During World War I, Henry Ford sued a Chicago newspaper for slandering him when they called him an “ignorant pacifist.” In the ensuing trial, defense attorneys questioned Mr. Ford with a series of general knowledge questions in an effort to show the jury that he was, as they claimed, ignorant.
Mr. Ford’s response: “If you really wanted to answer the silly question you just asked, or any of the other questions you’ve been asking me, let me remind you that I have a row of electric buttons on my desk.” , and by pressing the right button, I can call to my aid men who can answer any question I have about the business to which I am devoting most of my efforts. my mind with general knowledge, in order to be able to answer questions, when I have men around me who can provide me with whatever knowledge I need?
The lawyers were unsuccessful in their attempt to show that Mr. Ford was an ignorant man. Every person at court realized that he was the answer of a man of education.
This story, recounted in Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich, brilliantly illustrates: “It was not essential that he had this knowledge in his own mind.” He rather relied on the help of those who worked in his organization.
This is exactly why you should build your dream team, starting with a professional virtual assistant. Think about it. You decided to take the entrepreneurial step because you were passionate about your vision of what you could offer the world. It may have been inspiring others to live abundantly through life coaching services or helping your fellow entrepreneur achieve their goals through business coaching. Most likely you were NOT doing administrative work, technical work, internet marketing, or any other multitude of administrative business tasks that need to be done in any business! (Unless, of course, you ARE in a virtual assistant!) So you need to be able to “summon to your aid” a team that can answer your questions and provide the knowledge you need.
One of the questions I often get from the business and life coaches I consult with is how do I decide what to delegate to a virtual assistant? A great way to start is to have a pen and paper (okay, or your iPad) as you go through the day and whenever you find yourself thinking ‘I don’t like doing this’ or ‘This is not my experience’ or similar thought, Write down what you are doing. The resulting list is what you need to delegate! That list could include:
– Appointment scheduling
– Respond to routine emails.
– Creation of opt in, sales and web pages
-Social Media Marketing
– blog posting
– Creation and publication of newsletter
– content marketing
I’m sure you can think of many more! The key is that you don’t have to have all the “general knowledge” in your own mind when you have a dream team to help you. Mr. Ford had a row of electric pushbuttons. He has email, phone and internet to contact the right people to provide him with the knowledge and skills he needs!