What I’d Do If I Had a VA… But Everything Was Still Living in My Head
You finally hired a VA and think:
“Great. I finally have someone to help me.”
And then somehow… you’re still doing everything yourself.
You’re sending them messages like:
“Can you just quickly update this?”
“Actually, before you do that, can you check something else?”
“Oh, I forgot to mention, you need to do it this way.”
“Sorry, one more thing…”
Your VA asks:
“What would you like me to prioritise today?”
And you stare at your screen thinking:
“Honestly? I don’t even know. Didn’t I tell you last week?”
The root of all this - you haven't yet created a system for your VA to know what needs to be done, when it needs to be done, how it needs to be done, and what ‘done’ actually looks like.
And if everything currently lives in your head, I wouldn't try to build a beautiful operations system from scratch.
I'd start much simpler.
Here's exactly what I'd do.
Step 1: Get Everything Out of Your Head
If you have a million things floating around in your brain, don't sit down and try to write the perfect task list.
You'll probably spend 20 minutes staring at a blank document before remembering another 17 things while you're brushing your teeth that night.
Instead, I'd go for a walk.
And I'd open my phone and start a voice note using the voice to text app in your phone.
Then I'd just talk.
I'd say things like:
“Okay, I need Sarah to update the client spreadsheet. Actually, before that, we need to make sure the new clients have been added to the CRM. And I need someone to check the onboarding emails because I think one of them has the old Zoom link…”
Then:
“Oh, and the podcast episode needs to go out Friday. I need someone to upload it, write the description and send the email.”
And:
“I also really need someone to sort out the testimonials. They're all over the place. Some are in Google Drive, some are in emails, and I know I've got screenshots somewhere…”
And:
“Oh and can someone please remind me to follow up with Jane? She said she'd get back to me about the proposal.”
Don't organise it. Don't edit it. Don't make it sound professional.
Just get it out.
The beauty of doing this while walking is that you're allowing yourself to process your thoughts.
You're not trying to remember everything in a perfectly logical order.
You're simply downloading your brain.
Because right now, your VA might be sitting there waiting for instructions while you're carrying an entire project management system around inside your head.
That's exhausting for you.
And it's impossible for them to work efficiently.
Step 2: Turn Your Brain Dump Into a Task List
Once you've finished your voice note, turn it into a transcript.
Then I'd put the transcript into AI and ask it to turn the brain dump into an itemised task list.
For example, you might have said:
“The podcast needs to go out Friday and I need someone to upload it, write the description, make sure the links are right and send the email.”
AI can turn that into:
Podcast Episode
Upload episode
Add episode description
Check links
Schedule publication
Prepare promotional email
Schedule promotional email
Suddenly, something that was a sea of overwhelming thoughts becomes six executable tasks.
This is an important distinction.
Because saying:
“VA — can you sort out the podcast?”
isn't really a task.
It's a project.
And your VA now has to come back to you with questions:
Where is the episode?
What's the description supposed to include?
Which links should I use?
When does it go live?
Which email template should I use?
Where do I find that?
Now you're managing the person you hired to reduce your workload.
Instead, the goal at this stage is simply to make the invisible workload visible.
Step 3: Prioritise the List
Now you've got a giant list.
Don't send all 47 tasks to your VA and say:
“Let me know how you go.”
That's just creating a different kind of overwhelm.
I'd organise the list according to three things:
1. What's time-sensitive?
What has an actual deadline?
For example:
Client presentation due Thursday
Podcast needs to publish Friday
Workshop emails need to go out tomorrow
New client needs onboarding completed today
These come first because there's a consequence if they don't happen.
2. What's directly connected to revenue?
What helps you sell, deliver or collect money?
For example:
Following up leads
Preparing sales call information
Sending proposals
Uploading a new offer
Preparing a launch email
Processing new client payments
Getting a sales page ready
These activities should generally be prioritised over something like reorganising your Google Drive.
Because a perfectly organised Google Drive isn't going to pay the bills.
3. What saves you the most time?
Then look for the tasks that are eating your time unnecessarily.
The things you find yourself saying:
“Why am I still doing this?”
Maybe it's:
Formatting your weekly email
Uploading podcast episodes
Scheduling social posts
Updating your CRM
Sending client reminders
Preparing meeting notes
Creating weekly reports
Copying information between platforms
These are often the tasks where your VA can start creating immediate breathing room.
Step 4: Give Your VA One Clear List to Start With
At this point, you don't need a sophisticated operations system.
You just need clarity.
I'd send your VA the prioritised list and say:
“Here's everything I need help with right now. Let's work through these priorities first.”
Now they can see the workload.
They can identify what they can take ownership of.
And they can tell you what they need from you.
This is already significantly better than sending 15 separate DMs throughout the day.
Because that's another common trap.
You remember something → message your VA.
You notice something else → message your VA.
You receive an email → message your VA.
You think of something while driving → message your VA.
By 3pm, you've sent 23 messages and somehow spent half the day managing the person who was supposed to give you your time back.
Step 5: Give Your Tasks a Home
Once you've got the immediate workload under control, I'd move the list into a proper project management system.
