1099: How to Buy Back Your Time with the Right Assistant with Jess Lindgren

Interactive Transcript

spk_0 Tell us what you need us to do and then let us do it. Give us some breathing room because

spk_0 we're professionals and we're good at it. Sometimes you're too close to things to even

spk_0 notice that there's an issue and you just do things that way because that's how they've

spk_0 always been done.

spk_0 That's Jess Lindgren. She's got over 20 years of experience as an administrative professional

spk_0 and her main mission is to improve the effectiveness and efficiency of EAs around the world. She served

spk_0 numerous luminaries including guests of this very show. She's also the host of the Business

spk_0 Podcasts Ask an Assistant where she shares lessons learned, best practices and actionable

spk_0 advice for anyone looking to hire or work with an assistant. So you'll learn one, the

spk_0 must have traits of any great assistant, two, the key to hiring an assistant, and three,

spk_0 where to find great assistants hiding in your very own network. And if you want to quick

spk_0 summary right up of the actionable takeaways Jess shared, recommending you sign up for the

spk_0 free gold nugget email newsletter which you could find at awesome at your job.com.

spk_0 I'm Pete McIdas. This is how to be awesome at your job. And now here's Jess.

spk_0 Jess, welcome. Pete, thank you so much for having me.

spk_0 Well, I'm so excited to get into your wisdom. We are talking about assistance, assisting,

spk_0 whether you are the assistant or the assisted, I think we'll have a lot of valuable wisdom

spk_0 to unfold here. And I want to first hear in the assisting game, what is something that

spk_0 has been a surprising learning you've picked up that is just transformational that makes

spk_0 for assistance working great versus not so great.

spk_0 I think the biggest thing is that people don't think about this. People think about this

spk_0 more now than they did. I have been an administrative professional and executive assistant for over

spk_0 20 years now. And things have definitely changed in that time. And people used to be way

spk_0 more focused. And this is general because people still are focused a lot on hard skills

spk_0 over soft skills. But people used to get really hung up on, oh, well, if you can't type

spk_0 90 words per minute, if you can't pass this super nuanced clunky test on outlook from 1998.

spk_0 And a lot of those tests are very like you can't do anything with shortcuts. You have to know

spk_0 exactly where to find stuff or you get knocked down on it. Nobody used to care if you were a good fit

spk_0 with your executive. Like people would look for executive assistants who were exactly like

spk_0 them, which is kind of the opposite of what you want. Like you really want somebody that if

spk_0 this is you, you want an executive assistant who's going to come in and fill out those gaps

spk_0 for you, right? So people really never used to focus on soft skills, emotional intelligence,

spk_0 that kind of thing. And it's always been something that's bothered me in my earlier roles

spk_0 that we weren't a good fit. We didn't mesh well together. We were a little too similar and kind

spk_0 of but heads quite a bit. So that's really something that I felt from an early time in my career

spk_0 and have been very fortunate for the last 12 years to be working with somebody who appreciates

spk_0 a good working relationship in terms of emotional intelligence, in terms of soft skills,

spk_0 in terms of fitting better together. And I do feel like industries as a whole, especially in

spk_0 the entrepreneurial sphere where we find ourselves, people are finding that that's a much more

spk_0 valuable thing when they look for someone to hire to be their right hand gal or right hand guy.

spk_0 Yeah, that makes total sense to me. And to that point about opposites or filling in gaps,

spk_0 I think that's fantastic because we humans have this natural affinity for folks who are similar to

spk_0 us and see the world in similar ways to us. And it feels so good. For example, I'm big on ideas,

spk_0 creativity, ideation. That's really fun for me. And so if I talk to someone else who's the same

spk_0 way, it's very exciting. And we're just like, fire ideas all over the place. And yet, if we

spk_0 wanted to accomplish something, we're not a great duo. You need somebody behind the scenes,

spk_0 like kind of pulling you back down to the earth, like, you know, you're up there, you're just

spk_0 floating away with all of these ideas and stuff. And that's not to say that I don't have creativity

spk_0 and ideas of my own. They're just different. So that's something that's really, really nice is to

spk_0 have those respect for what the person does that I work with for sure. So yeah, that creative

spk_0 conversation, like it's very fun and very important. But it is also good to have somebody, like I

spk_0 said, like you said, filling in those gaps, pulling you back down to the earth and being able to get

spk_0 you on task, like, okay, it's great that we've got these ideas, but has anybody written anything down?

spk_0 Have we put anything into the project pipeline? Are we making progress forward? And just someone

spk_0 to kind of, okay, there's 20 minutes left of this hour meeting. We need to actually make some

spk_0 progress here. So it's really great to have that give and take and have somebody who really just

spk_0 kind of fills in your other half, you know, you need that right brain to the left brain, the type

spk_0 beta, the type B. Okay. Well, could you perhaps give us a story illustration demonstration example

spk_0 to make it really clear for what does outstanding assistance look like versus,

spk_0 okay, okay, assistance look like. Yeah, something that really comes to mind for me is that there are

spk_0 a handful of careers in this world that people think just anyone can plop in and do it. People think

spk_0 that they can do real estate. People think that they can do retail. People think that they can do

spk_0 administrative work. And that's just not true. Like I personally, I cannot go. I worked one.

