Reviewed by Stan, Head of Hiring Department, TLNT.aeThe most common reason a new assistant does not work out is not the person. It is that the owner hands over either nothing ("I will explain later") or everything at once ("just take care of it"). This guide gives a delegation ladder: what to hand over in the first week, the first month and by month three, separate lists for business, personal and household tasks, what should never be delegated and how to write a task so it comes back done.
Talk to usHand over tasks in the order of low risk and high volume first. Each step adds trust and access; do not skip steps because the person seems good.
| When | What the assistant takes | Your role |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | calendar, meeting confirmations, a list of your recurring tasks, filing and finding documents, supplier reminders | you approve every outgoing message, the assistant watches how you decide |
| Weeks 2-4 | inbox triage with draft replies, bookings and travel, payments prepared for your approval, follow-ups after meetings, household and family logistics by a written list | you approve drafts in batches, twice a day, and start saying "you decide" on small items |
| Month 2 | renewal and deadline tracker, supplier orders within a limit, a weekly summary, personal errands end to end, coordination of the house staff | you review exceptions and the weekly summary only |
| Month 3 | the assistant owns the calendar, the inbox routine, renewals, travel and household coordination; proposes improvements; covers you when you travel | you give direction, decide on money and people, and check the tracker once a month |
These are the tasks that eat an owner's day and do not need the owner's judgement. Start from the top of the list.
If you want one person for business and private life, write the private list separately and decide what the assistant may see. For the full question of one hybrid person versus several, see our guide on one assistant or several.
However good the person is, some things stay with you. Write this list down and give it to the assistant on day one.
A task that comes back half done usually went out half written. Use the same five lines every time; after a month the assistant will fill them in for you.
TLNT is a hiring consultancy. We help you turn the delegation ladder into a job description, set the salary range as a market estimate, find and assess candidates with a practical skills assessment (a messy week to put in order, a travel itinerary, a renewal tracker to build) and prepare an offer with the first 30 days plan. You make the hiring decision and agree the terms with the candidate yourself; the person is employed directly by your company, the employer sponsors the visa and we give you a step-by-step checklist.
Our fee is fixed for each role and agreed before the search starts. A 10% prepayment of the fee starts the search, the rest is due once the person has started work. If it does not work out, we find a replacement free of charge; the period is set in the contract. Consulting and CRM projects are priced after a free review.
Start with the calendar, meeting confirmations, document filing and supplier reminders in week one, with every outgoing message approved by you. Add inbox triage with draft replies, bookings, travel and payments prepared for approval in weeks two to four. By month three the assistant should own the calendar, inbox routine, renewals, travel and household coordination.
Yes, up to a point. A hybrid multi-assistant can run the business calendar, your personal errands and the household coordination if the lists are written separately and the private information is shared on a need-to-know basis. When the household has several staff or properties, a house manager next to a business assistant usually works better; the market estimate for a hybrid person is 10,000 - 18,000 AED per month, orientation.
Our fee is fixed for each role and agreed before the search starts. A 10% prepayment of the fee starts the search, the rest is due once the person has started work. If it does not work out, we find a replacement free of charge; the period is set in the contract.
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Message on WhatsAppReviewed by Stan, Head of Hiring Department, TLNT.aeCite as: TLNT.ae, "What to delegate to an assistant first a ladder for week 1, month 1 and month 3", 2026, https://tlnt.ae/en/guides/what-to-delegate-to-an-assistant-first/. Prepared by TLNT.ae, a hiring consultancy working in the UAE since 2022.