Household Assistants: The Secret to Balancing Your To-Do List and Your Family Time

Discover the many ways a personal household assistant can manage your to-do list, reduce your stress, and give you more time for family and self-care.

At any point in time, you have a lot going on. Between your career, kid-related activities, and household responsibilities, you sometimes struggle to ensure it doesn’t all collapse around you.

But just because you aspire to have it all doesn’t mean you have to do it all. With the help of a household assistant, you can cross everything off your to-do list and fit quality family time and self-care into your schedule.

The Challenges of Balancing Work, Family, and Personal Time

If you’ve ever felt there’s too much to manage and not enough time to do it, you’re not alone. A recent study found that most working parents are stretched too thin, with 66 percent saying they feel burned out. Working mothers have a particularly hard time because they shoulder many household responsibilities without help. More than one in four (28 percent) working moms in the study reported managing family responsibilities alone during weekends, and 41.3 percent said they managed them alone during the week.

The weight of family and household chores leaves most working moms with little to no personal time. According to a 2023 Motherly study, 62 percent of moms get less than an hour to themselves each day. If you can relate, you know how frustrating it can be to lack time for yourself and the things that matter most to you.

[Related: “Why There Is No Shame in Asking for Help.”]

How a Household Assistant Helps

Time is one of the most valuable yet scarce resources we have. However, for working mothers who feel pressure to be a supermom and do it all, it seems there are never enough hours in the day. 

If you’ve ever felt paralyzed by a messy house or like you’re on an endless hamster wheel of trying to be a great career professional, mother, and friend and make time for yourself, there’s a viable solution! Getting much-needed help from a personal assistant provides the freedom you need to focus more on what you want to do and less on what you have to do. Research shows outsourcing household chores can even feel more rewarding than a salary increase.

[Related: “Supermom’s Secret: How Household Assistants Can Help Parents.”]

Here are three key benefits you can enjoy by making this time-saving (and life-changing) investment:

1. More Time for the Things That Matter Most

Instead of spending the bulk of your evenings and weekends on draining household chores, such as doing laundry, washing dishes, or making appointments, you can outsource these tasks to a household assistant. Think of all the time you’ll have for family and personal activities when you have someone to take ownership of completing all those chores and clearing them off your plate.

Your assistant can handle the following tasks for you:

  • Doing laundry
  • Shopping for groceries and preparing food
  • Making returns and running other errands
  • Paying bills
  • Walking the dog
  • Making and rescheduling appointments
  • Supervising repair technicians and taking deliveries
  • Planning travel, including packing and unpacking

2. A Less Stressful Life

Carrying the mental load of everything on your to-do list is draining enough. But spending hours on chores while you feel guilty neglecting the things and people most important to you is also stressful. However, you can remove those stressors with a personal assistant who can bring more organization and order to your life and household. 

When you work with Pepper’s Personal Assistants, we take the time to understand your household needs and match you with the ideal household assistant for you and your family. Once your assistant is up and running, you’ll need only a 15-minute weekly check-in with them to gain the peace of mind that comes with knowing all the chores are getting done the way you would do them yourself (or better!).

[Related: “Do Successful People Outsource? The Answer is Yes.View All Testimonials ➔

3. Household Help Without the Administrative Headaches

Working with a household assistant doesn’t have to include the added responsibilities of managing payroll, taxes, and labor law compliance. When you hire a Pepper’s personal assistant, you get experienced household help, and we do all the rest. We manage everything from your assistant’s pay and payroll taxes to their health benefits and performance reviews.

Work with Seattle’s Trusted Source of Personal Household Assistants

Life is too short to spend on household chores that rob you of precious time with your family and other passions. By delegating those chores to an experienced and trustworthy household assistant, you can enjoy more of life while keeping your household running like clockwork.

Discover how to put more hours back into your week, and download our guide, What Your Life Could Look Like with a Household Assistant.

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Pepper’s Personal Assistant Reviews

See what it’s really like to work with a Pepper’s personal assistant!

A True Game-Changer

“Having Mary as my personal assistant has been a game-changer. I don’t have to think about laundry or the cat litter—she handles all those daily tasks I’d rather not do. She’s proactive, assertive in all the right ways, and totally in control of every detail. I’d rate her a 5 out of 5, no question!”

Brian T.

Proactive, Reliable, Caring Support

“Sarah has been such a reliable support—always proactive, spotting things that need to be done before I even ask, and taking care of them. She has such a positive attitude and is constantly looking for ways to add value and make things easier. And I love how much happier and more spoiled my dogs are thanks to her care. I barely have to think about her day-to-day, and I mean that in the best way possible!”

K.W.

Exceptional Home Management

“Bernice is simply amazing—I just can’t say enough good things about her. She excels at physical tasks and knows my habits so well that she can anticipate my needs without me even saying anything. As a house manager, she’s exceptional; she takes care of all those little things that I wouldn’t even think of. Over time, we’ve developed a wonderful rhythm, and it’s such a relief to have someone who just knows what needs to be done and does it effortlessly.”

J.H.

Exceeding Expectations Every Day

“My PA has truly exceeded my expectations. I really enjoy coming home now because everything in my home is something I know and love. She’s helped me with tasks I didn’t even know where to begin, and her ability to do the background work and present options has been invaluable. She has made it possible for me to manage things without feeling overwhelmed, and it’s been a game changer for me!”

