These methods help female founders offload tasks to reliable talent so they can focus on what’s most important.
There comes a time in every female founder’s entrepreneurial journey when she reaches a productivity breaking point. If you’ve been there, you understand how quickly a to-do list can morph into a bottomless pit of tasks you simply can’t keep up with.
You only have a finite amount of time to dedicate to your business, and delegating is an essential next step to moving past your capacity bottleneck. To make the most of your time and avoid burnout, you’ll want to outsource administrative tasks or focuses that aren’t exactly in your wheelhouse.
Female founders often outsource these types of responsibilities to two types of helpers:
- Virtual assistants (VAs): Remote professionals who can either operate as independent contractors or employees. VAs provide administrative, technical, or creative assistance to clients. They may focus on a specific set of tasks or take on a number of odd jobs as generalists.
- Short-term consultants: Self-employed professionals who offer expertise and advice to help businesses improve their performance.
Regardless of the kind of help you’re seeking, you’ll need to take time to find the right help, but where do you even begin to search for reliable, top-notch talent? In this blog, I’ll run through the best places for busy female entrepreneurs to source virtual assistants and short-term consultants.
Where to find virtual assistants and short-term consultants
The good news is you don’t have to leave your desk to source help. There are a bunch of websites to source the best talent for your business.
1. Freelance marketplaces
If you’re looking for help in the form of independent contractors, consider exploring talent on freelance marketplaces. These sources are especially helpful when you have specific needs in mind, and many of them allow you to filter search results based on your industry or particular skill sets you desire.
Freelance marketplaces allow you to browse contractors from various disciplines and reach out to them, or post your needs and receive bids or messages from interested helpers.
The cool thing about many freelance marketplaces is their features that allow for streamlined collaboration. Think chat features, easy invoicing, baked-in non-disclosure agreements, and review systems that promote quality and transparency. On the flip side, many of these websites require users to exclusively communicate and pay through their in-house tools, which makes things a bit less flexible than your typical freelance arrangement.
Unlike services that specialize in virtual assistant sourcing, founders may need to spend more time onboarding talent they source from freelance marketplaces. You may also need to spend more money on freelancers on these sites because they often instill higher rates to account for fees the website charges them.
Here are some freelance marketplaces to explore:
- Upwork’s “Talent Scout” feature lets you partner with a recruiter to find the right talent for projects lasting beyond a month.
- Guru claims to have the lowest fees in the industry.
- PeoplePerHour recently introduced an offers feature, which allows you to receive preset bundles from freelancers, with the option to request a follow-on project if you’re happy with the results.
- Freelancer claims to be the world’s largest freelance marketplace and offers work in over 1,800 categories.
2. Virtual assistant services
If you’re set on finding a virtual assistant, there are services geared exclusively to that talent pool. Think of virtual assistant services as online agencies that source VAs for you, saving you time and effort. The caveat of not sourcing someone yourself is you’re less likely to be matched with someone who’s specialized in your specific type of business model or industry.
These services often come with a starting monthly rate and a set amount of hours.
Here are some virtual assistant services to explore:
3. Job boards
You don’t need to go to a niche website to find a short-term consultant or virtual assistant. Try casting a wider net on job boards.
Job boards offer more flexibility and freedom than freelance marketplaces because once you find talent, you can operate outside of the tools and constraints of a website. On the flip side, you won’t have an all-in-one site to find, collaborate with, and pay talent.
There are countless job boards out there, but try getting started on these remote-focused ones:
4. Word of mouth
Arguably the best way to source a virtual assistant or short-term consultant is through good old-fashioned word of mouth.
Tap your network to see who your peers and mentors have worked with — odds are they’ve been there and may just have a solid referral for you. Also consider reaching out to fellow female founders on a one-on-one basis, or get your message in front of more eyes by posting to a forum or on LinkedIn. You’ll get even better referrals if you specify the sorts of tasks you want help with and the kind of business you operate.
However you go about finding a referral, you’re much more likely to be satisfied with talent that someone you know can vouch for.
Less burnout, more financial wellness
Delegating is sure to free up your time and let you focus on what’s important. As a female founder, the well-being of you, your business, and your finances are all critical.
I encourage you to book a call today and talk to our financial experts about how you can achieve financial success and well-being.