spk_0 I didn't even complete the four hour shift of Victoria's Secret in college because the

spk_0 it just it didn't work for me. Like everything that they were training me to do, I was like,

spk_0 nope, this is not for me real estate. You have to have like the back of your hand. You have to know

spk_0 you have to have relationships all over town. I couldn't do that. I don't have that breadth and

spk_0 depth of knowledge and relationship the way that really successful real estate agents do. When it comes

spk_0 to administrative work, it's a lot of creative thinking. It's a lot of connecting the dots. It's

spk_0 a lot of thinking ahead. It's just skills that not everyone has. So the okay assistance is the

spk_0 person who says, oh yeah, well, you know, I've been working in sales for like 20 years and I think

spk_0 I just I want to pivot and just do administrative work like anybody can do that, right? Like people

spk_0 who are just sitting there trying to bridge a gap and like, I've been there. I've tried to I've

spk_0 had times in my life where I need to bridge a gap from job to job where you just take whatever's

spk_0 available, but you know, people think that it's just a job that anybody can do and that's just not

spk_0 true. Like I think you do have to have interest in it. I think that you have to have really sharp

spk_0 critical thinking skills and I think that you have to really be a helper. Like you really have to

spk_0 be someone who wants to help not just someone who wants to come in cash a paycheck kind of half

spk_0 asset. Yeah, understood. Yeah. Like you really have to have some grit behind you. You have to really

spk_0 be into it, especially to be a career administrative professional. Yeah, that's good. So let's hear

spk_0 the run down there. Grit, creativity, interest, what are the other critical components, both in terms

spk_0 of you're thinking about a career in assisting or if you're thinking I need to hire somebody,

spk_0 what are the top things to be looking out for? Like I touched on earlier, you're looking for

spk_0 emotional intelligence really because a lot of it is so especially in an executive and or

spk_0 personal assistant with your executive relationship, there's a lot of access. You're in a lot of

spk_0 rooms where a lot of other people aren't my last in office job. I would sit in on weekly board meetings.

spk_0 I would sit in on meetings with the executive's direct reports like their director level people,

spk_0 their manager level people, and you have a lot of access to a lot of information. So like you're

spk_0 looking for confidentiality, discretion, you're looking for people who just care. You're looking for

spk_0 people who care. That's really important. Yeah, I've heard that's probably the top theme when

spk_0 people ask me, so how do I be awesome at my job? You care. You've done a thousand interviews.

spk_0 That's kind of the thing is to care fundamentally about the work about your customers clients,

spk_0 your colleagues, the project service you're delivering, the extent to which you give a hoot,

spk_0 the extent to which you get cool creative ideas, the extent to which you go the extra mile,

spk_0 you try something different, you're proactive, you're into it, you're engaged, versus

spk_0 kind of just chugging along isn't great for anybody. Right. And there's definitely, I've had days

spk_0 like that. I've had weeks like that. I've had months like that where you are just kind of not engaged

spk_0 or you're feeling burnt out or whatever, but like in the long run, you really do need that

spk_0 interest, that drive, that passion. And when you are in an entrepreneurial sphere, you need to

spk_0 surround yourself with people who, I mean, hey, you need to know what your mission is. Like,

spk_0 you need to know who it is that you're serving. You need to know why you're serving them.

spk_0 And you need to be able to articulate that to people when you hire them to work with you and

spk_0 have it be a very intriguing mission that it is that you're trying to fulfill.

spk_0 And when you say be a helper, tell us about that because in some ways, every job is being a helper,

spk_0 but I think you mean something specific. Yeah. I mean, even using a salesperson as an example,

spk_0 you know, they're trying to sell software to a company or whatever the product might be.

spk_0 So we'll just say that this is a software company. They're trying to help a company make a

spk_0 decision between five different softwares that are out there that all kind of do the same thing.

spk_0 But that is still at the end of the day kind of a self-serving help. You know, they're trying to

spk_0 make a commission. They're trying to make a sale. They're trying to be number one on the leader board.

spk_0 They're trying to get a bonus at the end of the year, whatever it is. But when it comes to being

spk_0 an executive assistant, being a helper is just so important because a lot of times you are the

spk_0 person who is picking up a lot of pieces. You're filling in a lot of cracks and you also have

spk_0 very high standards when it comes to your work. You care about yourself doing a great job.

spk_0 You care about the company succeeding. You care about the executive that you're supporting being

spk_0 successful. And yeah, just every successful executive or administrative assistant that I've

spk_0 ever met just like really cares a lot. You care about the office looking nice. You care about putting

spk_0 a good presentation, a representation of your company. You care about putting yourself out into

spk_0 the world. You care about honestly, really great administrative professionals.

spk_0 Care about doing impactful work. They really do.

spk_0 Yes. I hear you. And the salesperson, you know, not that those motivations are evil. And in fact,

spk_0 they're sometimes extremely helpful. It's like, oh, this guy is on fire. Yes.

spk_0 Make it rain and thank goodness they do. Everyone is able to have a text from that revenue generated.

spk_0 And that variety of motivation and hustle works there. But it's a very different flavor of motivation

spk_0 and drive than that, which is a great fuel for a successful assistant. Yes.