W.W.

Bringing Joy and Efficiency

“My PA Tess is proactive and handles everything beautifully, from small tasks that bring joy to big projects like planning trips. She balances recurring tasks with high-priority work, and everything gets done perfectly. I didn’t realize how much joy small things like making the bed could bring until Tess started doing them. She has truly made a difference in our home, bringing both efficiency and a level of organization and joy we didn’t realize we needed.”

K.H.

Support That Makes a Difference

“Having Missa as a PA has taken me from daily treading water to swimming to the shore. I’ve gone from never quite keeping up with things to actually having extra energy to do more. She has been a tremendous help, reducing my stress and allowing me to rest and recover. The support I receive is perfect; Missa is a 5 out of 5 in meeting all my needs. I’ve already recommended Pepper’s to a few friends because having extra help makes all the difference.”

Kathy M.

Back-to-School Unmatched Support

“Having Jay as my personal assistant has been fantastic. She helps me tackle projects that were just looming over my head and has built a great rapport with my teenage son. She’s helped my son pick out his back-to-school wardrobe and coached him through decisions — I couldn’t ask for better support. I sometimes think about when I could handle everything on my own, but now I can’t imagine doing it without Jay’s help.”

R.B.

PA to the Rescue

“I am very satisfied with my personal assistant. The biggest relief is knowing that when things get hectic with work my PA is there to help us from lighting on fire, especially when one of us is traveling.”

Ana V.

Dream PA Experience

“I am very satisfied; My PA has everything dialed in and the schedule works really well and is flexible when needed. Honestly: My PA and I click very well, I love it, it’s a dream!”

Jodi K.

Stress-Free Travel

“One of the massive benefits of having a PA is during travel disruptions. When flights are delayed, the kids are upset, and you’re stuck in customs, coming home to a stocked fridge and a prepared meal eliminates the need for a late-night milk run. You don’t realize the stress these tasks add until you have someone to handle them for you.”

A.S.

11/10!

“My PA is incredible—an 11 out of 10—really thoughtful, thorough, intuitive. She is professional but friendly; she has just been great. A couple of times because of things going on with her calendar, Kandis has been flexible—coming 15 minutes later to drop the dog off at puppy play. She has been really great.”

Libby

Thoughtful and Detail-Oriented

“My PA is a thoughtful and discerning assistant. She pays attention to details in our home and makes great suggestions for how to improve and optimize our lives. We trust her judgment, and she communicates proactively and frequently. She is always on-site on time and patient with my unpredictable schedule. We communicate frequently, but she’s also very efficient in how we communicate. Great work!”

Client

Super Happy!

“[I] really do think Kandis is setting the bar! Having a new person come into your house can go either way. [I’m] very grateful for the time and energy and people that Pepper’s has. It’s a big step; no suggestions around onboarding. [I’m] really happy that we were able to board Kandis quickly; super happy for the West Seattle support.”

Libby

Organizing Superhero

“My PA is really good at organizing; it’s one of her superpowers. Some of the simple reorganizing things that she has done have made a big impact. She organized all the cat stuff in the garage and took the initiative on her own. She’s bright and cheery—no moaning, whining. Very great.”

Emma

One of the Best Decisions I’ve Made

“I just wanted to take a few minutes to tell you how much I have appreciated working with all of the Pepper’s staff. My assistant is so generous and thoughtful — she brings value to every interaction. I can’t remember a time when I’ve hired anyone with such a professional and high standard of customer service. Working with you all has been one of the best decisions I’ve made in a very long time!”

Libby

10/10 for Sure!

“Missa is a 10/10 for sure! She has been wonderful, and we check in regularly. I’m comfortable communicating with her about questions or requests, and she’s always been very responsive and also seems comfortable checking in if she has any questions for me. [The] biggest help remains pet care and household chores support, plus the help with one-off projects that come up. Missa has all kinds of skills she brings, (e.g., she’s currently putting together a ‘cat highway’ for the living room rafters).”

Homeowner

My Quality of Life Has Improved

“I used to spend every weekend and every evening doing chores and running errands. Now, I’m able to spend the time that I need to on my business, and then I get to enjoy my home and my life and the precious unstructured time that I have. The truth is, my quality of life has improved by having a Pepper’s household assistant here.”

Libby

Takes Initiative

“I want to mention what a fantastic personal assistant Billie is to me. We were on vacation last week, and she managed my household and vendors flawlessly. I even had her redecorate my office, and I gave her very little direction other than just to make it nice and functional, and, my goodness, did she ever! She takes initiative in my house in so many other ways but does not overstep or overspend. To strike that balance is really something unique and special. I feel really lucky to have her.”

Anura

I’m Blown Away

“[I’m] blown away by how much better the house looks already :)”

Graham

Kind, Caring, and Proactive

“My PA is a very caring person. I was incredibly ill last year, and my PA connected the dots that the washing machine had a lot of mold and thought the black specs on my clothes were from that. On her own time, my PA sent me an article about the impact of mold/washing machines. It was so kind of her.”

Emma

Goes Above and Beyond

“My PA has gone above and beyond. She’s organized my laundry room while keeping on top of laundry, which made it much easier to stay on top of stuff. She’s always ready to jump in and tackle items. It made this holiday season way less stressful.”

Andrea