More Bandwidth, Please: Hiring My First Lifestyle Manager
Let me tell you a quick story about how I finally gave myself more bandwidth — not just in business, but in life. It starts back in October, when my co-founder and I realized we were spending way too much time on tasks that didn’t bring joy, ROI, or momentum.
After nearly 10 years of running Zipdev, we were still getting pulled into the weeds — emails, calendar wrangling, travel booking, you name it. Like a lot of entrepreneurs, we wanted to stay out of the day-to-day but kept getting sucked back in. So, we made a conscious decision: it was time to bring on a right-hand person. Not just an Executive Assistant. Not just a Personal Assistant. But someone who could handle both sides of our lives — work and personal.
That’s how the idea of a Lifestyle Manager was born.
What’s a Lifestyle Manager?
Think of it as the ultimate blend of Executive Assistant and Personal Assistant — someone who helps run your business and your life. Because let’s be real: when you’re running a business, it is your life.
I wanted someone who could manage my inbox and calendar, but also help with personal scheduling — childcare, date nights, travel plans, and more. So I created a job description that reflected both sides of the role. I used a tool called a RACI chart to list out everything I was responsible for that I shouldn’t be doing — and turned that into the core of the position.
Our Hiring Process
Once we posted the job (under the title “Lifestyle Manager,” which instantly caught people’s attention), we ran applicants through our full vetting process — the same one we use for our clients:
1. Initial Video Interview – to assess conversational English.
2. Reading & Writing Assessment – to test comprehension.
3. Skills Assessment – we asked candidates to plan a fake trip to a Vegas conference, complete with flights, hotel, alarm setup, meetings with CEOs, dinners, and even family events like my wife’s birthday and my parents’ anniversary.
Yes, many candidates used AI to help — and that’s a good thing. I expect my Lifestyle Manager to use tools like ChatGPT to be more efficient.
Once we narrowed it down to the top three, I took it a step further. I had the final candidates complete personality and behavior assessments (Enneagram, DISC, 16 Personalities) using a tool called Cloverleaf. Then I matched their profiles with mine using ChatGPT to see who would be the best fit. That was the first time I used AI in a hiring decision — and it worked out perfectly.
Meet Karla
Fast forward 8 months, and I can confidently say: I should’ve done this years ago.
Karla, my Lifestyle Manager, has completely changed the way I work. She manages my inbox, organizes my calendar, ensures I have time for deep work, family, and wellness. She sends me a daily list of action items, handles all of my travel (I haven’t booked a flight in months), and preps me for every sales call with key info — LinkedIn profiles, company size, open roles, etc. I’m walking into meetings more prepared than ever.
She even helped my mom plan a full family vacation to Playa del Carmen.
The ROI of Letting Go
The hardest part was letting go. Having someone in my inbox replying on my behalf felt strange at first — but now I can’t imagine taking that back. I no longer write to-do lists on scratch paper. I sit down each day, review my “Action Required” folder (down to 10 emails a day!), and focus on the high-leverage work: strategy, lead gen, marketing.
My clients, friends, and EO peers often ask how I keep all the plates spinning. The truth is: I’m not doing it alone anymore. And neither should you.
Want In?
If you’ve been thinking about hiring an EA, VA, or Lifestyle Manager — take this as your sign.
We’ve now helped several of our clients at Zipdev hire Lifestyle Managers of their own, and the demand is only growing. If you want to see how we structure the role, I’m sharing two key resources below, our Lifestyle Job Description and our Email Management Guide.
Let’s stop glorifying burnout. You don’t have to do it all. You just have to set yourself up to do what matters most.
Lifestyle Manager Job Description.
Cheers,
Daniel Co-founder, Zipdev.