In this video webinar recording, Garland discusses best practices for working with Virtual Assistants. If you would like to hire a virtual assistant trained and mentored by Garland, visit https://captaintime.com/virtual-assistant-tasks-outsourcing/ If you are a virtual assistant looking for training and mentoring, visit https://captaintime.com/va-mentorship-program/ Grab $75 off Garland's one-on-one time management coaching at this link: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=Z3VSW7JS6A8RN Connect with Garland: -------------------------------- Online School: http://courses.captaintime.com Blog: http://captaintime.com Twitter: http://twitter.com/ebusinesstutor Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ebusinesstutor LinkedIn: https://ca.linkedin.com/in/ebusinesst... Email: http://www.subscribepage.com/t4p2y8

1. How to Work
With a Virtual
Assistant
Garland Coulson, Founder
Captain Time Training & VA Mentors

2. The Problem
• Busy people hire virtual assistants to help, but
quickly get frustrated

3. Why Do People Struggle
When Working with VAs?
• Poorly thought out task assignments
• Poor communication
• Too busy to properly plan what to give the VA
• Not sufficiently supervising the VA
• Poor task management systems in place
• No process documentation in place
• Wrong VA

4. Identify Tasks
Suitable for
VAs
As you come to EACH task on your list, analyze it
BEFORE working on it to see if you can automate it
or delegate it to a VA
“Tag” the task with the phrase “Virtual Assistant”
to designate this task as one that could eventually
be delegated. Most good quality task management
systems allow for this, but may be called other
things like “labels” or “categories”
Call up all the Virtual Assistant-tagged tasks to find
ones you can delegate

5. VA Delegation
System
Use a good quality task
management system to delegate to
your VA’s
Make sure you use proper
delegation practices like due date,
priority level, detailed instructions,
etc.
Link to process documentation, if
any is in place

6. Some Task
Management
Systems to
Consider
• Trello
• Notion
• Asana
• Monday

9. Process
Documentation
Step by step documentation of how to do a task
Checklist
Screenshot, pictures and text instruction
Videos and video screen capture
If no documentation in place, have your VA create it

10. Tools for Process
Documentation
Checklists – Dynalist, Trello
Screen Shots and Text –
OneNote, Process St., Google
Docs
Video Documentation - Loom

11. Passwords
Create separate passwords for
tools at a lower level for your
VA until proven

12. Test New Virtual
Assistants
• Have a list of test tasks that should task 1-2 hours
only
• Assign similar tasks to multiple VA’s
• Review results and actual time spent

13. Supervision &
Follow-up
Regularly review their work using your
task management system – make sure
they use the comments area in your
system to update you rather than email

14. Fire Quickly
• Stop sending tasks
• End their contract
• Change password accesses

15. Instead of One Virtual Assistant at 30 hr/wk
TRY 2 AT 15 HOURS OR 3 AT 10 HOURS

16. Multiple VA’s
vs a Single VA
Difficult skill sets
Emergency backups

17. After the
“Honeymoon” Phase
• Don’t back off from supervision and follow-up
• Maintain your systems

18. Expanding VA
Use
Once your VA has proven
themselves, increase their hours
and responsibilities
Bring on new VA’s to take over the
first VA’s simple work as your
original VA starts working on
harder projects
The process documentation phase
will make training new VA’s much
easier

19. Respect
Boundaries
Don’t call on evenings or weekends or
expect weekend replies

20. Summary
IDENTIFY TASKS TO
DELEGATE
SET UP PROCESS
DOCUMENTATION
DELEGATE USING A
TASK MANAGEMENT
SYSTEM
TEST NEW VIRTUAL
ASSISTANTS
FIRE QUICKLY MONITOR AND
FOLLOW-UP
PROVIDE MORE
RESPONSIBILITIES TO
PROVEN VAS
RESPECT
BOUNDARIES

21. Want VAs Trained
by Garland?
Visit CaptainTime.com and click on Hire a
VA from the top menu

22. Are You a VA Looking
for Mentorship?
Visit CaptainTime.com and click on VA Mentoring from the top menu

23. Next Webinars
Wed. 22 Apr.
Work From Home Time
Tips
Tue. 28 Apr.
Free Productivity Tools

24. Want One-On-One
Coaching With
Garland?
$75 off our 5-hour coaching package - $270 US