Interviews Are Like Dating

0:00 Hi, welcome to the podcast that explores what virtual assistants want business owners to know when they start asking themselves the question, hey, do I need a VA? I'm Rachel Davila and after 18 years as a virtual assistant going it alone, I experienced the steep learning curve from the other side of the VA client relationship when I hired my own assistant. Joining me on this podcast is a group of friends and colleagues who all have their own take on what busy entrepreneurs need to know to find, hire, and work with a virtual assistant and mindfully answer the question, hey, do I need a VA?

0:44 Let's get this episode started. Hey everyone, welcome back to, hey, do I need a VA? The podcast. I'm Rachel Davila and with me is Sydney Hubbard, Leanne Arimley, and Brie Beavey. And today is episode number nine and we're talking interviews, the process, the questions, what to look for, all that good stuff. So we're going to get started. Sydney, what kinds of things do you do in your interview process? I think that my interview process is still developing, something that I definitely make sure to go over.

1:24 It's like how much I expect to be paid, when I expect to be paid, how that works, so that there's complete transparency. I also go over the fact that I'm in college, you know, and like what times work for me in terms of meeting, in terms of when I'm going to be doing work, because I think those are some of the most important things that a client would want to know. In terms of me figuring out a client and their communication style and stuff like that, I think I'm still working on that. So yeah, your guys' process will be super interesting to hear.

2:09 Well I know for me, interviewing is kind of like dating. You know, dating experts say you wouldn't want to like rush into a relationship, you'd want to meet for coffee first. So I kind of have a 30 minute discovery call where we're supposed to just feel each other out. Do we like what the other person says? Do we get along? Can we make small talk? And then when I was in my training program, they were like, it stops there, and then if you like each other, then you do a deeper interview. When I'm in the zone with a potential client, we kind of just blow right in and it's like, hey, do you have 30 more minutes?

2:53 Let's keep talking. And then usually by the end of that, if all the checkboxes are met, they're like, yeah, let's do it. Right or wrong, I think you do kind of get that feeling. I still do tell potential clients if they haven't talked to other VA's that they should kind of date around a little bit, even if it's love at first sight with us, they can always come back around. So that's kind of how mine has evolved over the years. But I'm curious, Leanne, you've been in business longer than I have. So how has yours kind of developed or what you do?

3:35 In the beginning, it was more of just like, hey, you're the only one I know, so here you go. Remember, it was a very long time ago. Nowadays, we do a little more interviewing. Mine's only a 15 minute discovery call. But I don't think I've ever kept it to 15 minutes. I always go over unless it's a definite, you know, that we're not driving. A lot of it is get to know the person, get to know what they want. What do they need? Are we a good fit? What they're asking for are the skills I have and I want to do. There's a lot of things I can do that I don't want to do anymore. So if I don't want to do that, I'm going to send you over to another VA.

4:15 So a lot of it is, do I like you? Can I work with you? And then we go through the whole, how do you communicate? Does that work? Time zones generally are not an issue, but sometimes they are. When I have somebody in Europe, time zones is not always a great thing. It causes some problems. But sometimes they're like, yeah, whatever, and I get to it. The other thing I've noticed is, and I'm getting better at picking it up, but I still don't always pick it up as if they micromanage. The micromanagers don't always let you know that they're micromanagers until you go awhile and then you're like, oh, this is becoming a problem.

4:56 But that's, so I've evolved from take whatever I can get to now, one more picky and discuss it and make sure we get along. I've found that certain personality types I would rather not work with. And others I more gravitate towards. And I find that in the interview, just talking, you know, hey, how are you talking about you, tell them about your business. I can find that just in their talking. I don't have to say, hey, are you this type personality? You can kind of tell. How about you, Brie? For me, I also do a discovery call. Mine are about 20 minutes, give or take. And I have a questionnaire that I send out ahead of time that kind of, if they get a chance to fill it out, kind of gives me some, you know, they can send me some of their websites or their social media stuff.

5:46 They can send me like some of the services that they may be considering looking for and things like that. So I can get a little bit of a background feel of them before we start the call to make the most out of our time together. And then I have the option of where we can either free talk about what's come up or what's in their form. And I, if it feels like you need to a little bit more guidance or if they were interested, I have a presentation that I go through that kind of highlights, you know, that there's different types of virtual assistance, things to consider how we work, what platforms we use and how we communicate, how we do our meetings, things like that. And then should they decide that they wanted to work together, we would. I also encourage them like think about it, whatever, I can send you a copy of the contract, you can think about it.

6:30 Should you want to go ahead, then we can send out the contract, the first invoice and dive deeper into what the communication type things and expectations are. But should they not, or even regardless whether they decide to go with us or not, I try to bring value to it and still I have a couple of resources of like things to consider when you're working with a VA, some stuff about social media stuff like that. So depending on what comes up in the conversation, I try to at least send them some resources or something like that to help them consider things along the way as they're talking to other people as well. Yeah, I'm similar. I have a pre qualifying questionnaire to even get the link to my discovery call, mostly because I want to see how invested they are in the process.

