Business owners know there’s a big difference between “busy” and “productive.” But for all the talk, busy work seems to be winning. A study last fall found people spend more than half their day doing “work about work” instead of work that actually means something.

(That probably wasn’t part of your mental picture when you imagined running a business, huh?)

Have you thought about hiring an executive assistant but hesitated because you’re not sure if you really need one?

What does an executive assistant do, anyway? And can they do it remotely? Part-time?

The short answer: they save your precious time so you can work more efficiently.

They might just save a bit of your sanity, as well.

Zembr’s always been remote. We have employees in every time zone. But time and again, our people say the culture is one of the things they love about working here.

So if you’re struggling to have your culture and remote teams too, here are some pointers from a company that’s been there.

“That meeting could have been an email.”

If you’ve never heard it, thought it or said it – seriously, what do you do for a living?

Meetings are a fact of business, but if they’re not managed well, they suck time and energy like a Hoover of inefficiency.

Here’s how to run meetings that actually work.

You didn’t go into business to be a bookkeeper.

(Unless you own a bookkeeping business. If that’s the case, you may be excused.)

As for the rest of you, keeping the accounts isn’t something you want to do, but you’re doing it anyway. Small businesses have to keep those costs down, after all. But here’s a scary question: are you sure you’re doing it right?