Strategies for Maintaining Work/Life Balance as a Virtual Assistant
Hiring a virtual assistant is a common suggestion for helping business owners find and sustain an ideal work/life balance, but what is the solution for when the virtual assistant is the one who needs more time margin?
While many are drawn to the profession because of the flexible hours and remote working environment, the virtual assistant life may lead to burnout if boundaries and balance are not created. This is especially true for VAs who work from home where the distractions of Fido, UPS deliveries, family members, and the allure of a homemade espresso can threaten to derail an otherwise productive workday.
Because even small distractions add up over time, many VAs find they don’t have enough time to fulfill their contracted hours without working nights and weekends. When personal responsibilities are added to this already-packed schedule, VAs can feel like they never stop working.
Thankfully, it is possible to start prioritizing a better work/life balance right away. If you’re a VA who wants to make a change, use the following tips for success.
Tip 1: Make a Schedule and Keep It
Setting a schedule is vital for your success as a VA. Whether you work for one client or several, chances are you engage in multiple projects at once. Taking time to block out work periods each week and to map the steps and due dates for each of your projects will allow you to use your time effectively and ensure you make progress on your projects every day.
Once you’ve planned your work hours, keep them just as you would if you had to commute to an office. This is your job after all, and you have every right to treat it like one. If you must adjust your schedule, make sure you plan new time blocks to complete your required work.
On the flip side, make sure to give equal protection to your off hours. Stop work at the time you planned, and avoid checking email when you’re not “on the clock.”
Tip 2: Make Your Schedule Work for You
Even the most organized schedule will fail if it is unreasonable. More important than the specific scheduling app, program, or method you use is that your schedule works the way YOU work.
If you’re a night owl, don’t plan your work hours for first thing in the morning; instead, have them start at a time when you’ll be reasonably awake or consider creating a “night shift” so you can work when you know your focus will be at its best.
Working with a schedule that is truly sustainable will increase your sense of autonomy and wellbeing. It will also boost your motivation since you are more likely to experience your best creativity and output.
Tip 3: Incorporate Your Personal Life Into Your WORK
In order to achieve a healthy work/life balance, you must do more than just increase your work efficiency; you must also protect your personal time.
When scheduling your work hours, be sure to schedule time for meals, stretch breaks, exercise, and even relaxation. Consider selecting one day a week as a “rest day” as well as creating shorter resting blocks throughout the week. If you decided to become a virtual assistant so you could attend all of your daughter’s soccer games, enter those dates into the calendar as well so you protect that priority.
Once you’ve put a personal event into your schedule, treat it with the same level of importance and commitment as you do your work tasks to ensure it happens.
Tip 4: Set Proper Expectations
Once you’ve established your schedule, let your clients know when your working hours are and how and when you will be available to answer questions. It is also good to decide your turnaround time for deliverables and to inform your clients accordingly. Some VAs find it helpful to write a policies document they share with clients that provides your working hours and office hours.
You should also consider giving your family your hours so they will know when you are “at work.” Many family members falsely assume that working from home means working less hours; because of this, they may feel they can interrupt you whenever they wish. No matter how much you love seeing your family throughout the day, these interruptions will surely extend your workweek and eat into your personal time.
After communicating your policies, stick to your word. This is often easier said than done. Keeping your boundaries may create friction at first, but most clients and family members will relax once they see that your hours allow you to make good on delivery and quality time respectively.
Tip 5: Mind Your Email Habits
Email can be one of the biggest time wasters in the day. Not only does it take time to read through your inbox, but it also takes time to regain your focus once you return to your work.
Instead of checking email whenever the impulse strikes, plan set times throughout the day when you will check it (ideally, as few times as your work position requires). If you find you’re having trouble sticking to your email plan, ask yourself if checking email is how you would want to use your personal time. Typically, the answer is “no,” and yet this is precisely what happens if your email habits extend the time you need to spend at your desk.
Tip 6: Think of Yourself as the Boss
While your job as a VA is to provide support to others, many VAs have a large degree of control over who they chose to work for and for how long. If you think of yourself as a boss and of your contractors as your clients, you will experience more personal agency to drop clients who are toxic or demand your time in a way you can’t sustain. It may be difficult initially to “fire” some of your income streams, but the peace you will experience by taking on healthier clients will benefit your body and mind.
Tip 7: Have an Accountability Partner
Virtual work can be lonely and isolating. And even those of us with iron willpower need an encouraging boost now and then. Ask a friend, relative, acquaintance, or fellow virtual worker to be your “accountability” partner and periodically check in with you to make sure you are keeping your schedule and work/life boundaries. Speaking with this partner daily, weekly, or monthly can give you a sense of connection while also providing additional insight into any blind spots you might have about your work habits.
Tip 8: Batch Tasks
Did you know you can save time by grouping similar tasks? asana indicates that “Task batching allows your brain to filter out distractions and only look at the task in front of you… This can help you both get into deep work mode and stay in it once you’re there.” Depending on your job responsibilities, it may be possible for you to have a “call day” on which you make all of your client calls, or to group all of your Canva assignments for the same afternoon, etc..
When your brain is working at full potential, you are more likely to produce excellent content while saving time you can then use on other clients or put towards your personal life.
Tip 9: Create a Designated Work Space
Whether you work from home or in a coworking space, set aside a designated area as a “work only” zone. Try to use that space for work purposes only, and to leave it whenever you are not working. If you choose to work in a public area, you can still create a workspace by bringing along a “work only” mug, pen, or notebook. Regardless of where you work, you may find it helpful to establish rituals for starting and ending work.
Creating a work zone will help your brain transition from “work” to “rest” modes, which will increase your sense of having a separate work and personal life.
Tip 10: Learn to Say “No”
While it may be tempting to take on every project that is offered to you, it is important to be realistic about what you can accomplish during your working hours. Learn to say “No” to any work projects or personal obligations that do not fit into your schedule, financial requirements, or personal or business goals.
Saying “no” may feel uncomfortable at first, but it is a skill that becomes easier with time, especially as you see benefits in your productivity and mental health.
Final Thoughts
Regardless of how crazy your current life as a VA may feel, it is possible for you to work towards a healthy work/life balance. By implementing the tips above to keep your schedule and priorities straight, you can be a VA and have your personal time too.
WRITTEN BY: KATIE BARNETT
