How To Train Your VA: It's Time To Get Organized!

It's week 3 of my insider tips on how to utilize your VA to destress your work life and start doing the things you love.

In case you missed my first two posts, you can check out some simple tips for handing over your inbox and your schedule!

This week we are looking at how an excellent VA can take your systems from basic to bananas!

If you are a small business owner, you have probably experienced the frustration that comes with managing your digital assets, contacts, contracts, and more. Maybe you have sticky notes all over your desk or spiral notebooks you flip through daily to find that missing password or person's name you meant to email? Maybe the notes section of your phone is like an endless sea of information and you feel like you are drowning in it?

It’s time to let go of the organized chaos that keeps you up at night and let your VA help you get organized in ways you never thought possible! And maybe sleep a little easier too.

The thing that most small business owners fail to do is start off with organized systems! Your VA is just the person to tackle this task, plus they will probably love it.

Let's start off by tackling the things that bring the most delay and frustration to your day to day tasks- inefficient systems.

Before you start working on system organization, do this:

1. Collect ALL the passwords for ALL the programs you use and make a list for your VA. Subscribe to a password protection system, like 1Password or Bitwarden so your VA can securely save everything for you in one place.

2. Think through the contacts and assets you need to access most often. Is it photography, artwork, clients, or businesses you pitch to weekly? Write a list of the systems or people that you need organized and have those items ready to hand off to your VA during training. Have your VA troubleshoot the best way to organize these things and let them know how you have done it in the past. Get ready to be amazed at the proficiency an excellent VA can bring!

3. Make a list of any and all the current systems you use on a daily basis to run your business. Ask your VA to start exploring them to make sure they are efficient and the best ones to use. Your VA will likely have experience and ideas on how to make things even better than they are. Pro tip: Be open to your VA's advice! Most VA's come with a wealth of experience and knowledge and one part of handing off your stress is learning to trust someone else with the daily details of running the business. Don't be afraid to let go a little!

Speaking of letting go, it might be hard at this point to know how exactly to let go of so many of the things that used to belong just to you. Giving up some control might feel great at first and then it might be tempting to jump back in and micromanage your VA when things get tense.

Remember: The entire reason you hired help is to free yourself up to do the things ONLY YOU CAN DO. Focus your time and energy on what new tasks you can now take on and don't be tempted to pick up the old tasks out of habit.

Next up in the series: Automate outreach the VA way! Subscribe to my newsletter so you don't miss a single post, released each Thursday!