How to Have an Effective and Productive Relationship With Your Virtual Assistant

Outsourcing and hiring a virtual assistant (VA) can help improve your business especially if you know how to build a productive and effective relationship with your VA.  And following are ways on how to do just that:

1.       Start with the right mindset: outsourcing is not your quick road to success. Nope, there’s nothing about outsourcing that says you’ll be successful in an instant without doing a thing.  Although it can help you focus on the core area of your business, you will still need to spend some time to train your virtual assistant (VA), orient him or her about your organization and your goals and then evaluate his/her performance every now and then. 

2.       Don’t assume. Don’t expect or assume that your VA can know everything in just one go. Give him/her a few days to familiarize with the tasks and find his/her best pace. We’re not talking about a VA here that you hire in an hourly basis, that’s a totally different thing.

As already mentioned in #1, you should invest time in developing and training your virtual assistant to a level where he/she can work unassisted and to a level where you are satisfied with his/her work.

3.       Don’t be a vulture virtual boss. You know, don’t micromanage. This is why training virtual assistants is important so that you know your VA is capable of accomplishing the tasks without you having to look over their shoulders every minute or so.

4.       Always be clear with your instructions. If you want tasks to be done quickly and correctly, spend some time giving detailed instructions. Instructions written haphazardly will only cost you more time as your VA may end up asking you more questions or misinterpreting your instructions.

5.       Always be realistic with your deadlines. Set timelines that are both measurable and realistic. 

6.       Praise your VA for a job well done. Praising your VA for an exemplary work will make them feel accomplished and motivate them to do even better. This is very important if you want to have a long-term relationship with your virtual assistant.

7.       Always pay your virtual assistant on time. Of course, this goes without saying. Paying your VA will help them stay focused on their work instead of having to worry about the bills they have to pay. This is also important in the overall growth of your relationship.

Over to you..
Do you have a virtual assistant working with you? What are the things you do to ensure that your relationship is a healthy and productive one? Please share your thoughts and comments below.