spk_0 Okay. I'm grooving with it. So then I'm curious if one is doing a recruiting process, maybe engaging

spk_0 in some interviews to assess some potential candidates. What are some top approaches for

spk_0 interviews or selection or recruiting that could help us find indeed these helpers who really care?

spk_0 Yes. Okay. So I have really strong opinions about this. And I'm really glad that you asked right

spk_0 now for anyone who's out there paying attention. Hiring processes are completely out of control.

spk_0 The number of people that I have spoken with who just I went through three, four, five, six

spk_0 interviews. They're like, okay, you're our top two candidate. And then they get ghosted or then

spk_0 they get like, oh, well, we almost picked you or like someone will come back three months later.

spk_0 Well, we picked the other person and they didn't work out. Are you still interested?

spk_0 You need to slim down your hiring process. This is not respectful of the candidates time. This is

spk_0 not respectful of your time. What are you doing if you are putting someone else through six rounds

spk_0 of interviews? What is everyone else on your team doing? Your sales person is not out in the field

spk_0 making sales because they're sitting there interviewing a candidate. They're part of the fifth

spk_0 round of the interview and you've got 30 candidates and you're going to make that sales person.

spk_0 Like the number of people that I've spoken with who are executive assistants who are looking for work.

spk_0 And they're just like, yeah, I had to meet with the recruiter first and then I met with the outgoing

spk_0 assistant and then I met with the sales team that I met with the marketing team. Like these are

spk_0 people I'm not even going to work with. Why are they putting the whole company through this? And if

spk_0 you're doing this with dozens of candidates every time that is such a poor use of everyone's time

spk_0 and every person right now they have to take work off. They have to stay late at work because they

spk_0 took a long lunch break to come to your sixth interview, the seventh or eighth or ninth or tenth

spk_0 interview. Like you need to slim it down. Honestly, every time that I've hired someone I can tell

spk_0 from the time I shake their hand if I like them and feel like it would be a good working relationship

spk_0 or not. Slam it down, make it shorter. You don't have to purely go on vibes but like what is it

spk_0 that I like to say higher, slowly, fire, quickly. It makes sense to me in terms of let's be very

spk_0 thoughtful about who we take on and if it's not working out, don't drag it out for three years.

spk_0 Exactly. Don't drag it out. Don't drag it out for three years. But also like on the flip side of

spk_0 that. So like what I mean by higher slowly is like get somebody in the door. But there is going to be

spk_0 like a ramp up process, especially when you're dealing with executive assistants. So like I touched on

spk_0 earlier, you have a lot of access as an executive assistant. In terms of the higher slowly, fire,

spk_0 quickly, I like to say to people, give your new assistant the garage code. Don't necessarily give

spk_0 them the keys to the whole castle. You can give them some information. You can make the training

spk_0 process, make the onboarding process kind of slow, methodical thought out. But make the hiring

spk_0 process itself like have a clear job description. But know that there's a lot of room for nuance that

spk_0 things are always going to shift, especially within executive administrative or personal assistant.

spk_0 There's always going to be things that you didn't think of that you didn't know you needed help with,

spk_0 that you didn't know they could do that you could hand off to them. Just know that it's a living

spk_0 document that it's something that you're going to need to update as time goes on. But really,

spk_0 strip that hiring process down. It's not a good use of anybody's time. Make a decision, roll with it.

spk_0 But that's what probationary periods are for. That's what that onboarding time is for is to get

spk_0 to know them, see if it's a good fit. I've certainly had people who came very highly recommended,

spk_0 who interviewed very well and then performed very poorly. That's where the higher slowly,

spk_0 fire, quickly comes in. I hadn't bought them a new computer. I hadn't bought them a ton of software.

spk_0 I hadn't given them access to everything. But I did make a decision, hire them, bring them on.

spk_0 And then I'm just like, well, this isn't working out. Sorry.

spk_0 Understood. Okay. So you're saying, let's not do nine interviews. But rather, let's give someone

spk_0 a shot at the probationary period. And then that goes, well, we really say, okay, here's more access,

spk_0 here's more things. Yes. What are some key things that might show up as indicators that,

spk_0 ooh, this person seems special out of the pack. And thus is likely warrants to advance the

spk_0 probationary period. I mean, I think a lot of it is just looking for that caring, looking for

spk_0 them filling in gaps, looking for them noticing things when they say, hey, Pete, we've been working

spk_0 together for a couple of weeks here. I've noticed that you have x, y, z thing. Have you ever thought

spk_0 about doing it this other way? So looking for people who really care about not necessarily that

spk_0 everything needs to get totally optimized and automated. But like sometimes you, like, you're too

spk_0 close to things to even notice that there's an issue. And you just do things that way because

spk_0 that's how they've always been done. And then when someone brings their specific experience,

spk_0 their specific specific expertise to the table, listen, when they have ideas, implement what makes

spk_0 sense, but really look for them caring. They want you to have more time. If you're the salesperson

spk_0 of the company, they want you to have two extra hours in your day to be focusing on your job,

spk_0 because you're doing something inefficiently or maybe doing something that's not impactful,

spk_0 something that doesn't even really need to be done anymore, something that's outdated. Look

spk_0 for them, making suggestions that make everyone do a better job. Like that's really important.