Something simple like Asana or Trello is enough.
You don't need 17 different boards, colour-coded dashboards and a complicated workflow.
Start with three basic stages:
TO DO → IN PROGRESS → DONE
That's it.
Your VA can see what needs to happen.
They move something into In Progress when they're working on it.
And into Done when it's complete.
Now instead of asking:
“Hey, did you do that thing I asked you about yesterday?”
you can look at the board.
Instead of your VA asking:
“What should I work on today?”
they can look at the board.
And instead of your brain being the central storage facility for the entire business, the business finally has somewhere else to hold the information.
Create a Weekly Rhythm With Your VA
This is where I'd make another important change.
Rather than constantly communicating throughout the day, create a predictable weekly rhythm.
At the beginning of the week, I'd send a quick voice memo.
Something like:
“Okay, here's what's happening this week. We've got three new clients starting, the workshop is Thursday and the podcast needs to go out Friday. The biggest priorities are getting the new clients onboarded and getting the workshop emails scheduled. Here's what I'd like you to focus on first…”
Then I'd ask:
“What do you need from me to get these done?”
This question is incredibly important.
Because now you're giving your VA the opportunity to tell you about blockers before they become problems.
Maybe they need:
access to a platform
a template
clarification on a process
a piece of content
your approval
a decision from you
You can deal with those things upfront.
Instead of finding out Thursday afternoon that the thing you thought was being handled hasn't moved because your VA was waiting for something from you since Monday.
The Goal Isn't to Give Your VA More Tasks
The goal is to gradually create a business where your VA can execute without needing you to constantly think for them.
Because there's a big difference between:
“I have a VA who does things I tell them to do.”
and:
“I have a VA who knows what needs to happen, understands the standard, follows the process and can get on with it.”
The second one is where the real leverage starts.
And that's where systems come in.
Once the Immediate Chaos Is Under Control, Build the Systems
After you've gone through this exercise and identified the tasks your VA is repeatedly doing, that's when I'd start systemising.
Not before.
Because you don't need to create SOPs for 47 random tasks that may never happen again.
You want to look at the repeatable routines in your business.
For example:
Client onboarding
Instead of:
“Okay, we've got a new client. What do I need to send them again?”
You have a documented onboarding workflow:
Payment received → Welcome email → Agreement → Intake form → Booking link → Portal access → Client added to CRM → Internal notification
Your VA can follow the process without asking you what happens next. Better yet, we can automate the process as much as possible.
Weekly content
Instead of:
“Can you get this week's content scheduled?”
You have:
Content received → Caption formatted → Graphic uploaded → Links checked → Scheduled → Status updated
Podcast publishing
Instead of explaining it every Friday:
“Upload this here, add this description, make sure the links are correct, then send me the draft before scheduling…”
You have a workflow with the exact steps, templates and standards.
That's when your VA stops needing to constantly come back to you for instructions.
And Don't Just Document the Steps
A good system isn't simply:
Step 1. Log into Kajabi.
Step 2. Upload video.
Step 3. Publish.
Because what happens when your VA does it differently from how you would?
You end up thinking:
“Technically, they did it… but that's not how I wanted it done.”
So your systems need to capture more than what to do.
They should also define:
The standard
What does good look like?
The process
What are the steps?
The tools
Where does this happen?
The decision points
What should they do if something isn't straightforward?
The examples
What does the finished version look like?
The training
Is there a short video showing them how you want it done?
This is what turns a task into a repeatable workflow your team can actually follow.
Your VA Shouldn't Have to Read Your Mind
If you're constantly thinking:
“Why do I have to keep explaining this?”
“Why can't they just remember how I like it done?”
“It's quicker if I just do it myself.”
“I don't have time to train them.”
I'd stop and look at the system around the task.
Because often, the problem isn't that your VA isn't capable.
They've simply been given responsibility without the infrastructure to succeed.
You've given them the task, but not necessarily:
the priority
the process
the context
the standard
the examples
the decision-making guidelines
And then you're frustrated when they don't produce the result you had in your head.
But remember:
Your VA cannot read your mind.
So the goal of systems isn't to make your business more corporate or complicated.
It's to get the instructions out of your head and into a process someone else can follow.
This Is How Your VA Actually Starts Taking Things Off Your Plate
You don't need to wake up tomorrow and build an entire operations manual.
Start with the mess you have right now.
Brain dump.
Turn it into tasks.
Prioritise.
Give your VA a clear list.
Put the work somewhere visible.
Create a weekly communication rhythm.
Then start noticing the things you repeat.
Those are the things worth systemising.
Because every time you document a repeatable task, define the standard and give your VA the tools to execute it without you, you remove another piece of the business from your brain.
And eventually, instead of your VA asking:
“What do you want me to do?”
they can tell you:
“I've already taken care of it.”
That's the point.
Not simply having a VA.
Having a team that can genuinely take things off your plate.
Get the VA Priority Planner
If you're ready to get your tasks out of your head and in front of your VA this week, grab the free VA Priority Planner. It walks you through the brain dump, prioritisation and handover process above, so you can go from forty scattered tasks to a working list your VA can act on today.
