Rob had been reading my stuff and decided to jump on the idea of freeing up some time for marketing by delegating some of his tasks to a virtual assistant. His list was full of trivial items, and his time was spent on lower value tasks instead of on the things he can do that deliver the highest value. It was time to get some of that stuff off his list and put it on the list of an assistant.

Rob’s Virtual Solution

He hooked up with a firm that provides virtual assistant services. Basically, it’s a broker/manager. You tell the firm what you need, and it finds a person for you, deals with payment/billing issues, and does some management of the person if issues arise. Fundamentally, it’s in the matchmaking business.

Rob needed an excellent virtual assistant. He was prepared to commit to 5 to 10 hours per week and was sure someone else could handle his tasks. The things he wanted to delegate did not require the attention of an attorney.

The company found Rob an excellent candidate with relevant experience. Rob assigned a handful of projects (responding to some e-mail, making travel arrangements, dealing with an issue with the coffee delivery vendor, and scheduling a meeting). Rob e-mailed off the projects and moved them from his to-do list to her to-do list. Problem solved, right?

Rob’s Dilemma

Not so fast. Almost immediately, Rob got a bunch of e-mails back from his new assistant. She had questions about how to access the e-mail, how to reach the vendor, which times were best for travel, etc. There were a dozen questions. Rob started to feel like it would have been easier to do this stuff himself rather than delegate it to someone new. That’s when he sent me an e-mail.

I’m used to irate e-mails. I get them from clients. I have an approach for dealing with upset people, and I know that it’s just part of the job. I’m not, however, used to irate Divorce Discourse readers. This was a new experience.

A Teachable Client Moment

I called Rob since that’s how I start with all irate people (I never respond to upset via e-mail). I gave him some space to let it all out, and he did. He was really frustrated with his experience and was blaming me. Sweet. I offered him a refund, but my sarcasm didn’t calm him down.

Anyway, I explained delegation to Rob by telling him a story I’d been told a while back. I reminded him of teaching his kid to tie his shoes (thankfully, he had kids because I only have one story). We talked about what a pain it had been to help the kid and watch with frustration as the child mastered this basic task. Eventually, however, his son learned to tie his shoes, and Rob never had to deal with that issue again.

Delegation requires some teaching (just like with the shoes). You can’t count on saving time initially. In fact, delegation takes even more of your time when you start. It’s only after your helper learns your systems and procedures that the time savings start to add up. This is an expected and normal part of the process, and everyone who has ever successfully delegated anything has learned this the hard way.

After we talked for a bit, Rob calmed down and got back on track. He absorbed the shoelace lesson, and his frustration dissipated. He was ready to try again and ready to do some teaching before expecting results. Soon he will have an assistant on this team who can save him time, make him money, and allow him to focus on the work that delivers the highest value.