There is a common misconception that the most successful people are simply better at doing more. That they must have a stronger work ethic or more hours in the day. Perhaps, they are onto some super-secretive productivity hack that many of us missed.
In fact, they are not trying to do it all. They are building the right support around them so they do not have to,. The most successful business owners, startup founders and creatives all work towards prioritising their number one valuable resource: time.
And they treat it accordingly by hiring qualified executive virtual assistants to help them stay focused and in control.
Strategising Success With An Executive Virtual Assistant
Success at the top level is not about being everywhere or doing everything. It is about being in the right place, doing the right things. That requires focus and clarity, which is hard to maintain when your day is jam-packed with administrative tasks, scheduling issues, operational decision-making and firefighting crises.
The more space you have to plan and execute on the work that matters, the faster your business evolves. When your day is taken up by reading through emails, responding to questions, reviewing documents or confirming meetings, it becomes harder to focus on what actually grows the business.
Harvard Business Review has found that CEOs (Chief Executive Officers) spend almost 24% of their day on electronic communications. It’s no wonder business leaders turn to hiring an executive virtual assistant. There is simply not enough time in the day to read through every email you are copied into to respond to queries from middle management.
High Performance Starts With Prioritised Delegation
The reality is that much like any internet explorer, you only have capacity for so many open tabs. You need to be able to prioritise what needs your urgent attention instead of attending to each one that comes your way.
Without a priority list, you will have made multiple decisions before it’s even lunchtime and that can only lead to mental fatigue by the afternoon. But with a virtual assistant handling the administrative side of your job, you can make sure that you don’t miss anything important.
For tips on how to get the most out of your virtual support, this guide on best practices for delegating to remote assistants is a great place to start.
Keeping Control Without Doing Everything
For many, one of the common misconceptions about virtual assistants is that you are simply offloading responsibilities at random onto them. But in reality, it is about looking at where your time is being spent or wasted and how you can make that work to your advantage.
Instead of dealing with the constant back-and-forth conversations or filtering tasks by importance, you can focus on working on the essentials. Even the less obvious tasks, like updating yourself on the latest industry news or trends, pulling reports or creating presentations, can all take up much of your day. While these are important, you can make sure they are still done with attention to detail, just not directly by you.
The most successful people know what their time is worth. They protect it by surrounding themselves with people who help them stay focused. With less emails to sift through, calendar bookings to send out or market research to conduct, you too can spend your time on the work that actually gets you closer to success.
When your clients hear back on time, your meetings run smoothly and your files are just where they need them, you can focus on the big picture. Spin Virtual Solutions can help get you there. Chat to us today about our executive virtual assistants and administrative support services.
