Remote work, for as long as it has been around, has benefitted a lot of businesses and is gaining more and more popularity recently, given the current global situation that we have. As most people are working remotely or in the comfort of their own homes, the new ones in this type of set up may have expected that doing tasks will go much smoother and feel more comfortable than in an office setting. However, veteran Virtual Assistants who may have had this set up for a long time, they know that burnout is still always a possibility.

You may be wondering how burn-out can happen in an environment where one is most comfortable. It is possible, and it happens more often than you think it does. One of the few reasons is failing to acknowledge that tasks or workload doesn’t just need physical labor to get done, but emotional and mental, too, which takes a lot of energy. But now that you know, we have a few tips you can do, for you and your virtual assistant, to prevent burnout.

Boundaries

A part of remote work that a lot of people are expecting is having flexible hours; however, this flexibility doesn’t mean being available round the clock, as this is very much a recipe for burnout.

Avoid this by having clear boundaries with regards to yours and your Virtual Assistant’s availability, and set a routine. Having a routine will lessen the anxiety of surprise communications for additional tasks or updates.

This would not only strengthen the respect in your employer-employee relationship, but would also allow for self-care, as both of you can take your time with tasks, and be able to have breaks.

Priorities

When you have a business, tasks are almost unending as if there are more tasks than the hours you have per day. And the very reason you hired a VA is so that someone can help you finish those tasks. However, don’t forget that they are human, too, and not robot workers that would be able to do whatever you give them.

When handing out tasks, make sure that it is indicated whether they are of high or low priority. This way, time can be used more efficiently, and no tasks are behind schedule. This lessens exhaustion for both you and your VA, as you wouldn’t have the additional emotional labor in thinking that all given tasks must be done ‘right now’.

Communication