How to Grow Your Income and Impact Without Sacrificing Your Well-Being

I want to talk about time management. This is something that a lot of virtual assistants think about when it's too late.

I know you want to full a client list and to hit your income goals, but what happens when you finally accomplish that? You need to prepare so you're not drowning when you manifest what you truly want.

Time management is so important to avoid mistakes, burnout, and overwhelm. Today, I'll be sharing my favorite time management strategies to help you work smarter, not harder.

The biggest time management challenge for virtual assistants is distractions, task overload, and poor scheduling.

So after many months of tweaking my schedule and nailing down a routine that works for me and the many things I have going on in life, including building my VA business, my daughter caught the flu, and I was thrown for a loop.

How can I manage school, a sick child, my son, a household while still serving the heck out of my clients? I was back at Square One trying to figure out how I can give time to everyone and everything.

I knew I had to scrap my current routine because things were so different for this season in my life. So, how I managed my days would have to shift as well.

My priority was my sick baby and everything revolved around her sleep and medication schedule. She slept for most of the day, so I used those pockets of time to focus on different areas of my business and my life.

After her first dose of meds and her nap, I would check in with clients and batch a lot of my client work for the day. Second nap was for school assignments. I would have lunch, and in her case, I would be keeping her hydrated, and then it will be time for my son to get home. So a daily check in with him, snack, and I could also plan client meetings while he set in with his sister.

Late afternoon is when I could focus on working on my business like pitching, creating content, etc., and then wrap up my day to focus on dinner, household chores, and prepping for the next day.

I work best in time blocks that have like a theme focus.

Constant shifts between unrelated tasks wastes more time for me, so I like to batch tasks and projects that go together.

You have to find the right strategies and balance that work for you, your life, and your business. So don't be afraid to instill any kind of boundaries.

I like to end my workday around 3 p.m., so I'm knocking out business tasks early in the day, so I can focus on my kids when they are home. Prepping for the day before with my top three priorities can help me be very strategic and focused when I tap into whatever I'm working on the next day. So like school, business, house, kids, et cetera, because I know exactly what I need to do.

Here are a few of my top time management hacks.

First, time blocking and batch working. Like I mentioned before, I group similar tasks together to be more streamlined and productive in shorter periods of time.

It keeps you in flow. When you're constantly switching between projects, trying to regain focus on something completely different, tasks just take more time than you think.

For example, checking emails at set times instead of all day makes more sense. Mornings make more sense for me to check emails, boxing messages, et cetera, to check the posts of all of my clients, so I know if there's anything I need to add to my list for the day. And then I don't check it again until later.

Constantly checking emails can throw you off and interfere with your flow, and you'll get less done than if you will stay focused on your current task list. Next, the Pomodoro technique.

I know you have heard me say this time and time again, but it's magic in setting a timer. Working in sprints make you more productive because you know you don't have any time to waste.

Also, having short breaks between keeps you motivated and helps you to avoid burnout.

For example, I set a time to work on client tasks, have a short break to decompress, have a snack, et cetera, and then set another time to work on my business priorities for today, maybe pitching, creating content, et cetera.

Prioritization strategies. I like to have my top three for today. One is for the lifeline of my business, serving clients.

Next is for pitching clients. And finally, it's personal tasks to keep my kids, household, personal goals nurtured. You need to know where your focus needs to be so you can have a clear plan on where to start and what needs to be done.

Automating repetitive tasks. Let's be honest. We have a limited amount of time each day, so we have to work smarter, not harder.

And automating is how you do this. Any repetitive task needs to have some kind of automation around it, no matter if it's creating templates, automated emails, or scheduling social media posts. Automation saves time and allows for higher value work.

The last thing, setting clear boundaries. I have been called the queen of boundaries because I'm very transparent with my clients on my working hours, my communication hours, and expectations from sales calls to team meetings.

This is very important because it provides the clarity that everyone needs to thrive and be productive.

I want my clients to know I have a 24 to 48-hour, 48 business hours turnaround time, so they can know not only when to expect completed tasks, but also when to delegate tasks in time to be completed by their desired date. This also gives you enough time to serve other clients, handle any unexpected issues or personal emergencies.

For some of my must-have tools, make sure you check out my top tech tools for Virtual Assistant Podcast episode, where I dive into task management tools such as Asana, Trello, or ClickUp, time tracking tools like Toggle or Clockify, and automation tools like Zapper or TTT. All of these tools streamline work and improve efficiency, so it's a must no matter what stage you're currently at in business.

But let's jump into the best thing I ever did for my business, and how I was able to grow and go full-time in my business for almost 10 years. My 10-year anniversary is coming up in December, and I can't be more proud of myself.

So creating a sustainable work routine is the main thing that has kept me in business for so long. And I want you to know this has changed over the years.

When I first started, my son was 5 and in kindergarten, and I had just lost my job, so I had 6 full hours to focus on my business. However, a few years later, I was pregnant with my daughter, managing 7 plus clients, and then had to learn to manage my business while chasing a toddler.

Creating a daily or weekly schedule that minimizes burnout is essential, no matter what's going on in your life.

I literally sat down with my daily calendar, mapping out nap time for my toddler, when I could have client calls, and when I could complete client work, when lunch would get done, and when I would cook dinner. Nothing was left off the list because I needed a designated time for everything. That way, I knew I was pushing my goals in every area of my business.

In that schedule, I made sure I had time for myself and things I enjoy to maintain a work-life balance while staying productive.

I always schedule at least one to two off days, so I am re-energized to be able to focus and be productive during my working hours. Remember, you need to experiment with different techniques and find what works best for you. It will take time, tweaks, adjustments, to find a routine and schedule that works for you. Every week, month, I complete reviews to see what went well and what I need to adjust. All right, y'all, so let's wrap this thing up.

We covered a lot today. Time blocking, batch working, departmental sprints, prioritization, automations, and boundaries.

But here's the real challenge.

What's one thing you can change this week to start managing your time better?

Maybe it's setting up office hours for your clients, maybe it's batching your content, or maybe it's just shutting down those email notifications so that you're not distracted all day. The key here is action. Don't just listen to these tips.

Try one out and see how it shifts your workflow. And if you're still feeling overwhelmed...

That's exactly why I created The VA University™. 🎓

Inside The VA University™, I walk you step-by-step through building your virtual assistant business—from setting up your foundation and identifying your services to pricing your packages, marketing your business, finding clients, navigating the sales process, setting up your systems, and onboarding your clients.

You don't need another 47 saved Instagram posts telling you how to become a VA.

You need a roadmap.

Class is officially in session. 🎓

Prefer to listen instead?

🎧 Listen to Episode 57 of the Neka Said Podcast: How to Grow Your Income and Impact Without Sacrificing Your Well-Being