Minute With Mallon: Four Seasons Lifestyle!

Feb 27

Welcome to Minute with Mallon!

Something I Taught:

There's a saying I like:

If you don't have an assistant, you are one!

I'm extremely blessed to have a virtual assistant named Rebecca! We've been working together for over 7 years, and I can tell you my life is much better because of it. She lives in Indianapolis, IN and I live in Gainesville, GA. We've only met in person about 4 times, but we communicate with each other multiple times a day.

When I decided to find an assistant, I went through a virtual assistant company called Belay Solutions. As far as I'm concerned, they are the best of the best! In fact, it's harder to get accepted as a virtual assistant into their company than it is to get into Harvard University, as they only accept about 1 person in 1000 who apply.

They sourced 4 great potentials for me. I had each go through a personality profile called the Kolbe A Index. It's an awesome assessment if you are looking to hire someone.

Anyway, on the assessment, all the things I'm really bad at (which btw, is almost everything! 😆), Rebecca scored high on.

I did Skype calls with each of the candidates. When I was talking with Rebecca, I asked her what her superpower was.

She answered, "I have the gift of administration." I asked her what she meant by that, and she began telling me about a time when she had worked in Vienna, Austria heading up team logistics on a big building project.

It was very interesting, and I was impressed by what she told me. Then I asked her what "administration" meant and she thought for a second and then said,

"I can put people and projects together and make them work."

As soon as those words came out of her mouth, I knew that I was going to hire her. But I didn’t tell her yet.

The next question I asked her was if she had ever stayed at a Four Seasons Hotel. The answer was no.

"When you stay at a Four Seasons, they have a way of reading your mind. For example, if you're unpacking your suitcase and you see that a pair of trousers is wrinkled and needs ironing. You immediately hear a knock at the door, and there's a man with an iron in his hand asking you if need a pair of pants ironed."

And you're blown away!

They somehow anticipate your every need.

"Rebecca, that's what I want you to do for Sandy and me. I want you to always be thinking ahead of things that may be needed that I'm too busy or foolish to even think of, and I want you to do them for me."

And that's what she's done.

About 15 years ago, I read a book called, The 4-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss The book is NOT about working 4 hours a week. It opened my eyes to so many possibilities to what was possible in my business and in my life.

Among other things, Tim advocates for outsourcing non-essential tasks to free up time for more valuable activities. By delegating tasks to virtual assistants or freelancers, individuals can focus on high-impact work while achieving greater efficiency and productivity.

In essence, Rebecca has allowed me to focus on the most important things that have the highest impact on my clients, and to spend a lot more time doing things that generate income.

Because of this, life is more fun and my work brings me great joy.

So how can you use this?

As leaders, it's time to rethink our approach and leverage the power of delegation. Whether it's through virtual assistants, freelancers, or innovative solutions, embracing this mindset shift can revolutionize how we work, how we live, and unlock our full potential.

It's your life!

Something to Ponder:

"The longer I live, the more deeply I learn that love — whether we call it friendship or family or romance — is the work of mirroring and magnifying each other's light.”

James Baldwin

Something I Learned:

Do you ever find yourself unable to 'switch things off' at the end of the day? Personally, I'm deeply passionate about my work and genuinely hope to continue doing what I love for as long as I live.

But…

Often by 5:00, I'm toast. What I do takes a lot of concentration, thought, and emotional energy. And to be quite honest, there are nights when I wake up and I can't turn my mind off. I'll bet sometimes it’s the same for you.

I just finished reading The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel. There were so many interesting stories in it. In the book, Housel talks about how in the last 100 years, the way we work has dramatically changed.

Here's a short excerpt about John D. Rockefeller to get you thinking – and possibly to help you understand why the way you and I work may be quite similar:

Rockefeller’s job wasn’t to drill wells, load trains, or move barrels. It was to think and make good decisions. Rockefeller’s product—his deliverable—wasn’t what he did with his hands, or even his words. It was what he figured out inside his head.

Almost all jobs during Rockefeller’s time required doing things with your hands. In 1870, 46% of jobs were in agriculture, and 35% were in crafts or manufacturing, according to economist Robert Gordon. Few professions relied on a worker’s brain. You didn’t think; you labored, without interruption, and your work was visible and tangible.

Today, that’s flipped. Thirty-eight percent of jobs are now designated as “managers, officials, and professionals.” These are decision-making jobs. Another 41% are service jobs that often rely on your thoughts as much as your actions. More of us have jobs that look closer to Rockefeller than a typical 1950s manufacturing worker, which means our days don’t end when we clock out and leave the factory. We’re constantly working in our heads, which means it feels like work never ends.

Interesting! This underscores how modern work emphasizes cognitive tasks over physical labor. In today's landscape, decision-making and thinking is paramount, and work extends beyond traditional boundaries.