The Costs of NOT Hiring an Executive Assistant

As entrepreneurs, we take pride in our dedication. When we start a business, we wear every hat, juggle every ball, and push forward with sheer willpower. Having said that, here’s what I’ve learned in two decades in business: if you don’t have an executive assistant, you are the assistant. And, to be honest, you’re probably a very expensive, and not particularly great, one.

In addition to my experience, this advice comes from business leaders like Tricia Sciortino, CEO of BELAY, a staffing agency that matches business owners with world-class virtual executive assistants, bookkeepers, and other remote workers. Her message is simple: the fastest way to buy back your time and scale your business is to delegate sooner, not later.

So, why do entrepreneurs put this off? Often, entrepreneurs view hiring an executive assistant as a cost. But, it’s actually a growth lever. In fact, it’s one of the smartest investments you can make in your business and in your life. Additionally, without one, you are likely to pay much more than you think.

The Illusion of Cost

When it comes to hiring an EA, the most common objection is: “I can’t justify the cost.”

I get it. A new hire comes with an expense line. But here’s the thing most people don’t realize: it’s not about how much an assistant costs, it’s about how much it costs not to hire one.

If you’re running a business, your time has a dollar value. It might be $100 an hour. Perhaps it’s $500. For some, it’s $1,000 or more. Now ask yourself: is it really the most effective use of that time to book travel, manage your inbox, or file expense reports?

By handling those tasks yourself, you’re spending hundreds of dollars per hour on low-value work. Even worse, you’re devoting time to activities that aren’t actually moving the needle: sales, strategy, leadership, vision.

According to Tricia, if you spend your days on $10 tasks, you’re limiting your company’s potential. It’s not an expense to delegate — it’s the fuel that enables leaders to scale.

Buying Back Your Time

With just 10 hours back on your calendar a week, imagine what you could accomplish.

That’s an opportunity to create a new deal structure, deepen a partnership, or create content that inspires other investors and entrepreneurs. Over time, those 10 hours can easily multiply into hundreds of thousands, or even millions.

One of the most valuable currencies we have is time, and EAs are one of the few investments that buy you time.

This is the underlying principle of BELAY, a company dedicated to helping leaders shift their calendars away from admin to visionary work. As a result, companies scale faster when the founder is not buried in the weeds.

The Myth of “I Can Do It Better”

Let’s talk about another roadblock: control.

Many entrepreneurs are reluctant to hire because they don’t want to let go. After all, they built their company from the ground up. In their opinion, things should be done in a certain way. The idea of handing over pieces of their “baby” feels risky.

The truth is that clinging to control doesn’t make you a better leader. It limits your growth.

Delegation isn’t a weakness; it’s a strength. It empowers your team, builds trust, and allows you to lead at the highest level. And let’s not forget, some people love doing the very tasks you dread. Their strengths lie in details, organization, and systems. Isn’t it better to let them operate in their zone of genius so that you can operate in yours?

As Tricia explains, scaling begins by admitting that you can’t do it all.

My Own EA Journey

In 2005, I hired my first executive assistant. Honestly, I can’t imagine life without one. Over the years, my assistants have grown with me across a variety of businesses. In fact, one of them eventually stepped up to manage our real estate portfolio.

To be honest, though, there was a time when I convinced myself that I didn’t need one. I thought, “I can handle things on my own for a while” as my wife and I traveled the globe, visiting 13 countries.

It was a short-lived season.

As I started coming up with new ideas —such as Lifestyle Investors, my book, the podcast, and Masterminds —I quickly realized how difficult it was to build something meaningful alone. By working with my EA, I turned my vision into reality. It was that single hire that laid the foundation for everything that followed.

Over time, I built layers of support, starting with fractional COOs, CMOs, and CFOs and eventually moving into full-time leadership positions. In any case, hiring an executive assistant was the first and most important step.

Tricia has seen this pattern time and again: entrepreneurs wait until they’re drowning before hiring. The smartest ones? When they hire early, the ROI compounds more quickly.

Why Sooner Is Always Better

Let me save you some trouble: there is no “right time” to hire.

Business doesn’t slow down. As you grow, your workload will only increase. If you bring someone on as soon as possible, you will stop drowning in tasks and be able to lead with clarity.

I have never regretted making a key hire early. However, I have often regretted waiting too long.

Tricia’s advice is similar to mine: Hire before you feel ready. When you wait until you’re overwhelmed, you’ll already be behind.

Delegation as a Superpower

How can you improve your ability to let go? Awareness is the first step.

My recommendation is to conduct a time study. During the next two weeks, keep track of everything you do. Be brutally honest. It won’t take you long to realize how much of your time is spent on tasks that someone else could do easily.

As soon as you determine what needs to be offloaded, delegation becomes a process:

• Watch me do it.
• You try it.
• I’ll watch you and give feedback.
• You own it from here.

Although it takes a little time up front, the payoff is huge. Soon, your assistant will be running circles around you in those areas.

This is the same framework BELAY uses when coaching its clients. In addition to lightening the load, effective delegation unlocks leadership potential.

Real-World Proof

I’m not the only one who has observed this. According to Tricia, Bryan Miles (her co-founder) and Michael Hyatt started their businesses by hiring virtual assistants.

Think about that. Before revenue. Before a team. Before “success.” Support was an investment. Why? They knew their genius was in creating, leading, and selling, not in handling logistics.

Those decisions didn’t slow them down. They accelerated growth.

Your Organization’s Limit or Liberator

When it comes down to it, delegation is what determines your ceiling.

Your own bandwidth will always limit you if you refuse to let go. However, learning to delegate effectively unlocks true leverage. It allows you to focus on the 20% of activities that drive 80% of results. And, as you grow, you empower others to do the same.

In any organization, delegation can either limit or liberate it. It’s up to you what you choose.

Until you do, your business won’t grow, as Tricia often reminds us. Letting go is the first step to growth.

Take the First Step

So here’s my challenge to you: stop looking at an executive assistant as a luxury or an unnecessary expense. Consider it your next growth lever.

Don’t be afraid to dip your toe in. See how much lighter you feel by hiring someone for 10 hours a week. Watch how much sharper your focus becomes. As you gain experience, you will want to increase your hours more quickly.

Regardless of where you are on your journey, you’re already late. Without an executive assistant, your company will lose time, miss opportunities, and stagnate.

In short, the sooner you act, the sooner you will unlock the freedom and impact you started this company for.

Key Takeaways

• If you don’t have an assistant, you are the assistant — and an expensive one at that. Rather than being your own expensive assistant, maximize your time and effectively delegate. A good example would be hiring an assistant. As a result, you can spend more time on strategic work that drives business growth or greater revenue
• Hiring an EA is an investment, not a cost. In other words, it helps you reallocate your time to tasks that deliver high value.
• Delegation fuels growth. According to Tricia, entrepreneurs who cling to control limit their business’s potential.
• Buy back your time. In just 10 hours a week, you can add substantial growth to your organization by reinvesting in strategy, sales, and vision.
• Hire sooner, not later. Waiting until you are overwhelmed means that your work is already behind schedule.
• Delegation is a skill. When you have the right framework in place, your EA will outperform you in your administrative tasks.
• Your ceiling is tied to your ability to delegate. You can either see it as the limit of your organization or as its liberator of it.

Featured Image Credit: Yan Krukau; Pexels: Thank you!