Boost Your Business, Reach Your Goals With A Virtual Assistant

Sarah Clarkson • Jun 05, 2024
A woman is sitting at a table with a laptop and a pen.

Effective goal setting can lead to substantial professional growth.

Goals provide direction, focus, and a roadmap for growth. When goals are well-defined and strategically planned, they serve as benchmarks for progress and success. However, the journey from setting goals to realizing them can be a winding road, especially for small business owners who become bogged down by administrative and operational responsibilities and lose traction on goal progress. 

The strategic utilization of a virtual assistant can be a difference-maker in boosting your business. By bringing a virtual assistant onto your team to help with specific tasks, you can re-prioritize your time and effort and make progress toward your goals. 

A collaborative approach with a virtual assistant can drive real results for solopreneurs.


A virtual assistant is a remote, self-employed professional who provides administrative or other services from a home office. Virtual assistants like Freedom Makers often specialize in administrative support activities, which can free you from the routine, repetitive tasks that are essential to running your business but don't propel growth. 


Having a virtual assistant on your team will allow you to focus on the high-priority goals that lead to lasting success.


While a virtual assistant handles tasks like managing emails, scheduling appointments, creating social media content, conducting data entry, and invoice assistance, you can spend your time and energy working on strategic initiatives. 


They work IN your business so you can work ON your business.

Bringing On A Virtual Assistant


Start by conducting a self-assessment to identify your key professional goals. What matters most to you and your business? Then consider what routine administrative tasks stand in the way of you working on those goals.

We suggest utilizing the Freedom Makers Virtual Services Task Audit to determine what to get off your plate and out of your way toward goal accomplishment. This free tool asks you to imagine your business six months into the future and then ask yourself - what it will take to get there? By walking through the tasks associated with the significant areas of your business, like sales, customer service, finances, executive assistance, marketing, client intake, etc., you can start considering which tasks, when outsourced, would make the most significant positive impact on your time and energy. 


Those are the tasks to delegate to a virtual assistant.

The 4c's of Delegation

CLARITY

Be super clear about your goals and the desired outcome.

CONSTRAINTS

Set guidelines and specifics regarding budget, turn-around time, etc.

COACHING

Train your team member, and let them get started!

COMMUNICATION

Give and receive feedback. Celebrate wins and build on success.

During the onboarding process, explain why you have chosen to outsource the tasks you have and give your virtual assistant a more comprehensive view of your business and overall vision. Next, establish robust, consistent and clear communication so that you begin to involve your virtual assistant in the goal-setting process.


By sharing the why of your partnership - why you brought them onto your team - your virtual assistant can understand the bigger picture and how their role contributes to your efforts.  On a tactical level, your virtual assistant can conduct industry research or do a deep dive into your business' data and provide insights into market trends, customer behavior, and competitor activities. They can contribute fresh perspectives, assist in setting milestones, and help create actionable plans so you can achieve your goals effectively.


What A Virtual Assistant Brings To The Partnership


Virtual assistants often work with various clients, industries, and platforms, so they gather an extensive range of practices and platform experience. They often bring innovative solutions that can help your goal-setting process. You can leverage your their insights and organizational skills by brainstorming and refining objectives together. They can introduce new tools, techniques, and methodologies you might not have considered. Tapping into this exposure can help you expand your own knowledge base and try new approaches in your strive toward goal accomplishment.


A collaborative approach ensures that your virtual assistant not only understands your goals but also has the potential to become a valuable partner in achieving them. 


Familiarity with a wide range of productivity and project management platforms means your virtual assistant can recommend and implement the best tools for your business and goals. If they have worked with platforms like Trello, Asana, or Monday.com for task management and collaboration, they can help you implement the one that will enhance your productivity for your unique business. In addition to helping you and your virtual assistant stay on the same page about task completion, productivity tools can also significantly strengthen goal tracking and management. 


At Freedom Makers Virtual Services, we believe that robust communication is not just a key but the very essence of any successful collaboration. Email, messaging apps, or scheduled video calls ease communication with your virtual assistant so they can be fully "in" your business.


Software programs and cloud-based platforms are designed to enhance communication, streamline tasks, and ultimately foster more productive partnerships between remote team members. Strategically leveraging these tools can ease communication and enrich the collaborative experience.


Consider These Tools:

Streamline tasks, keep on top of deadlines and track your project's progress with the utilization of project management platforms.


Try: Process Street, Asana, Trello, Monday.com

Take notes, share documents, store information, create workflows and collaborate all in one centralized place.


Try: Notion

Note-Taking platforms help enhance organization and makes all shared information accessible to collaborators.


Try: Good Notes, OneNote, Evernote

Make task management simplw with the use of applications desinged to make sure nothing falls through the cracks.


Try: Todoist, Checklist

Use screen sharing tools to help show your processes and workflows. Screen recordings facilitate clear communication and provide a record of how things get done.


Try: Loom

Seamlessly share, collaborate, and store files for team accessibility with cloud storage solutions.


Try: Google Drive, Dropbox, OneDrive

Instant messaging apps (or even just texting) fosters real-time communication, allows for quick updates, and good team collaboration.


Try: Slack

Finally, your virtual assistant's experience with different systems has likely taught them how to create efficient workflows that can save time. By asking your virtual assistant to introduce automation and organizational tools where they see an opportunity to do so, your business processes will become more streamlined, leaving more time for goal accomplishment.


The real power of this type of partnership lies in the synergy between your strategic vision and your virtual assistant's operational support. Outsourcing tasks to a virtual assistant leads to a healthy reallocation of your time and resources, creating more time for achieving your vision. At the same time, the experience and breadth of knowledge your virtual assistant brings to the relationship can lead to a smooth path to goal completion. 


By embracing a collaborative approach with the right virtual assistant, you will equip yourself with the tools, insights, and support necessary to propel your business toward sustained success.

 

The right virtual assistant can be the key ingredient in business success and growth. Contact our Discovery team today to learn how to add a Freedom Maker to your team!


Freedom Makers Blog

Business owner hands holding a small team | FMVS
By Sarah Clarkson 26 Aug, 2024
Focusing on leadership is crucial even for small businesses or solopreneurs. Learn how effective communication, sharing a clear vision, and strategic delegation can drive success and foster a positive team culture from the start. Embrace leadership to set your business on a path to growth and fulfillment.
A U.S.-based virtual assistant provides advantages for small business owners | Freedom Makers
By Sarah Clarkson 30 Jul, 2024
Discover the strategic advantage and business benefits of U.S.-based virtual assistants, from seamless communication and cultural alignment to legal compliance and time zone benefits. Learn how these skilled professionals can enhance your business operations and customer satisfaction, and explore the unique benefits offered by Freedom Makers Virtual Services.
lady working
By Sarah Clarkson 24 Jul, 2024
If the idea of a slow season or “slump” in small business sales causes you stress and anxiety, it is a good idea to have some strategies on hand to get through those inevitable periods. Instead of allowing yourself to get mired in the negative thought of “business is down,” you can first reframe the thoughts that accompany your profits dip. Consider instead: “this slow period is giving me the time I needed to focus on the company’s long-term goals.” And then get back to work ON your business!
More Posts
Share by: