Ok, so today I want to go over something that I think a lot of entrepreneurs get wrong. And that's where they hire. Most business owners hear "outsourcing" and they immediately think India or the Philippines. And look, those are great markets. They're the two biggest players in the outsourcing world for a reason. But if those are the only two places you're looking, you're leaving a lot on the table. I'm writing this because after years of placing virtual assistants across multiple countries and continents, I've realized something important. Different regions are good at different things. It's not about finding the "cheapest" option. It's about matching your specific business need to the region that actually specializes in it. Think of it this way. You wouldn't go to a dentist for a knee problem. Same idea. Different countries have different strengths. And by the way, this isn't some nice-to-have strategic thought exercise. The US and Europe are facing labor shortages in the millions. Outsourcing isn't a trend. It's how businesses are going to survive and grow going forward. So let's break it down region by region. Link to Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/matthewmetros/p/beyond-india-and-the-philippines?r=4e36e&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Ok, so today I want to go over something that nobody really talks about honestly. Ghosting. Specifically, why your remote workers keep disappearing on you. If you've ever hired a virtual assistant and then one day they just stop responding, close the laptop, and vanish into thin air... this is for you. It happens all the time. And most business owners blame the VA. They say "these people just don't have work ethic" or "you can't trust overseas workers." I am telling you, in most cases, that's not what's happening. The real problem is usually staring back at you in the mirror. Link to Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/matthewmetros/p/the-virtual-vulture-how-micromanagement?r=4e36e&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Ok, so today I want to go over something that has completely changed the way I think about running a business. And honestly, this applies to every area of your life. It's the idea that the hard stuff you're dealing with right now is not blocking your success. It IS the path to your success. I'm writing this because the number one thing I see holding people back is not a lack of money, not a lack of tools, not a bad market. It's how they react when things get hard. They freeze. They complain. They blame the economy, their employees, their competitors, their situation. And look, I get it. I've been there. But the people who actually build something real? They do the exact opposite. They take the problem and figure out how to use it. There's an old quote from the roman emperor Marcus Aurelius where he was literally sitting in a tent on the front lines of a war when he wrote "The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way." That was almost 2,000 years ago. And it's still the most useful business advice I've come across. Link to Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/matthewmetros/p/the-obstacle-is-the-way-why-the-grind?r=4e36e&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Ok, so today I want to go over something that I see killing businesses every single day. And it's not what most people think. It's not bad marketing, a crappy product, or even a lack of money. It's one person holding the entire operation together by themselves. In the entrepreneurial world, there's a concept called the "Bus Factor." Basically, it asks the question: if one specific person got hit by a bus tomorrow, how screwed is the business? If the answer is "completely," you have a serious problem. I'm writing this because most of the business owners I work with are stuck in this exact trap. They're doing everything themselves. Sales, operations, customer service, HR, bookkeeping. Everything. And they think this is what being an entrepreneur looks like. It's not. It's what burnout looks like. Link to Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/matthewmetros/p/stop-being-the-single-point-of-failure?r=4e36e&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

Ok, so today I want to go over something that I see constantly in the outsourcing space. And it drives me crazy. The internet is full of people telling you to outsource your life away. Hire a bunch of virtual assistants. Work four hours a week. Passive income. Beach life. You've heard it all. I'm writing this because that advice, taken at face value, will destroy your business. I'm not anti-outsourcing. I run a virtual assistant placement company. I've placed hundreds of VAs with over 700 businesses. Outsourcing is the single best tool for scaling your operation. But here's where people mess up: they try to outsource things they don't understand themselves. If you hand off a piece of your business that you've never personally done or don't understand the mechanics of, you are giving the keys to your livelihood to a stranger. And you won't even know when things go wrong. Either someone is going to waste your money, operate so inefficiently that it eats your margins, or straight up take advantage of you. And you'll sit there thinking everything is fine. You cannot manage what you do not understand. Full stop. Link to Substack: https://open.substack.com/pub/matthewmetros/p/stop-outsourcing-what-you-dont-understand?r=4e36e&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true