Episode 357: You Don’t Need More Time, You Need Better Support — Gina Cotner on Delegation

Why Delegation Gives You Your Life Back

After more than 17 years as a business coach, I’ve noticed one thing almost every business owner believes she doesn’t have enough of. It’s time. Somehow it disappears when you love what you’re working on. Yet it drags on forever when you’re stuck on tasks you can’t wait to finish. Yeah, you know what I’m talking about. As your wealth consciousness coach, I’m going to remind you that this feeling is rooted in scarcity and fear. More often than not, the real issue isn’t your calendar. It’s delegation.

My guest, Gina Cotner, is living proof. She’s the founder and CEO of Athena Executive Services, one of the top virtual assistant firms in the U.S. Ten years ago, she didn’t even want to start a business. Today, she generates over a million dollars a year working about 10 hours a week. And for her, delegation isn’t a luxury. It’s a mindset shift.

So if you’ve ever thought executive assistants are for other people, girlfriend, this one’s for you. Pop in your earphones, and let’s get to it.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• Why most people have time and money confused, and which one is actually finite
• How a divorce, a short sale, and one persistent HR director led Gina to start her company
• Why asking for help goes against how we’re wired, and how being a woman adds another layer
• The long-term cost of overgiving and saying “I got it” to everything
• Why even a two-minute task is worth handing off
• How Gina builds trust and accountability by role modeling rest and wellbeing
• Why she’d rather her team do great work and less work than more work
• A special bonus for Game On Girlfriend listeners who reach out to Athena Executive Services

Listen to the full episode

Watch the Full Episode

Time vs. Money: The Case for Delegation

We usually treat money as the scarce resource and time as the one we can always find more of. However, I see it the opposite way, and I bring this up with my clients all the time.

“Most people do have time and money confused. Most people think time is infinite and money is finite. It’s actually the other way around.” — Sarah Walton

Gina sees it the same way. No matter where we were born or what our background is, we all get 24 hours in a day. That’s only 168 hours a week. Somewhere along the way, she decided she wasn’t going to be a victim of time. Instead, she started treating it as a resource to use for what’s best for her.

“I’m way more passionate about how my time gets used than my money. I don’t like to waste money, but money can be made. But yesterday can’t be made. It’s done and there’s no refund.” — Gina Cotner

For Gina, that belief became the foundation of her work. She wanted a career and a life where she got to choose when, how, and with whom she worked. Once she had a little success with that, she wanted other women to have it too.

The Business Gina Never Planned to Start

Gina’s story starts during a hard season. She was in the middle of a divorce and scared about money. The house she had left to her ex went into a short sale after the mortgage payments stopped. 

Although she’d started several small businesses before, she was so stressed that she simply wanted a job. So she became an executive assistant, working from home.

Later, she became the EA for another CEO. Then the company’s HR director, Tiffany French, asked her to take on more. Gina said no because she was full. In response, Tiffany asked her to find someone like her and suggested it could be a pretty good business. Gina said no again, since she’d already been an entrepreneur and found it stressful, scary, and risky.

Even so, they found someone together, and Gina coached her to do the job as well as she did. Then Tiffany came back. The sales team was wasting way too much time on admin work, and she told Gina to open it as a business. Gina said she didn’t want to. Tiffany’s answer? “Get over yourself.” (Honestly, we should all send that woman flowers.)

From Executive Assistant to Agency Founder

Ten years ago, Gina opened Athena Executive Services with two EAs. Over time, she worked herself out of being an EA and into running the agency. Today, her team develops EAs and pairs them with swamped, successful business owners. And get this: they’ve never had to post a job description in all 10 years.

What I love about her story is that other people had to prompt her to take this on. We’re all so alike in our fear of delegation and our fear of letting people contribute to us. In fact, a lot of the time, we block it.

“When we allow other people to contribute to us, when we allow other people to support us, magic can happen.” — Sarah Walton

Today, many of Gina’s team members are moms. They’re smart and organized, and they also want to drop off and pick up their kids. Gina wants them to design their own lives according to their values. I hire the same way inside my own business, and I think it’s such a backbone to society.

Why Delegation Feels So Uncomfortable

According to Gina, people have always needed coaching on delegation, and they always will, even with AI. For whatever reason, asking for help isn’t how we’re wired. Somehow, it feels like something doesn’t count unless we did it ourselves and stayed overwhelmingly busy along the way.