spk_0 And so then back into the interview of which there might just be one or two and not nine.

spk_0 There might be some questions along those lines. Like tell me about a time that you noticed an

spk_0 opportunity for improvement and what you don't as to how you can communicate it and what happened.

spk_0 And so it was like, oh, Shucks, that's never happened before. It's like, oh, maybe,

spk_0 maybe we should go with someone else. Maybe it's a different, yes, maybe you go with a different

spk_0 candidate if that's never happened. Like process evaluation and improvement is honestly like my

spk_0 favorite thing to do. I'm constantly just like, okay, we did it this way. It turned out okay.

spk_0 Is there anything we could have done better? I like that. And then so I think as we talked about

spk_0 recruiting hiring, we were thinking about it perhaps from a vantage point of a dedicated,

spk_0 you know, full time or many hours of time, a person, I guess in the universe of acquiring

spk_0 assistance, I suppose there's a whole spectrum from a full time, 40 hours plus a week person,

spk_0 like on site to remote to asking a bot to do a thing or asking a service.

spk_0 How would you lay out the spectrum or continuum of assistance? And what answer is probably right for

spk_0 what needs? Yeah, that is a wide spectrum. So there are lots and lots of options out there.

spk_0 I will say that a bot or your average chat GPT or AI, I am not a fan. I really think work like this

spk_0 is nuance, like people in the executive assistance sphere, oh my god, AI is going to take our job. No,

spk_0 it's not. It's fine. Like there's way too much nuance in a lot of work. And if the things that you

spk_0 need help with are things that can be automated by a bot or an AI, you don't need an assistant.

spk_0 But I do think that most organizations and most individual, especially individuals running

spk_0 companies, really could benefit from having one, whether it's five hours a week to 40 plus when you

spk_0 get into that 40 plus timeframe, hire a second person. It is absolutely unfair to have like, I've

spk_0 worked 60 hour weeks. It's not fun or cute for anybody. Your productivity, your effectiveness,

spk_0 your efficiency totally starts to drain once your past like 35 to 40 hours a week. It's not

spk_0 sustainable. But yeah, there's definitely opportunities. There's virtual assistance based out of

spk_0 the Philippines. Like that's a very strong industry at this point. It was definitely something when

spk_0 I started my company back in 2014. It was, how do I differentiate myself? Like, VAs out of the

spk_0 Philippines were newer. But like, how do I differentiate myself as the in person personal and

spk_0 executive assistant here in the United States, who is not charging five dollars an hour? Like, how do I

spk_0 because it is different. It's a very different service. It's a very different product that I have

spk_0 to offer. And yeah, you still can. Like it's a, it's a much more developed and stronger industry.

spk_0 People based in other countries outside of the US have seized the opportunity. I don't want to say

spk_0 take an advantage of the opportunity because that's not the right wording. But like,

spk_0 sees the opportunity, you know, there's a demand and people are meeting it. And I've heard nothing

spk_0 but wonderful experiences that people have had with virtual assistance based out of other countries.

spk_0 And you can get five hours a week. You can get 20 hours because you had a busy month or maybe

spk_0 you had a launch coming up. You can hire someone for 40 plus. Like, that's, that's honestly how I

spk_0 started working with my current executive is he hired me for a one off project. And after that

spk_0 one off project was done, he was like, well, do you want to help me maintain it? Because I was

spk_0 hired to tame his inbox. Like, we went from 9,000 unread emails to inbox zero. And he was just like, well,

spk_0 you cleaned it up. Like, I can't maintain this. Like, can I hire you to stick around? Can you do

spk_0 10 hours a week for me ongoing? And I was like, absolutely. And then 10 turned to 15, 15 turned

spk_0 to 20, 20 turned to 60. I hired that second person. And then you adjust from there.

spk_0 Well, that's beautiful in kudos to jobs. Well done. I mean, that's often the reward for great work.

spk_0 It is more work. It is more work. But, you know, when it's work that you love, it is a reward.

spk_0 All right. So then I'm just so we talked about there's full time. There's half time. There's

spk_0 the bots can do what the bots can do, but they are limited. All right. Very limited. And so then

spk_0 I've heard of there are a number of services. I've tried fancy hands and as quite limited.

spk_0 Okay. That's a new one to me. Well, the nature of the tasks were limited in that they're like

spk_0 15 minute requests. And so often like it's really crap shoot. It's kind of like an Uber situation.

spk_0 It's like, you know, you'll get who you get. And hopefully they're with it. But it's hard to say,

spk_0 oh, you're great. Let's keep doing the thing is like, well, no, you might get me next time.

spk_0 You might not. Oh, you might never get them again. Interesting. So it's not something where you can

spk_0 say, okay, just did a great job. Five stars. I want her again. Interesting. Fancy hands. I'll have to

spk_0 get it. It's very limited. Such as I've actually had a hard time using my requests. And I'll probably

spk_0 be canceling them shortly. So are there any other services or resources or directories or

spk_0 agencies or spots folks can go and say, oh, they usually have some great folks. You know, there are

spk_0 agencies out there. The ones that I have personal experience with and the ones that I'm familiar with

spk_0 are unfortunately out of business. So I don't. Yeah. So I don't have specific

spk_0 agencies necessarily to recommend at this point. But I can say that there are more people

spk_0 who would be great at being an assistant in your network than you probably could ever imagine.

