Hi Reader,
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After a hectic couple of weeks of travel and events (and more lined up for next week!), this week has been all about getting my head down and cracking on.
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​​As much as I love getting out and about, meeting people and learning new things, there’s nothing quite like time working ON my own business and moving things forward.​
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This weekend is a Bank Holiday in the UK (hurrah!) so we get an extra day to spend as we please. My children are away with their dad, so I’ll mostly be playing ponies and prepping for another big week. 🐴
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Our amazing Handbookers Facebook group will be paused for the weekend so the team also get to enjoy the break.
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I'd love to know what you’re planning to get up to so hit reply and let me know…

📅 Manchester VA Meet Up

Don’t forget we have our first in-person meet up in the diary for Tuesday, 5^th May from 6.00 – 8.00pm at The Alan, Manchester, so sign up here if you’re joining us.
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Whether you’re an established VA, just starting out or perhaps only pondering the idea of setting up your VA business, we’d love to meet you and hear more about your journey.
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And if you’re not close enough to join us in Manchester, check out the rest of our event schedule to see what’s coming up over the next few months.
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There’s also still time to get your ticket for the Manchester VA Conference on Wednesday, 6^th May but you’ll need to be quick!

​ ☕ Espresso Shot: Give Yourself a Virtual Board of Directors

I love this tip shared by an attendee at the EA Campus Conference last week so I immediately went home and tested it out for both of my businesses, and loved it.
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​If you don’t have people around you to challenge your thinking, why not build your own Virtual Board?​
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Use ChatGPT (or your fave platform) to simulate different senior perspectives across your business.
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Start with this prompt:

“Act as a Board of Directors for my VA business. Take on the perspectives of a CFO, COO, CMO, CTO and CPO. I will share details about my business and a challenge I’m facing. I want each ‘board member’ to give their perspective, priorities, concerns and recommended actions. Challenge my thinking where needed.”
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​Then add context like your current revenue and/or goals, your services and/or offers, whether you have a team or are a solo VA and any specific decisions or challenges you’re facing.
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Then dig deeper with questions such as:

• “Where am I leaving money on the table?” (CFO)
• “What’s inefficient or overcomplicated?” (COO)
• “What should I be doing to generate more demand?” (CMO)
• “What could I automate or streamline?” (CTO)
• “Where am I the bottleneck?” (CPO)
• What would each of you prioritise in the next 90 days?”

Most of us only ever see our business from one perspective - our own. This forces you to think like a strategist, an operator, a marketer and a leader.

It’s like having a senior leadership team… without the payroll.

If you want more handy VA-centric prompts like this, sign up for our monthly Espresso AI newsletter.

🌞 Summer Lovin’

Finally, if you’re dreaming of summer and thinking of ditching your desk to camp out in the garden with your laptop, you’ll love this fun post in the Facebook group covering everything from laptop shades to cardboard boxes, and even wine boxes!

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​Who knew this was an actual thing?!

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See you next week!

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Holly x
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