How to hire a house manager and buy back your time

Executive overview

Most time-pressed founders outsource tasks piecemeal — a cleaner, a meal prepper, an errand runner — and end up coordinating five people instead of doing focused work. A single house manager consolidates all personal logistics into one role, freeing you to do the work only you can do.

The highest-leverage hire you can make isn't in your business — it's in your home.

Consolidating roles to reduce complexity

• Multiple separate helpers create coordination overhead, not efficiency.
• Start by asking an existing trusted person (e.g. cleaner) to expand their scope — groceries, errands, meal prep, babysitting.
• One person you already trust beats recruiting someone new.
• Pay the same amount for more, or slightly more for far more output.

Separating executive assistant and house manager

• Executive assistant owns corporate life: email, legal, finance, schedule, travel.
• House manager owns personal life: cars, real estate, registrations, insurance, mail, parcels, gifts.
• Combined, these tasks can consume 10–40 hours a week without a dedicated owner.
• Have the house manager report to the executive assistant — they control the calendar and can coordinate logistics seamlessly.

Finding the right person: test-first hiring

• Use a video submission in the application to verify the candidate can follow instructions.
• Run a Colby A profile assessment to identify high follow-through, research-oriented candidates — the opposite of your profile.
• Assign a test project that simulates real tasks: handle mail, make a purchase, babysit.
• Assess attitude, questions asked, and whether they gel with your household — they'll be in your home.

Managing for consistent results

• Weekly one-on-ones replace informal, friendly-but-vague expectations.
• Use structured time to check direction, surface blockers, give feedback.
• Tools: 1Password for shared credentials, Google Docs for systems and playbooks, Trello for ongoing task management.
• Avoid treating them like a friend — they have outcomes to deliver; stay out of their way between meetings.