spk_0 Like the number of people who have a kid in college who has 10 hours a week to give you or the

spk_0 stay at home mom who's been out of the workforce for a number of years. And thankfully, kind of like

spk_0 the emotional intelligence piece like people place more importance on the emotional intelligence

spk_0 piece. People are less like there used to be a big stigma if you had a huge gap on your resume

spk_0 like that. But people are really coming around to, okay, a stay at home parent is like the perfect

spk_0 person to hire for a role like this because they are managing a household. They're managing children's

spk_0 schedules. They're managing all the they're feeding. However many people, however many meals every

spk_0 single day, they're staying on top of laundry. Like being a stay at home parent is a whole huge

spk_0 job and a really untapped market. Like you just never know who has like my friend of mine,

spk_0 their youngest just went to kindergarten this year. So all three kids are like eighth grade, fourth

spk_0 grade kindergarten. All of a sudden the stay at home parent has two, three hours a day where they

spk_0 could pick up some work if someone had it available for them. So really, I like to recommend that people

spk_0 just put out especially when you're in a position where you have a podcast, you have a newsletter,

spk_0 you have social media. Hey friends, hi, I'm Taylor Swift and I'm asking the Swifties. I'm looking for

spk_0 Hey Swifties. I'm looking for an assistant for 10 hours a week who can help. Taylor Swift is

spk_0 going to get a slightly different response than you or I would. Like a, a, and Taylor if you're

spk_0 hiring, hello, but just ask that's how I ended up in the role that I have is I wrote an email.

spk_0 I quit my job. I threw a party and just told everybody I knew about it and I was like, hey,

spk_0 you should come to this party and here's what I'm doing. I'm basically what people now might call

spk_0 a fractional executive assistant. So I was like fractional executive assistant work and if I guarantee

spk_0 if I can't do what you need, I know somebody who does and 15 minutes after I sent that email,

spk_0 someone reached out to me and said, we have a job for you. And 12 years later, I'm still doing that job.

spk_0 So the power of networking is so real and you will see people all the time say it's not what you know,

spk_0 it's who you know, that's unfortunate because not everybody knows everybody, but when you do know

spk_0 some people, it can be very nice and very cool. Yeah, I'm thinking about my buddy Scott mentioned,

spk_0 I think his, one of his kids, friends, moms, they just had a number of very pleasant exchanges with her.

spk_0 And she indicated that she was looking for some stuff to do. I think with kids in school situation.

spk_0 And they said, well, hey, maybe you could help us with this and this. And now there's like just a

spk_0 growing list of the she does all these things that make their life work in terms of, hey,

spk_0 well, hey, could you help coordinate some things with our Airbnb property? And could you coordinate

spk_0 our these Amazon returns? And so there's like a like a dozen bullet points are more by now.

spk_0 And so it just seems like like, are you a billionaire Scott? He's like, no, no, he's not, but he's found

spk_0 someone delightful who does have that helper's heart who just enjoys doing this. And they appreciate

spk_0 just the heck out of her because like, oh my gosh, our lives are so much less stressful and more

spk_0 wonderful because you're in it. Thank you. And she's happy to help it. It's win win win. Yes.

spk_0 That's the phrase I tell to everybody like anybody reaches out and I'm like, happy to help.

spk_0 I'm going to write a book someday. I put a pin in that. But truly like, everybody brings different

spk_0 skills and different tools to the table. Money is a tool. Stop hoarding it. Start using it

spk_0 to make your life better. And the stay at home parent who was looking for a few things to do

spk_0 as their responsibilities at home start to change as the kids get older and maybe graduate,

spk_0 go off to college. All of a sudden that person has more time, effort and energy to put into their work.

spk_0 You can take more things off of the person that you're working with. You can take more things off

spk_0 their plate. And it just, it's a very reciprocal symbiotic relationship. And yeah, it can be really

spk_0 great for everybody. Well, let's talk about the assistance and the assisted relationship. And

spk_0 that doesn't necessarily need to be an executive per se. I think there's even a piece recently in

spk_0 the Wall Street Journal or New York Times about how, hey, normal professionals hiring assistants now.

spk_0 And it's just so great. So that's cool. So the term executive assistant is, I don't even know if it's

spk_0 the one to use the way I'm not being executive and assistance is great for you, regardless.

spk_0 So tell us within the relationship, what are some top do's or don'ts? What are things that drive

spk_0 you and other assistants just nuts like don't ever do this? This is so, I don't know, demeaning or

spk_0 frustrating or annoying. Those are good questions. So really, I just touched on this. Money is a

spk_0 tool. Don't be stingy. Pay your assistant. Well, pay them better than you think. You're going to

spk_0 get what you pay for. If your budget is $5 an hour, you're going to get very different service

spk_0 than if your budget is $150 an hour. And that's what I charge. And that's what I get paid. And that's

spk_0 what I do. I mean, depending on the project, like, but you know, like your budget is very different

spk_0 and you're going to get people who can prioritize things differently for you. So like, really, if you as

spk_0 an executive, I mean, even if you're not like an executive executive, you are the executive of

spk_0 your home. You're the, you can call them personal assistant if executive assistant feels wrong.

