Ep. 088 Why Hiring an OBM is One of the Best Decisions You'll Make with Sue Almonte

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One thing I learned after years of serving spiritual entrepreneurs is that structure and systems create room for more ease and flow.

Spiritual entrepreneurs need support in the backend of their business so that they can focus on self-care, their own spiritual practices, and serving their clients. Creating systems like this can be complex, but supports their business in the long term.

Today on The Support Squad, I’m chatting with soulful online business manager Sue Almonte about what led her to serve spiritual coaches in her business, the difference between VAs and OBMs, and how creating systems in your business can open you up to more possibilities.

Tune in to hear:

• Why Sue loves to serve spiritual entrepreneurs
• The key differences between an OBM and a VA
• The importance of creating systems so that you can have a business that runs without you
• How to know if you’re ready to hire an OBM
  
  

Let me tell you a little bit about Sue Almonte: 

Sue is a free spirited, soulful online business manager who loves helping spiritual business coaches scale to consistent 6 figures in their business through strategizing, managing, and implementing systems.

Connect with Sue: Website | Instagram | Facebook

Why did you start your business and who do you love to help?

I started off as an admin VA last year because I wanted to live a life where I'm able to have a life of freedom and also help others. I want to make an impact on the world. My ultimate dream is to be a digital nomad and live in different countries around the world. 

I specifically wanted to help spiritual female entrepreneurs because one, I feel like we need all the support we can get as women.  I love to see the community - it's just so much support and it's really community over competition. Everyone is cheering each other on, everyone's rooting for each other, and supporting each other in a lot of different ways. I want to be a part of that and help also close all the gaps of inequality in the world. 

I've become more spiritual in the past year and I feel like that's really helped me in my personal life and in my business. I love that spiritual approach because it really helps to reprogram that subconscious. Even if you don't believe in the crystals and the full moon and anything, it is also science based, there's rhyme and reason behind it.

What is the difference between an OBM and a VA?

There are a lot of VAs who are straddling a VA/OBM role. They're really OBMs in disguise. 

You get to know someone's business and you become invested and you really want the best from them! Then you start giving recommendations and creating SOPs and things like that. 

I'd say one of the main differences between an OBM and a VA is that a VA is a team member where an OBM is more of a team leader. 

 As a virtual assistant, the business owner who gives you a task, like, “Hey, I need X, Y, and Z done by this date. These are the resources that you need to use and that's it!” 

But an OBM comes in and they actually manage the VA. They make sure that the VA knows what they're doing, checks in with them on a daily basis, and also make sure that they have their resources. An OBM also helps strategize and plan the business owner's goals

What can someone expect when they hire an OBM?

What they can expect is someone to come in and do a complete audit of their business. You know, see what systems they have in place, their SOPs (if there are any, usually there are not.) 

Basically, they just identify where the holes are in their business, plug them in, and then also make that strategic plan. 

Why are systems so important in a business?

Without systems, you're not gonna be able to achieve the goals that you want to achieve. In the long run, it's not going to really work out. 

 Systems are important because don't you want to take a day off? Don't you want to go on a vacation? You have to think back to your why - why did you start this business? 

A lot of us did it for the freedom and the flexibility that having an online business allows. If you don't have those systems in place, you can't do anything. Your business needs to run without you in it. 

It also ensures that everything is done accurately and it leaves less room for error.

How will I know when I'm ready to hire an OBM?

If you're scaling really quickly and you're finding that you're having a hard time keeping up with everything, that's a really great time to think about outsourcing to get those things off your plate. 

You also should be scaling to closer to consistent six-figures because you want to be able to grow a team. You want to be able to have an OBM and eventually also have a VA on the team/ 

If you don't like doing any of the tech and you're always wasting time, trying to figure out how everything works together, that’s another good time to outsource to an OBM.

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