What does the perfect assistant look like?
Outsourcing takes all the physical traits of an assistant out of the picture. Height, weight, skin color, hair color, bad breath (er, excuse me while I grab a mint) all disappear. You won’t be passing them in the hallway every morning or chatting with them at the water cooler. Whether he or she is right across town or halfway around the world, you will only “see” the outcome of their work.
Before you hire an assistant, focus on the tasks you want them to accomplish. Then when you start your search for the perfect fit, use that list as keywords to find the right one. Instead of asking your network for an assistant, use the job description as their title. Most likely, a virtual assistant can handle a multitude of “general” jobs so find the one who is best at the specialized tasks you need done now. Then you can work together to add on more jobs as they come along.