7:14 So if they are giving me one word answers on my questionnaire, then likely it's not going to be the right fit. But if they give me really good, you know, well thought out things in the questionnaire, then I'm like, okay, this is someone I can work with because I want that collaboration. I don't want someone to just throw things at me to do. So I do my questionnaire is set up to kind of be that kind of pre qualifying before we even talk kind of thing. And if there's things on the questionnaire that I'm like, yeah, that's not for me. And I always try to give some value in the, hey, we're not the right fit.

7:56 But I can refer you out based on what you, how you responded. And I do the same kind of thing during the call. Like if we're not the right fit, I'm very upfront and to say that because I don't want somebody to kind of yes. And I do have, you know, I've been building this VA community of referrals so that I can say, well, based on what you said and everything, I'm not the right fit, but I can refer you out. And if they're interested in that, then I do that warm connect to the other VA's just so that they don't leave empty handed. Because I think that for me, I want them to have a good experience, whether it's with me or somebody else.

8:42 So yeah, same here. I quite often refer them to you. And the other thing I tried to get to is like, what are their pain points and what are the things that are overwhelming them? Just to see like, you know, again, if I'm not the fit, then who could maybe handle those kinds of things? Or if my team members can do part of it, who can we bring in that would do the other gaps that we don't feel, but we work well together so that we can kind of collaborate in the back end for them. But for me too, I don't always pick up on those red flags or those things that might not be a fit. So I also kind of put in like a three month kind of like, if we're trying it out, let's do like a three month try things on for size and see how it goes. And if at the end of that three months, we're just still not clicking or there's still workflows that are struggling or things like that, then we can reassess then.

9:27 Yeah. Same. I've taken that on. Thank you. One of the things that I learned when I was bringing on a team member before Sydney came was I knew how to manage an interview from the VA side. I didn't know how to manage an interview from the client side. I assumed wrongly that all VAs would have a process that they would take me through. And Sydney was brand new, didn't have anything. So from the client, and I had to kind of guide us through, well, we're going to work together.

10:14 So how do we do this? But it showed me that the clients need to have some idea of what they're looking for and the questions to ask from their end so that they feel that they're a good match too, but it's not VA heavy to lead the interview because if the VA doesn't, the client needs to have some kind of guidance to decide, like, okay, you don't have anything, we're not the right fit or okay, you've answered all the questions that I have. What do you have? So what kinds of things have you heard from clients asking that potential clients should consider adding to their list when they're going into an interview process?

11:08 I actually, I just had a, I just did an interview with a new client and they asked me all the questions that I normally ask. I was like, dang girl, you're good at this. It was so nice to have a client who had been through working with these, so they kind of knew what did work for them, what didn't work. So I think if you're a potential client and you've worked with a virtual assistant before or had a personal or an office assistant, what kinds of things worked well for you? What kinds of things didn't work well for you?

11:51 Maybe craft a question that can kind of ask about those kinds of situations or things. The client that I had, they had processes and programs that were important to them that they asked if I knew and I didn't know them, but then the follow-up question was, but are you okay working in that or learning it or do you have something different? So I think knowing what is working for you and what you want to bring somebody into versus having to change and go in a different direction, I think that's important to know.

12:37 And they were very clear that they needed more in terms of a collaborator. The VAs that they had were great, but it was kind of an agency that tended to cycle through VAs, so she was constantly getting new ones just when she was starting to click with them. So she was like, I need somebody, one person that's not going to change over time. And that's kind of an important thing to know about yourself and everything. Like, are you wanting to build that or do you just need to make sure that your stuff gets done and it's okay to not know who's kind of doing it?

13:23 But I thought for me as the VA, she kind of led some of those questions that were important to her. And I really loved going through that process with her because it was like, oh, you know yourself and you know what you need. And yeah, I can totally step in and do that. And it's nice that she was able to kind of guide. But I also know on the flip side, not everyone has that self-awareness or that experience. So I think maybe doing some internal work, like what am I actually looking for?

14:05 What do I need? What are my gaps that I need somebody to fill in and how can I craft a question around that or express that need? I think we'll go a long way in that initial process. I think too, if they come in and they don't necessarily know those things, but being upfront that they don't know those things, but they're looking to kind of figure out those things, also gives the person who's working with them that opportunity to be like, so these are some options. Like this is how I've seen this go before. Here's some things that we can try. Feedback is so important. Like you said, like what, even if it comes up as you go, you know what, we tried this, this part worked for me, but this part didn't. Like that's how we learn and grow and we can develop those relationships.