spk_0 You can just say assistant, like, we don't really get super hung up on titles, but like,

spk_0 pay them well. If you're some Fortune 500 executive level director, level manager, level person

spk_0 who's pulling in $500,000 a year, you have a budget to pay for someone good. And you're going to get

spk_0 what you want the better that you pay. So don't be stingy. You also need to not be a micromanager.

spk_0 You need to understand that people who are assistants are professionals. We're good at what we do,

spk_0 especially when you're talking with somebody like me who has been doing this for 20 years. I am

spk_0 giving me very vague instructions. You can throw me into the deep end. I'm going to swim.

spk_0 It's fine. You don't need to hire me slowly. You can just bring me on and say, okay, here's

spk_0 this whole backlog of tasks start waiting through things. Like, I love fixing problems. I love

spk_0 untangling messes. I love doing those things that feel so impossible to you that feel your to do

spk_0 list. It's a list of things for me to just check boxes off of. It doesn't have the same

spk_0 emotional weight or stress associated with it for me. So don't be stingy. Don't be a micromanager.

spk_0 Like, tell me what you need done. And then trust that it'll get done. If it doesn't get done,

spk_0 you're going to know about it. And then you can step in and micromanage or whatever. But like,

spk_0 back off, like, tell us what you need us to do. And then let us do it. Give us some breathing room,

spk_0 because we're professionals and we're good at it. Well, I guess I'm thinking about the universe

spk_0 of expectations. And for example, I don't know if this is a dated reference, but I think

spk_0 I've heard instances of, oh, if someone is getting coffee and getting dry cleaning,

spk_0 like that, that's demeaning and beneath them. But in other ways, another way of viewing it is

spk_0 like, oh, that's exactly what is needed in his helpful for that person at that time. And so,

spk_0 I guess I'm guessing you tell me that whether that is or is not appropriate or, you know,

spk_0 pick my kids up from daycare or school or karate lessons, really just depends on

spk_0 communicating those expectations upfront and seeing it like, if that's a fit, like, you know,

spk_0 actually driving kids around is something I can't stand doing for whatever reason. They're noisy.

spk_0 And they have, and they are sticky. Or like, oh, how it's light for like you to spend some time

spk_0 with these precious cherubs, you know, so I'm guessing that's a do is to be clear about expectations

spk_0 and get aligned. And so that, and you can be able to share either way. Like, actually, it's kind of

spk_0 outside of our scope and not really in my zone of skills. Yeah. And just doing that dance.

spk_0 Yeah. So that really is communicating what the job description is, because when you say executive

spk_0 assistant, that has the connotation of being at least in the United States. Other countries like

spk_0 the UK, it's very, if you have seen any references to this at all, whether in the business world or

spk_0 the entertainment's very, you'll see people talking about their PA, their personal assistant.

spk_0 So in other countries, the title does mean something different. But here in the United States,

spk_0 executive assistant has the connotation of being a person who helps you with your professional life.

spk_0 Whereas a personal assistant is the person who helps you with your personal life or your

spk_0 assistant, you know, again, whatever title it is that you're going to give it. I talk a lot about

spk_0 your time split, like how, how your job is split between professional and personal

spk_0 responsibilities. In my present role, it's like a 95 five professional to personal split. So like

spk_0 95% of the time I'm doing professional stuff. And there's a pretty not a hard line. But like,

spk_0 I just, I don't do any of the personal stuff. And that's fine. And I've also had roles where it's

spk_0 like 95 five the other direction I'm just doing personal stuff. I'm helping you with like one of

spk_0 my favorite things I ever did. I got hired to help someone hire and manage a plumber. They had a

spk_0 leak under their sink. So like I had to bet the different people who were available. Thankfully,

spk_0 I had a plumber that I loved. So just hired them, came over, had to buy them. They're like, I need

spk_0 a new vacuum. I need a new catchery. I need a new whatever. So like got to knock everything out.

spk_0 Like had everything delivered to the house the day that I was coming to manage the plumber. Got

spk_0 to just sit at the house and manage this service person while they were there. And then I got to

spk_0 take their celebrity, their Instagram celebrity cat to the vet. Oh, and so sometimes it can be,

spk_0 I think that stuff is really fun and really cool. There are people who

spk_0 do not want the responsibility of being in charge of someone's pet, being in charge of someone's

spk_0 children. So like just making sure that the job description is clear from the get go of what it

spk_0 is that you the person needs help with and what you are expecting the assistant to do. Because you

spk_0 can also hire five hour week professional support and 10 hour week personal support. I like what

spk_0 you said though about things that are considered dehumanizing. I don't find it dehumanizing when

spk_0 somebody when my executive like in my current role when we work together in person, a lot of it is

spk_0 making sure that he is fed and hydrated and caffeinated. And that's not offensive to me. I love

spk_0 doing that stuff by feeding him and giving him coffee. He's able to do his job. Like that is not

spk_0 offensive. How is Pat going to be quote super stoked if one of these fundamental

spk_0 knees are missing? Right. Like this is just basic needs. Like his shelter is taken care of because

spk_0 I got him a hotel room. His food needs are taken care of because I literally scheduled into his day.

