and the things that drain a lot of my time and I can delegate,” she says.
VAs can assist with many aspects of a business that might prevent you from scaling up, from something as complex as plotting strategy to simpler tasks, like managing a calendar. Rachel identified building a landing page, setting up automated email threads, and connecting different systems, as a few projects for a VA to cover.
For any Soloist, it can be hard at first to let go of parts of your business, and Rachel admits she’s still getting comfortable assigning her VA work.
“It’s still new for me, figuring out where I can let go of things and where I want to hold onto them. But I have these moments where I’m struggling with something and realize, ‘Oh, I’m paying somebody who can do this.’”
By turning over projects that don’t play to her skill sets, she allows herself to focus on the core of her business and keep building her brand.
Here are some of Rachel’s tips:
- Do Your Research – Trusting your VA is paramount to a successful working relationship. Get recommendations, ask for referrals, and make sure this is someone you want working on your business.
- Think About What Your Needs Really Are – When interviewing potential VA’s, Rachel knew she had to drill down and assess what her business needed. She knew she would provide the strategy piece, which many VAs offered; it was tactical work where she really required help. “It was hard to walk away from some of [the candidates] because I felt like I could get a lot of value, but it wasn’t exactly the value I need right now; I had to really weigh those options.”
- Treat Them As Part of Your Team – By letting your VA feel a sense of ownership over their projects and making them feel like they are working towards the same mission, you can deepen bonds and form a great working relationship. As Rachel puts it, “you’re not the only one who can make an impact on your business.”
- Start With a Trial Period – “Don’t feel you need to give them all your passwords and logins right away,” advises Rachel. “Figure out some projects that you can test them on and test how you work together.”
Once Rachel began thinking about her business with a leveling-up mindset, she recognized how much a VA would allow her to build her practice. Her “growth’ mindset is synergistic with skills she teaches her clients and she provides a real-life example of how her clients can also take their business to the next stage of success.