14:48 So even if you don't know to start with, like don't feel like you can't start working with somebody because you're caught up in that, but I'm not sure about the processes. I'm not sure about this. I don't know for sure how I communicate. And you know what, sometimes you can pull things from relationships like your family members, but sometimes they don't always translate into your work relationships and they look different too. So you can use those as starting points, but I feel like don't feel like discouraged if you don't necessarily have all those answers. Just be upfront with the person and make sure that they're willing to work with you on that and kind of come up with those things as you go. And everything's kind of a test and try, right? And if you go in with that kind of a perspective, it also leaves the window open for open communication and developing it as you go.

15:30 Leanne, anything? No, I think you kind of covered it. It'd be awesome if every client came in knowing all of that stuff, but Bree's right. A lot of times they don't or they've never worked with the VA and they have no idea what works for them and what doesn't. And saying that ahead of time helps because then you're like, okay, we're going to try this, but you got to tell me, does this work? Because it's not because as VA's, we can adjust what we do and how we do it if we know it's not working for you. So, but if we don't know, then we can't really fix it. We are not mind readers. We are excellent executors, but we are not mind readers. We need the feedback.

16:12 I did hear in a video that the different types of VA's will ask different questions and some things to look forward to or to listen for is how they ask some questions. So doers will tend to say, I can do that, tell me what you need versus collaborators will kind of say, here's how I can help and give solutions and options to a situation.

16:54 That's one thing to kind of listen for. It'll give you some guidance as to how the VA will kind of step in and help with things. And if you aren't really sure what you need, listen for those kinds of solutions, those options. Here's what we can do. Here's how I can help. We can do it this way, those kinds of solution things. Sydney, do you have anything that you've come up with or that you've heard that's been helpful? I think it's been helpful to hear about how different clients think about the amount of time that their tasks will take.

17:39 This is kind of something we've talked about before with a client thinks the task will take this long, but with a VA, it'll take likely a shorter amount of time. And also because time is like the basis of how some VA's get paid. So it's like, okay, if a client is thinking and conscious about how much they have in terms, like their budget in terms of payment, I think it's good. And it's a good sign for me when they're thinking about like, oh, I think I can only have you be doing this many hours per month. I think that kind of goes into the budgeting, the thinking about like, okay, I can afford this VA, but even VA's that aren't that expensive, if you're having them do a lot of hours per month, it's going to add up.

18:39 And so I think having that in mind is a good sign for me. And I think a good part of adding someone onto the team. And so I kind of want to wrap up this episode with red flags, what to look for on both ends. Like I know for me, I don't do cold calling. I don't, I don't really like doing research. So if those are kinds of things that the client is like, yes, I absolutely need help with that, then I know we're not the right fit. And then I can refer them out. But do you have any, like, I guess red flags isn't necessarily the right word, maybe deal breakers or tasks that you're like, yeah, that's not a thing in, in my business.

19:31 So what are yours? And what do you think clients should be? So I think for me, my deal breakers are, they need an account. That is not a me thing, no bookkeeping, no accounting, that's not a me thing. Almost everything else that clients have mentioned is like, well, I could do that. I want to do that for you. Kind of things. If someone's got a project that I'm like really passionate about, I might be more willing to do some things I don't like as much because it's a project I care about. For a client, it needs to almost be the same thing. If we're not a good match personality wise, that should first of all be that very big first red flag.

20:16 You know, if they need somebody, it's going to micromanage them. No, that's not me. But if that's what they're looking for, they need to make sure they have that kind of personality. And if it's, if you have a very laid back type of VA, then, or a VA who sits and waits for you to say, hey, this is the next project, then that's not a good fit. And that should be a red flag when they're interviewing. So you kind of have to figure out how to ask that question as a client is, you know, I need someone to stay on top of me and make sure I'm doing all the stuff. How do you get that across and make sure the person doesn't say, yeah, I can do that. And just, you know, it's like, no, I really need you to do that.

20:58 So they need to understand that part of it. And I think a big red flag is the personality. If it's not a good match, you know, it's nothing's going to work. How about you, Brie? Yeah, I agree. And for me too, it's a turn over time or like getting information from people, like, because you're going to pay for my time for me to reach out and ask you every time I'm coming to you and being like, Hey, I still really need this. Do you have it? And then it becomes, well, how much of it's nagging and how much of it is helping. So like having some parameters and stuff around what that looks like, if that's what you're looking for is also important. Like do you want me to nag at you every day or ask you for things like every two days, like having qualifiers of what that looks like if you are a person who needs a little bit more of accountability.

