Has the idea of hiring a VA crossed your mind again? If you’ve thought about hiring a virtual assistant more than a handful of times (because you keep hearing your biz friends talk about how great they are) but keep talking yourself out of it, you’re not alone.
Solopreneurs often struggle to take that first step into outsourcing, wasting time and energy doing and being everything in their business, when they could have made their lives easier months or even years ago.
Your fears are totally understandable – hiring someone is a huge step! You have to step into your role as a business owner, delegate, and pay for someone else’s time. Sure, it can be scary, but I promise your fears are unjustified.
Here are 5 common things business owners tell themselves about why they’re not ready to hire a VA:
1) I’ll have to spend time I don’t have training and delegating
This one is a big stumbling block for many business owners, which keeps them stuck in the cycle of doing everything themselves. The truth is, you’ll only have to invest a little time in teaching your VA how you do things and in delegating tasks if you hire the right VA. If you hire an experienced VA that understands the systems you use already, integrating them into your team will be a fast and easy process, especially because they’ll have their own onboarding process.
2) They may do it wrong and then I’ll have to do it all myself anyway
Hiring anyone to do work for you will always come with an element of concern that you’re going to need to redo something to get it just right after they’ve done it, and sure, sometimes the person you hire will make a mistake – they’re human! But, a lot of mistakes can be avoided if you give them detailed instructions about what you need upfront. This doesn’t need to be a detailed document of every step you need to be completed, just notes on what boxes you need them to tick for you (remember, they’re not mind readers!). (Here are 3 top tips for working effectively with your VA.)
3) I can’t afford a VA yet
When you start your business, you may be working on a tight budget and need to do everything yourself for a while. Once you start making predictable income, however, you’re likely more ready for a VA than you realise. Think of it this way – how much more money could you generate if the repetitive tasks were on someone else’s plate? You’d have more time to do the tasks that really move the needle or have time to rest and generate new ideas.
Most business owners find that they are able to start making more than enough to cover their VA’s fees when they start working with them. If you’re nervous, find a VA that offers pay-as-you-go or a small package you know you can afford and give working with a VA a try.
4) Only I can do what I do
If you’re the face of your brand, then the statement above is true, but if you’re talking about writing emails, responding to social media comments, or uploading new content to your blog or course platform, you’re probably lying to yourself. You don’t have to do everything, and in fact, outsourcing that busy work will leave you with more space to do the things only you can do.
5) I don’t have enough to outsource yet
You don’t need a full- or even part-time schedule for a VA – there are plenty of options out there if you want to hire a one-off VA every so often, or if you just need someone for a few hours a month. Once you start working with a VA, you’d be surprised how much you suddenly find that you can outsource! If you’re not sure what a VA can do for your business and your life, check out the lists on my services pages.
If you feel a sense of fear and anxiety when you think about working with a VA, don’t panic – it’s not a sign that you’re not ready, it’s just a sign that you need to do your research to find the right VA who can help guide you through the process and help you ease into this new phase of business leadership.
I offer one-off support and ongoing support, so if you’re ready to move past your fears and make new strides as a business owner, I’d love to help. Find out more about me and my services here.
