Delegation Starts With Fit

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I sat down with Corey Blumenfeld, founder and CEO of BlueMoso, who runs a team of 70-plus virtual assistants from a laptop in Playa del Carmen and has grown the whole thing on referrals. We got into how he builds real relationships without ever being in the room, why he treats his ADHD as a superpower, and the systems he uses to match the right person to the right founder. We also went deep on AI: what it's great at, where it falls flat, and why the human in the loop is the premium tier. If you've ever said "I can't find a VA that works," this one's for you.

👉 Read the full Episode 20 show notes here.

Guest Introduction:

Corey Blumenfeld is the founder and CEO of BlueMoso, an outsourced staffing company that has grown to over 70 virtual assistants entirely on word of mouth. He built two companies before this one, including one that raised venture capital, before walking away from the traditional playbook. Originally from Toronto, Corey works from Playa del Carmen, Mexico, writes regularly on AI and leadership, and ends every conversation with a fist bump.

Key Takeaways:

Delegation fails on fit, so assess personality, work style, and communication before you place anyone.
Have the difficult conversations early, because they only get harder once money and pressure enter the business.
If you're on your fifth VA, look at your systems before you look at the hire.
AI belongs on repetitive tasks, and judgment, taste, and decision-making stay with people.
Extreme ownership starts with the founder and transfers down to the entire company.

Chapter Markers:

00:00 Intro: Meet Corey Blumenfeld

01:02 Working from anywhere in Playa del Carmen

04:59 Fist bumps and building virtual culture

06:40 Managing teams across time zones

08:26 ADHD as a founder superpower

13:52 Personality assessments and finding the right fit

16:07 Avoiding conflict with partners and teams

18:55 How often is the problem me?

21:32 Vibe coding and getting ideas out of your head

25:37 AI plus the human in the loop

27:30 What AI is bad at

30:24 Guardrails, history, and nuclear arms

32:51 Building a business on word of mouth

36:58 One thing founders should stop doing

38:14 Wrap up and a final fist bump

Keywords:

virtual assistant outsourcing, how to delegate as a founder, hiring virtual assistants, remote team management, working from anywhere, ADHD entrepreneur, founder mindset, AI and human in the loop, what AI can't do, business built on referrals, word of mouth marketing, extreme ownership leadership, difficult conversations with business partners, async communication, entrepreneur podcast