21:43 And then for me, I'm a fast talker. I get excited and I, when I work with people, I want to be excited about what we're working on. So I also like, like if I'm talking too fast, I need them to feel comfortable with telling me, Hey, can we slow down a second or reminding me or get swept up with me? That's fun too. I do have quite a few clients are like, Nope, I'm good. I love this, but I'm upfront with that too. Like I know this about myself and I am working on it, but these are things that it when I get excited, it comes out a lot. And so just like having those parameters for myself and putting that out there, I find is important too. Like, Hey, this is some of the things with me. When it comes to working with me and my team, we do try to be accommodating in the different platforms and ways that we work with clients, but we've come to a point where it's like, Okay, we can't do every single which way because we need to know where we're going.

22:31 So we have come to a point where it's like, you know, we mainly work in ClickUp and we like to use Slack and we like to use, you know, Facebook Messenger, if you don't do Slack or like we have a few different options, but we do have parameters on where we'd like to work and how we like to keep information. So it's easier for everyone to know where to go and find things. And so if that's not a fit, that could be a bit of a deal breaker if, if the technology piece and a supporting isn't a fit or they're just, it's not something that they're looking for, then that might be a thing for us or for them. And then yeah, just working on communication and turnaround times even is a really important one, I think, like knowing what your expectations are.

23:12 Like if you expect that you give something at night, you're going to have it the next day. Not everybody's going to be able to do that because as a person who works remotely, I try to tend to work my week, the week ahead of time, like on the Friday, I plan out what my schedule looks like and I put in the pockets of time of who I'm working on what. So having lots of last minute things, that doesn't necessarily work for that. I put in gaps and buffers for those things to come up, but it doesn't necessarily work. So if you're looking for a person who's doing quick turnaround times, then it might be a different fit. But if you're somebody who wants to build out buffer and get things ahead and not have to stress things, then knowing that too can be an important piece. I agree. I think what you said, Brie, about turnaround time is absolutely correct.

23:57 And I think there's a difference between paying a VA to hold you accountable and paying a VA to do projects and they also need to hold you accountable on top of that. So I think knowing if, I think a client knowing their work style is important because sometimes just having a VA will make people get on top of what they need to get done. And other times they have a VA, but they also would want reminders. And I think that's something to communicate, right?

24:38 That that's like their style of productivity. And the other thing is like, yes, exactly like turnaround times. I think that understanding and being aware of your work style and your productivity style, at least for me, I would prefer to have a lot of buffer because other areas of my life are going to throw things at me last minute. But having my work not be like that is important to me. And so I think that like some VA's might be the opposite, right? But I think that that's something to bring up.

25:18 And I think clients aren't always aware of the turnaround time that they're asking for, right? I think that a client doing that introspection and being aware of that is really important because it'll help understand not only what type of VA you're looking for in terms of what they can do, but also who you're looking for in terms of matching the pace of your business. Yeah. I think it's important to have that open communication we were talking about for those times because sometimes things come up last minute. But if you could be like, hey, I have this thing and I need it in two days, like being clear about that and then being able to be like, yes, I can do that.

26:04 Sorry, I can't. Like having that openness too, it also like it doesn't mean all the time it has to, because things like happens, but having an open communication about expectations, if it does happen, it's also lays in there. And I think it's important to note for potential clients who are listening in that we're throwing out a lot of things that we've come to know and understand. And if you're just starting out and you're not sure where you fall in the spectrum of emergency and lead time, that's okay too because it's understanding that it's something to consider.

26:45 It's something to think about. Do you always work to the last minute and you want to stop doing that? And that's why you're looking to work with a VA to kind of create that buffer zone. But some people do thrive in that the only way they get stuff done is last minute. And if you know that about yourself, then it's not that you can't create a buffer with your VA, it's that the buffer is that false deadline kind of thing. So you still have that emergency, you know, dopamine hit, but your VA still gets the lead time that they need.

27:28 It's when you don't want to create that space where a VA may not be the right fit for you. And part of that journey that you need to go on potential clients is understanding yourself and what you're looking for and what you need. And if you don't have it and you want it, we can help you build that in and create that for you. But if you don't have it and you don't want it, then a VA may not be the right fit for you. You might want to look at getting an employee or a personal assistant, somebody who can be that beck and call emergency on the go person.

28:11 But most VAs don't operate that way. And so that's an important thing to know about yourself and what are realistic expectations of finding hiring or working with a VA. Okay. Well, thank you so much for joining us today on Hey, Do I Need a VA the Podcast? If you have any questions about this, please send us an email at heyvapodcast at gmail.com or reach out to any one of us and we look forward to seeing you on the next episode. So thank you so much for joining us for this episode.

28:52 We are wrapping up for our summer vacation, but please subscribe on your favorite podcast channel or on YouTube to be reminded of when we come back and we will see you soon. Thank you for joining us on this episode of Hey, Do I Need a VA? the podcast. If you found this episode helpful, please leave a like, comment or review and feel free to join our Facebook group, find hire and work with a VA for more tips and tools. If you have any questions, please email them to heyvapodcast at gmail.com. We'll see you next time.