In his latest Forbes article, Chad Willardson—President & Founder of Pacific Capital and ELEVATED—makes a compelling case for one of the most overlooked hires in entrepreneurship: the executive assistant (EA). Drawing from his own leadership experience and the systems he’s developed, Willardson explains why a high-level EA is not just an admin, but a force multiplier that protects your “genius zone” and unlocks exponential growth.
Key insights include:
- The Hidden Cost of DIY Leadership: Founders waste high-leverage hours on low-value tasks, creating hidden bottlenecks and stalling momentum.
- Delegation as Strategy: A great EA doesn’t just manage tasks—they create systems, anticipate needs, and keep strategic energy flowing.
- Hiring at the Right Level: Underpaying or undervaluing the role leads to poor leverage. Treat the EA hire with the same rigor as a VP role.
- The Dual-Assistant Model: Willardson shares his two-EA setup—splitting duties between relational and operational tasks to eliminate context switching and maximize bandwidth.
- The Multiplier Effect: Protecting your time with the right hire frees up cognitive capacity to spot market shifts, drive innovation, and maintain work-life balance.
Bottom line: A world-class EA may be the highest-ROI investment a founder can make—not just for productivity, but for long-term business growth and personal freedom.
You can read the full article here.