Gina felt this too. In the beginning, she was shy about even saying she had an assistant because it sounded so fancy. Now her EA, Corrine, has been with her for eight years. These days, her girlfriends even ask her to have Corrine find a place for their trips.

Then there’s the woman factor. Gina pointed out how rarely we’ll raise a hand and say, “I need help.” As she put it, that’s a whole other podcast.

Skipping Delegation: The Real Cost of Doing It All Yourself

Think about the sales team at Gina’s first client. Once someone else took over their admin work, they were free to sell. Hello! The same is true for you. Every day, you want to be used for your highest and best purpose.

“Even if you work a long, hard day… if that whole day or the majority of that day was spent doing what you’re great at, what you were meant to do, what you’re walking this freaking planet for… you go home fulfilled.” — Gina Cotner

On the other hand, some tasks you hate, some you’re not good at, and some you’re just plain sick of. When those fill most of your day, it follows you home. It shows up at the dinner table and in how you are with your kids that night.

I call that overgiving. To me, it’s a scarcity mindset: if it’s not me, it’s not going to be right. Meanwhile, there are people who love doing the exact thing you dread. For them, it’s their jam.

So what’s the long-term cost? For Gina, a lot of it is health, whether it’s mental, physical, or emotional. Over time, it makes for a much less fulfilling life.

Why Delegation Starts With the Two-Minute Task

Here’s the funny part. Gina says the hardest thing to delegate is often a two-minute task. After all, it feels too small to hand off. Yet every one of those tasks pulls your brain away from what you were doing. Her answer is simple: add it to the list for her next call with her EA and move on.

And those interruptions add up. Research has shown that a CEO loses about an hour and 15 minutes of productivity every time she’s interrupted. That’s how long it takes to get back into what she was doing. In my view, most people don’t see the long-term cost of skipping delegation. The same goes for not protecting their time, their health, and their boundaries.

“We’re souls with bodies, not the other way around. And these bodies need attention. They need support. They need rest.” — Sarah Walton

Delegation at Home: Nobody Is Ever Really “Off”

Gina made a point that I found so relatable. These days, there’s no separate nine-to-five life and other life. It’s all just life. When you’re not working, you’re planning the birthday party, checking on your mom, and getting to Costco this weekend.

That’s why delegation isn’t only for big projects at work, girlfriend. It might simply be grocery shopping. For me, it’s cleaning. I actually enjoy cleaning, but I don’t have time to clean. So the question becomes, what could you give away that isn’t the highest and best use of you?

Great Work, Less Work

Gina also believes in protecting unscheduled time, even when a potential client wants to talk during that hour. And she’s so honest about why. Whoever is shopping for an executive assistant this week lived without one last week, and nobody died.

“I’d rather people do great work and less work than more work.” — Gina Cotner

For Gina, that looks like telling a teammate to go to sleep instead of answering two or three more emails. The fire will still be there in the morning, and she’ll solve it better once she’s rested.

I call this wealth consciousness. There’s an internal allowing that makes it possible for life to actually be really good. It’s also an abundance mindset. There’s enough time, enough space, enough support, and enough clients to get through this well.

As Gina said, maybe you’ll lose a client because you rushed something out today. Or maybe you’re forcing the wrong client to fit. The right one can wait a day for a reasonable reason.

Delegation, Trust, and Accountability on Your Team

Delegation only works when there’s trust. So how do you build a team that feels safe saying, “I need to rest before I answer this”? According to Gina, you’ll have to be the one who says it first. And you’ll probably say it for a long time while that trust grows.

“If you’re serious about it… it’s got to be in your values and your vision and your mission. And then you got to role model it.” — Gina Cotner

From there, Gina shared how she puts it into practice:

• Role model it. When Gina had a cold, she stopped working. If her managers had one, she insisted they stop too. After all, the sooner you invest in getting well, the sooner you’re well.

• Back their play. There are consequences either way, so the agency steps in to support clients while a team member recovers.

• Get to know your people. Gina asks her team when they’re going to bed, because she knows dinner, homework, and kids are waiting at home. It might feel a little intrusive at first, yet her staff appreciates it.

• Make it safe to speak up. From day one, she tells her team to bring their issues and concerns to the agency instead of muscling through alone.