spk_0 Okay, here's where you have a break. Here's where you're going to eat Caesar chicken salad. And I

spk_0 have protein bars in my bag. That's not offensive to me. But some people that would be very offensive.

spk_0 What is very offensive across the board is people not having their tempers in check. I'm not your

spk_0 mother. I'm not your wife. I'm not your teacher. I'm not your daycare provider. Like grow up. That is

spk_0 absolutely unacceptable. I don't care what it is that's frustrating you. You need to have your

spk_0 temper in check. And if that's not something that not a skill that you currently have, you need to

spk_0 work on that. I need to hire somebody else who is fine getting yelled at. Like treat people with

spk_0 basic respect. I have been yelled at. I have had things thrown at me. I have had people like

spk_0 seriously. Like I have had people, you know, throw a sheath of papers like right into my face. And

spk_0 I'm like, that is unacceptable. So like have your temper in check. Have your behavior in check. Like

spk_0 this is either a professional office or it might be inside of your personal home. But when you are

spk_0 bringing someone in as a hired professional, whatever that profession is, get it together. That's

spk_0 the dehumanizing stuff. That's the unacceptable stuff. Like the number of times I've heard from

spk_0 assistants that I got yelled at yesterday. And it was worse than last week. And I'm just like,

spk_0 escalation. This is abusive. This is not okay. And like don't tolerate that in the workplace.

spk_0 But like also if you're the person who's hiring the assistant, don't act like that. Yeah.

spk_0 Absolutely. And that's the unacceptable stuff. Like anything else, like job, duty wise can

spk_0 definitely be negotiated. And if you don't as the assistant want to be the person who gets the

spk_0 coffee or the dry cleaning, it's 2025. Uber Eats is a thing. There's plenty of services that will

spk_0 deliver your dry cleaning. You can. That's right. I will coordinate the delivery services associated

spk_0 with these tasks. And forward you the bill. Yes. You can be the person who does the project

spk_0 management of it, right? But you don't have to be the person physically going to the coffee shop.

spk_0 You don't have to be the person carrying the dry cleaning down the street. And you brought up those

spk_0 examples of the plumber and the cat. And you mentioned that it's your to do this. I don't have

spk_0 any emotional polls associated with it. I think that's a really great concept to highlight here.

spk_0 Is that there are many things that I think we're capable of doing. But we have some sort of emotional

spk_0 resistance. And so like I'm thinking about, oh, I should probably upgrade my video backdrop.

spk_0 But that feels like such a project. And I'm going to have to talk to a dozen different sales people

spk_0 who are going to ask about my needs and my desires and my measurements. And because I just have

spk_0 emotional resistance, like I've been dragging my feet and haven't really done it. And yet,

spk_0 someone else is just like, okay, I feel totally neutral about that. I would be happy to pull together

spk_0 all of those options and go through that legwork of talking to those people and relaying those

spk_0 measurements in your preferences a dozen times. So as to find a winning option for you.

spk_0 Yeah. And the other thing that a great assistant will do is say, you know, what Pete, you don't have

spk_0 to take a dozen meetings for that. You need to take three to five meetings. You need to pick the

spk_0 person who, you know, I'm already lowering your ceiling of 12. I've lowered your ceiling to five.

spk_0 I'm not going to talk to more than five people. And if I already have a service provider or, oh,

spk_0 hey, I had a video backdrop created just last year. I have a great service in mind. Now you're talking

spk_0 to zero people. That's good. You're just giving me a credit card so I can order it for you.

spk_0 Beautiful. Yeah. Well, tell me, Jess, are there any other key things to keep in mind before we hear

spk_0 about some of your favorite things? Key things to keep in mind is just I really love to recommend

spk_0 to people that when they're getting ready to hire an assistant, it means that they have been ready

spk_0 for six months to a year. So like it's time. If you're really thinking about it, that means that

spk_0 you have been ready for a while. I want you to talk with the people that you work with. So if you are

spk_0 the manager of a department, talk to all the people that you interact with for a week, just say,

spk_0 hey, if I was going to hire an assistant, what do you think I need help with? What do you think I

spk_0 could offload from my plate? And you just never know what things that you, I don't want to say

spk_0 complain about, but like what things do you say? Like, it's time to do the TPS reports. Maybe you

spk_0 need somebody that you can hire that can help you do the TPS reports. Because you again, you're too

spk_0 close to it. You're too in it. You are just in it. You're bogged down by the emotional weight of

spk_0 everything that you have outstanding to do. And it's hard to even know what you might need help with.

spk_0 So ask the people around you that you work with. Ask the people around you at home. Because you

spk_0 definitely don't know what are you letting off steam about to your spouse, to your children,

spk_0 to your friends, to your family. What did they hear when they say, how's work going Pete? And all

spk_0 they hear about is the quarterly inventory night or whatever. Like your assistant could come in

spk_0 and totally revamp the process to the point where you get excited about doing quarterly inventory.

