Having spent many years in the corporate world, I decided to make a change nearly a year ago in order to bring back a better work-life balance for both myself and my family.

My 15 years’ experience in business gave me an insight that businesses around me were thriving which is wonderful, but it was clear to me that these entrepreneurs were working longer hours, missing family time as well as business goals and generally losing sight of what and who they were working so hard for in the first place! 

And so Discovery PA Solutions was born.

Imagine having a trusted person you can go to with all of your business needs.

Someone who can ease your workload and allow you to focus on building up your business as well as enjoying your family life and free time (yes free time!) once again.

People hire VAs for a number of different reasons and tasks and not just in the early stages of setting up their business. My clients understand the importance of not spending time on admin tasks when their time is better spent elsewhere growing their business.

Many business owners know that they need help, but they are just not sure what they can outsource.

In order to assess their needs, I ask clients to monitor what admin tasks they spend time doing over a week and to categorise the tasks into what is critical to their business, what they enjoy doing (and have the time to do) and what tasks they do not have the passion or skill set to complete.

I also ask them to consider their answers to the following questions:

• How many emails are in your inbox?
• What is the one thing you would do straight away if you had more time?
• What is on your ‘other’ to do list?
• Do you have enough clients?
• Do you follow up with your clients for testimonials?
• Are you on track to achieve your business goals in 3/5 years?

This is where I then get to work and look at all aspects of their business needs and draw up a proposal as to what I can help them with.

Once we meet, clients are often surprised at how much they can outsource and how much time this will give them back for their business. More importantly, they realise where they can have a better work-life balance with this new-found time.

VAs all offer different services (take a look at Chris Duckers very comprehensive list of 101 tasks to outsource!) and a VA can pretty much do anything!

The benefits of a VA are endless. Not only do you save on the overheads, staff training and employee benefits but we are also a taxable expense!

So what should you look for in a Virtual Personal Assistant?

It is therefore essential that you do your research and find the right one who can meet not only your business needs but work well alongside you to achieve your business goals. It’s important that you outsource to a VA who has the right skills and attributes not only to complete the tasks you require but to align with your business goals and values.

I would always recommend reviewing their testimonials and ask for a sample of their work too if you want to be sure. As a minimum, they must be insured and registered with the ICO and HMRC for Anti Money Laundering (if required).

Try and meet them for a coffee or ‘virtually’ online so you can be sure they are the right fit for your business. You also need to consider what your budget is, when you require the support and how you would like to manage communication with each other. Have this discussion from the start.

If your business is looking for “capable hands” then check out my services here and get in touch if I have the attributes you are looking for.

Does the thought of growing your business and freeing up some precious time sound amazing? Let me help.

I can guarantee you that once you have a VA, you will never look back!