For example, one of Gina’s team members recently flew halfway around the world to care for her aging parents. Rather than letting her tough it out, the agency stepped in with her clients so she could rest. That’s the heavy lifting a leader takes on, and it means she comes back doing better work, faster.

Open Yourself Up to Delegation

My biggest takeaway from this conversation is Gina’s view of the world. So think about what would be possible if somebody else got your groceries. Or if someone else answered all those emails you hate getting back to every single day.

If you listened to this episode all the way to the end, it’s because you know you’re ready. So I want to challenge you to see what’s possible when you open yourself up to a little more support.

“You can always make more money, but you don’t get extra time.” — Sarah Walton

I really encourage you to take advantage of Gina’s offer below. Talk to her team, and see what they could do for you.

“Open yourself up to this idea that maybe it doesn’t all have to be on you.” — Sarah Walton

About Gina Cotner

Gina Cotner is the founder and CEO of Athena Executive Services, one of the top virtual assistant firms in the U.S. Athena Executive Services pairs highly-skilled Executive Assistants across the country with swamped and successful entrepreneurs and executives. Gina’s team of elite EAs takes ownership of key processes and projects, freeing leaders to focus their time and energy where it matters most.

Gina is also a dynamic speaker and workshop facilitator, known for her practical, engaging approach to delegation. Through immersive, collaborative experiences, she helps leaders confidently hand off the “heavy lifting” and build teams rooted in clarity, accountability, and trust.

Connect with Gina

• Website: Athena Executive Services

• LinkedIn: Gina Cotner

• Instagram: @aes_executive_assistants

• Facebook: Athena Executive Services

[H3] Gina’s Free Gift for Girlfriends

Wondering whether an executive assistant is right for you? Schedule a free call with Athena Executive Services. You’ll talk with their client advisor about whether an EA could support your business, your personal life, or both.

Be sure to mention you heard about Gina on the Game On Girlfriend® podcast. If you become a client, you’ll get 5 bonus hours of executive assistant support (a $275 value) in your first full month.

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Related Episodes You’ll Love

Episode 224: Master the Art of Hiring with Jamie Van Cuyk — Jamie shares how to narrow your search for the right candidate for your business. She also walks through three steps to build trust and learn to delegate. If Gina has you thinking about delegation, it’s a natural next listen. Listen here

Episode 257: Where Business Owners Should (and Shouldn’t) Prioritize Their Time with Amber De La Garza — Amber shares four buckets you can use to maximize profits and make time for what matters. It pairs well with Gina’s view of time as your most valuable resource. Listen here

Episode 330: Build a Business That Supports Your Life with Erin Bradley — Erin’s card was once declined on the way to a client meeting. Today, she runs a freedom-based business. If you loved hearing how Gina designed her business around her life, you’ll enjoy Erin’s story too. Listen here

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Ready to Let More In? Explore The Art of Receiving

Letting other people support you can be really hard. That’s exactly the work we do inside The Art of Receiving. Delegation isn’t only a business skill. It’s an internal shift, and it’s one you can practice.

Let’s Talk About Your Business

If you’re carrying more than your share and you’re not sure what to hand off first, let’s talk. As my gift to Girlfriends, I offer a free 30-minute discovery call. Together, we’ll look at where you are right now and what might be getting in the way.

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Connect with Sarah

• Instagram: @thesarahwalton
• LinkedIn: Sarah Walton
• Free resources for you
• Join the Game On Girlfriend® community — subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or YouTube

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Love This Episode?

If you know a business owner who keeps saying “I got it” to everything, send this episode her way. It might be the nudge she needs to finally give delegation a try.

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About Sarah Walton

Sarah Walton is a wealth consciousness coach, strategic advisor, and the host of the Game On Girlfriend® podcast. Her mission is simple: to put more money in the hands of more women. She helps women entrepreneurs build profitable, sustainable businesses without burnout — working through both the mindset and the strategy sides of growth. Because when women have more financial power, they don’t just keep it — they use it to take care of their families, support their communities, and build something bigger than themselves. Through her programs — including the Abundance Academy and The Art of Receiving — along with her online courses and one-on-one coaching, Sarah works with women who are ready to build profitable businesses and use that financial power to make a real difference in the world around them.