5 SignsY O U M I G H T

N E E D A NA S S I S T A N T

Running a small business is very rewarding,but it’s never easy. Invoices, calendar

management, and even travel arrangementscan be a major time suck. An administrativeassistant can be a valuable asset to a small

team, and in many cases, can be necessary forreal growth.

How do you know if it’s time to bring anassistant onboard? Here are some telltale

signs to look for.

01YOU AREAVOIDING TASKS

Being passionate about your business isimportant, but that doesn’t mean thatyou’ll enjoy everything that comes withbeing a small business owner. Ifinputting the numbers and sending outinvoices isn’t getting done because youprioritize the things you enjoy over thethings you don’t, then you shouldconsider getting someone who canhandle those things for you. Some thingsthat you really can’t ignore are:

InvoicingFinancial trackingContent marketingScheduling

02YOU ARE TOOBUSY FOR NEWWORK

Being busy is a greatproblem for a business tohave, but if you are toobusy to take on newclients then you are doingthe business a disservice.If you are working likecrazy, but you still find thatnot everything is gettingdone, it’s time to rethinkyour strategy.

"An assistant can take on thethings you don’t want to be doing

or don’t have time to do properlyso everything will run more

smoothly and you canconcentrate on making yoursmall business a big player."

03YOU AREN’TUSING SOCIALMEDIA

It’s 2015, how can you possibly not beusing social media right now? Theimportance of social media for smallbusinesses can’t be stressed enough.Everyone already knows who Expediaand Pampers are, and utilizing socialplatforms is one of the best ways to getyour business exposed to the masses. Ifyou don’t have the time, energy, orenthusiasm to keep up with socialmedia, you’re missing out on a bigopportunity.

Seriously.

04YOU DON’T HAVEALL THE SKILLS

Well, of course you don’t have all theskills! No one does. The first step to

growing your business is recognizingthat you can’t do it all, and effective

leaders look for team members who cando it better than they can.

05YOU JUST CAN’TKEEP TRACK

There’s something to be said for anassistant who knows your smallbusiness so well that they canmanage your calendar for you. Doyou know how much time youspend each week schedulingmeetings for yourself or answeringemails? It’s probably accurate tosay a whole bunch of time. If youneed to set alarms for yourself andkeep a bunch of lists around tomanage your time, you may havebetter luck having an assistant takeover.

What SmallBusinesses Should

Look For...

Experience is always a big plus, but the mostimportant things to look for in a new assistant

is passion, commitment, and skill. The bestway to manage invoicing and calendar

management can be taught, but a love forcontent management and social media

cannot. Pick someone who fits in with thecompany culture and who can meet their long

term goals by joining your team.

P R E S E N T E D B Y :D E R E K P A L I Z A Y

NEED HELP GROWINGYOUR BUSINESS?CONTACT DEREK PALIZAY & ASSOCIATESWWW.DEREKPALIZAY.COM >>

WRITTEN BY: SHAUNA ARMITAGE

DIRECTOR OF INBOUND MARKETING