Do you get a hit of dopamine from seeing a clear to do list but don’t know where to start? Maybe you’re a busy real estate agent who’s looking to free up some time to squeeze in more family time. I’d love to introduce you to Karissa Flores of Free to Flourish Assistance! She is a virtual assistant helping real estate agents reclaim their time!
Thanks for sitting down to talk with us at Greater Austin Moms, Karissa. Tell us a little about yourself:
Hello, my name is Karissa Flores and I’m a wife, mother, teacher, and small business owner. I was born in Del Valle, right outside of Austin and raised in the country with my parents and sister. We call it the country because it always took at least 30 minutes to get within reach of any stores LOL.
I’ve been married for 4 years and have two adorable babies, Haven and Nora both under three years old, for now that is, we have a birthday next month to celebrate.
We now live in the Buda area and love it! Our children love the parks and restaurants that are all so close by it’s a huge difference from when I was growing up, I love it too!
We love going to church in South Austin and really do our best to serve when we can because it brings us joy and we get to meet all types of different people.
Nice to meet you, Karissa! Tell us more about Free to Flourish Assistance?
So Free to Flourish Assistance is really a promise from God that I’m thankful He put in my heart this year. For the past year or so I’ve been trying to find a way to hold flexible work hours while also enjoying family time and helping my husband support our family. It wasn’t until this year when I really asked God to bring this dream to life and over the summer He did. I was reminded that I carry a variety of skills as a teacher that can roll over into Virtual Assistance and I realized I really do love serving others in an administrative role plus I’m good at it too!
Specifically my heart is for those who might be small business owners or real estate agents and have families that they’re not getting to fully enjoy because the business has just become too overwhelming. I know what it’s like as a working mother myself to feel so drained by the time you get home and wonder how you could ever muster up more to serve your family. This is why I have a desire to help those parents gain back their energy and Flourish in all aspects of their lives.
I assist with anything from administrative tasks to social media content creation, which is something I love seeing come to life!
Where do you see Free to Flourish Assistance in 5 years?
In the next five years I’d love to see Free to Flourish Assistance grow into a loyal, people focused business in which the main goal is to serve with integrity. Ultimately, I would love to make this my full-time career, and one day leave the classroom to homeschool my two babies. That is why I’m so focused right now on making authentic connections with wonderful people. I’m putting the timing and God’s hands and really focusing on serving others with a grateful heart.
The Local Moms Network is all about “giving moms the gift of time”. What’s your best time saving hack with kids?
One of my best time saving tips I’ve picked up as a mom of two little ones is to involve them in all I do. They’re already right behind me anyway so instead of letting myself get frustrated by their needs, I show them what I’m doing and invite them to join in. Now it’s a bit harder with my 15 month old who is just climbing everywhere but my toddler who’s almost 3 loves when I let him help. It makes for fun memories also!
Favorite place to grab coffee in Austin?
One of my favorite coffee shops in the South Austin area has to be Summer Moon. It’s been such a special place to my husband and me because we had our first date there back in 2017 and then we had one near our first apartment together and now we have one down the street in Buda. My go to drink is actually a cafe latte with whole milk, sugar free hazelnut and cinnamon on top, but I do also love a seasonal Autumn Moon!