spk_0 Because now that it's been evaluated and optimized, it's all of a sudden really exciting. And

spk_0 everybody orders pizza and it only takes three hours when it used to take eight. And now it's like

spk_0 a big company party because you hired this person to come in and help you. Yes. I'd like that a

spk_0 lot. And I think that this notion of the emotional weight of things is powerful in terms of it's not

spk_0 just a one to one hour dollar exchange situation. Because if you have a lot of emotional angst

spk_0 associated with, oh, I'm dreading this leading out to it. And then I afterwards, I'm so drained from

spk_0 having done it. And then I'm complaining about it. It's like you may have paid for one hour of

spk_0 services that goes away from your plate onto assistance plate. And yet that has freed up more than

spk_0 an hour of productive goodness in your world. Yes. Absolutely. The other thing I really like to tell

spk_0 people is make a list no matter how big or how small because you touched on this too that there's

spk_0 a lot of people who feel like, oh, well, I should or I already know how to do this. Why can't I fit

spk_0 this in? Everybody needs rest and recovery time. And so you are buying time. You're buying services.

spk_0 You're buying expertise from someone who can help you. And again, it's 2025, almost 2026. Some crazy

spk_0 how there is no shortage, depending on where you live of things that you can hire out. There's a

spk_0 really great site called care.com. It definitely is geared more toward housekeepers, nannies,

spk_0 that kind of role. You don't know what retired grandma that lives right around the corner from you

spk_0 wants 15 hours a week of picking the kids up from their activities, folding your laundry,

spk_0 and making dinner for everybody. You just don't know until you pay care.com for a subscription.

spk_0 You invest the money because care.com is going to give you like they do the vetting. They do the,

spk_0 you know, they're say, okay, here's the five candidates that we think based on what you're looking

spk_0 for help with that you might like. You ultimately have to interview them make the decision. But like

spk_0 care.com, they're the hub for you where the people come that are looking for work. When you ask your

spk_0 network, when you say, you know, these are the things. It's kind of a weird mishmash of personal

spk_0 and professional stuff that I need help with. You don't know who has five or 10 or 15 hours and

spk_0 who has what expertise and interests to bring to the table for you. Ask.

spk_0 Big thanks to Jess for sharing wisdom with us and big thanks to our sponsors. Check them out.

spk_0 One sponsor checkout is strawberry.me career coaching. Having real clarity and direction can

spk_0 make or break your career. If it seems like you're putting in the work but not seeing your career

spk_0 take off, some coaching might be just a ticket. Strawberry.me matches you with certified career coaches

spk_0 who help you gain clarity and what you really want next in your career. Develop a result-driven

spk_0 strategy and stay accountable. And they can also help you flourish beyond career issues. I had a

spk_0 fantastic session with my coach Brett about handling stress from so many responsibilities and so

spk_0 many areas. He was fun. He was wise. He just really got me. We had some laughs at a good time and

spk_0 good rapport. He gave me an exercise that has been so quick and so effective for me. I've been

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spk_0 go to strawberry.me slash awesome to claim your $50 credit. That's strawberry.me slash awesome.

spk_0 Because awesome careers don't just happen. You make them happen.

spk_0 Perfect. Thank you. Now could you share a favorite quote so that you find inspiring?

spk_0 Yeah, absolutely. My favorite quote is from Leslie Nope, the character from Parks and Rec. One

spk_0 person's annoying is another person's inspiring and heroic. Thank you. And a favorite study or

spk_0 experiment, a bit of research. I really love the Pareto principle, the 80-20 rule, especially as

spk_0 an administrative professional, 80% of the emails I receive, one minute less, don't even need to be

spk_0 answered. 20% of those emails are going to take up 80% of my time. It's just all day every day.

spk_0 Yeah. And a favorite book. I really read a lot of fiction. I am a huge hitchhiker's guide to the

spk_0 Galaxy Gowl. Yeah. And a favorite habit? Favorite habit. I love to get enough sleep and drink

spk_0 enough water and get enough exercise. Agreed. And is there a key nugget you share that is

spk_0 frequently quoted back to you? A Jess original that people find so delightful? I would say

spk_0 the biggest thing that I put out into the world is the five W's, the who, what, one, where, why of it all.

spk_0 Like really just any problem, any situation can be solved or enjoyed or put together with the

spk_0 who, what, when, where, why of it all? And if folks want to learn more, get in touch, where would you

spk_0 point them? I would love it if you checked out my website, JessLingrin.com, J-E-S-S-L-I-N-D-G-R-E-N,

spk_0 dot com. All right. And a final challenge. You call it action for folks. Look at it be awesome

spk_0 at their jobs? People looking to be awesome at their jobs. Stay hungry and stay foolish.

spk_0 I really appreciated Jess's take on how a great assistant can transform something that you dread

spk_0 into something that becomes quick and fun and exciting and thus liberates all kinds of good energy,

spk_0 which forms a nice little positive, virtuous cycle, loop of good energy in your world.

spk_0 Good stuff from Jess. If you want to check out the show notes or the transcript or the links to

spk_0 Adam's W reference, please drop on by awesome at your job.com slash EP1099. Hope to catch you next time.

spk_0 And peace.

1099: How to Buy Back Your Time with the Right Assistant with Jess Lindgren

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