What is one thing everyone wants? A spouse, kids, clients, co-workers, bosses, everybody wants one thing. You, and everyone else, want to be appreciated. We all want to be loved, coddled, and catered to.

To be honest, I am not great at it. I am really, really busy trying to balance wearing multiple hats. A lot of people don’t respond well to this busy-ness which makes it challenging for entrepreneurs and business owners. You’ve got to remember, the people in your organization, your clients, and your employees, that without them, your business is not going to thrive without showing love to those around you.

We often get so busy that we forget about the value of those relationships. So, my $7-tip of-the-day is: leverage your time to have a VA, on your behalf, help you show appreciation to your team, clients, etc. on your behalf. . I recognize its importance but it doesn’t change the fact that I have a busy schedule. This is something I truly value so I have my VA assist me and that way my team doesn’t feel underappreciated.

If you have 20 employees, you might find that it’s easy to send an email to all of them asking “Hey, what’s going on? How are you doing?” You should be getting to know them on a more personal level. “What do you like to do? What’s your favorite restaurant? What’s your favorite vacation spot? What are children’s names?”

We are building a profile for a better understanding of our employees, especially since we plan to grow the business to 50+ people. You want to get to know people on a personal level and cater to them personally.

I want to know what, let’s say, Joe Smith down in accounting likes to do. Turns out, he (hypothetically) is a big mountain biker. So instead of giving him a gift card for his birthday, maybe I buy him some type of gift or product that’s relevant to mountain biking instead. It could be a new helmet, a new guided trail, or something else that your VA can research!

Bring on some creative ideas. If you sit there long enough, you’ll say he’s a mountain biker; he likes to go out west. Let’s put something together for him. When you put a lot of creative, caring thought into gifts for people, it goes a long way. A lot, much more than just saying, “Hey Joe, good job. Here’s a $100 gift card.”

We recently onboarded a new VP of Operations and my VA and I collaborated on sending him a welcome gift. We ended up choosing a nice watch from a local Detroit company, Shinola, who specializes in watches, timeless gifts, and leather products. (I may have also had assistance with this handwriting!)

At the end of the day, people know you’re busy running one hundred miles an hour, but to leverage your time and show that extra love and care via your VA can go a really long way. I recommend doing research that is specific to the people in your organization and other important people around you and it makes for better conversations, increased teamwork, and more engaging meetings!

Cater to your people. Do special things for them quarterly or annually. A VA will help gather gift ideas, research your team’s interests and even send emails on your behalf.
At the end of the day, if those people are around you know that you appreciate them, your work life will improve and they will be proud to work for you. Yes, you are leveraging your VA but that’s okay. Showing appreciation still lets them know that you care, which is so important for your business but really any walk of life.