Delegating is one of the best ways to handle working mothers’ stress and give yourself more time, energy and money. It’s also a key element in getting important things done to move your business forward. I am such a believer in the importance of delegating and having a team of people to support you.

I had a chance to speak with Erin Blaskie, The VA Coach, about how to delegate to a virtual assistant so you can work so much more effectively. But you may wonder, do I really need (or can I afford) my own assistant? Find out in this podcast.

 

 Virtual Assistants - The Solution for Working Mothers- Stress [Metromom Podcast] [6:35m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

In a previous blog post I shared some great advice from Erin Blaskie, The VA Coach, about how mom entrepreneurs can delegate tasks to a virtual assistant (VA). During our interview Erin also shared some great tips on delegating effectively that I wanted to pass on to you:

- Make a list of the things you know you want to delegate out. This will help during the interview process because you’ll know what questions to ask.

- Track your time for one week. Track everything – whether you’re answering emails, with a client etc. Track your billable and non-billable time. This will help you see what is sucking up a lot of your time so you can delegate more effectively.

- Communicate your business vision. To make sure you’re clear on your vision you can write it out for yourself. Also write out your expectations for yourself and the people who work for you and share it with your team.

- Consider your virtual assistants as partners, not employees. That’s an important distinction. If you empower your assistants to be a part of your company, you’ll see bigger results.

- Utilize their expertise. Part of why you’re bringing them on board is that they know things that aren’t your expertise. They’re probably much more up-to-date on administrative and technical things so utilize their expertise in those areas.

If you are running at maximum capacity right now and are frustrated that you can’t get it all done, then it’s time to seriously consider hiring a VA. Many mom entrepreneurs hold back, thinking it will cost a lot of money. Or you’re worried about control and think, “No one will do it quite as well as I do it” or, “I don’t want to have to explain that, so I’ll just keep it.”

Start with baby steps. Delegate out one thing at a time and see how it goes. Before you know it you’ll see how it frees up your time and energy and makes you more money. Soon you’ll be thinking, “What else can I delegate out?”

(FYI – If you want to learn more about the different kinds of virtual assistant there are or how to find someone reliable, download my interview with Erin Blaskie.)

Delegating is one of the best ways to handle working mothers stress and give yourself more time, energy and money. It’s also a key element in getting important things done to move your business forward.

I am such a believer in the importance of delegating and having a team of people to support you. I come from the mindset of a mother of three children with so much to do. I know that many of the women entrepreneurs I talk to certainly relate to this – you’ve got a business, you’ve got children so you’re pulled in various directions.

I had a chance to speak with Erin Blaskie, The VA Coach, about how to delegate to a virtual assistant so  you can work so much more effectively. A virtual assistant (VA) is someone who assists you with everything, from administrative things to technical things to even personal things. They’re "virtual" because they work out of their own office and connect with you online or over the phone instead of working out of your office.

But, do I really need (or can I afford) my own assistant?

Delegating is a way to give yourself more time, more energy and more money. You give yourself more time to focus on the things that generate you income, like product and service creation, sales meetings, client interaction etc. Wherever you’re directly earning your income is where you should be focusing, everything else should be delegated out.

You will give yourself more energy because you’ll be focused on what you love doing. This will also fuel you since you won’t have to spend your time on things that drain you – a definite help in conquering working mothers stress. I know of VAs who hire their own VAs. Maybe their expertise is on internet marketing, so they hire someone to handle their bookkeeping!

The other nice thing about a virtual assistant is that it saves you money – you only pay for the time spent on the actual work. When you hire someone in-house, you usually end up paying them for a half a day or a full day. With a virtual assistant, if you only have two hours of work that week, they’ll bill you for two hours.

Here’s an extra bonus of working with an experienced VA, you’re getting the benefit of what they know. VAs often work with pretty amazing people, and they’re able to share their accumulated expertise. I’ve often been working on something and have said, "I don’t know how to solve this." My VA says, "I just did that with so-and-so client. This is what we did to solve that problem." They have an arsenal of amazing resources which is another huge benefit that’s often overlooked.

Check out this other post about tips for delegating effectively.

I just finished recording my Wrap-Up call for the Metromom Online Success Telesummit where I shared my highlights. It’s been a fascinating two weeks as I interviewed 18 different internet marketing experts who shared tips on how to maximize your online presence.

I think what I found the most interesting was how the expertise of the different speakers weaved together. In the end I discovered consistent references to what it takes to be successful in today’s economy.

Let me share some of my highlights of the four online success principle I discovered:

1. You Need to be Authentic

One theme that kept coming up from was the importance of being authentic in your marketing. I heard it from Nancy Marmolejo as she talked about social networking, Michele PW as she shared copywriting tips, and Wendy Maynard as she discussed blogging. They all said basically the same thing – the key to being successful online is to be authentic and create relationships that are mutually beneficial. Laura West then really pulled this authenticity theme together when she spoke about “Attraction Marketing.”

2. Make Sure You Use Every Avenue to Connect

Jennifer Odear and Caleb Scoville really helped clarify how you can maximize your expertise by using all the different ways of communicating. Jennifer spoke about recycling your content and using it in your blog, articles, press releases, newsletters and more. Then Caleb shared how to take that very same content and use it in podcasts and YouTube videos.

What’s great is that once you have some content there are so many ways to get it out there. Alicia Forest gave great tips on using content to build your list. Amy Miyamoto showed how to tie your content into your social networking, Shannon Cherry shared publicity tips and Ty Downing shared easy-to-implement SEO ideas.

3. Women Need Foolproof Systems

Busy women juggling a business and a family need more then great ideas. They need help implementing proven systems that will get the money pouring in. Beth Schneider and Erin Blaskie gave fantastic tips on how to build a solid team and then create systems to keep things running smoothly. Jennifer Haubein shared how technology can help you set-up a website that helps you build relationships effortlessly. Debbye Cannon shared tips specific to moms on how to keep their family thriving as they build their business.

4. Get Your Mindset Prepared for Success

No amount of internet marketing strategies will help you achieve your goals if you’re stuck with a negative attitude or mindset. Victoria Colligan and Traci Long , from Ladies Who Launch, were truly inspirational as they shared how to take the next step in your business. Gina Bell shared how to identify and eliminate resistance to self-promotion and success.

The Metromom Online Success Telesummit (now called The Online Success Toolkit) is available for you to listen to. Click here to learn more! Once you listen I’d love to hear your feedback so come back and post your comments. What were some of the highlights for you?