This is a question that was asked at a forum I belong to recently. The asker wanted to know what was the biggest adjustment members had to make? I thought back to when my own children were at home and shared with them, the same that I'm sharing with you now. My girls are now grown and all work at home, three are mums themselves. However when they were home, I valued that I could be home for them when they left for school (or taking them there when they were younger) and being home when they … [Read more...]
How do I find my niche?
This is a question I see from time to time in VA forums from new VAs struggling to work out what they should be offering and how to attract clients. Personally, sometimes I think the focus on 'niches' gets in the way of people starting up their businesses and here are my thoughts. Can I tell you I never had a niche when I started over 23 years ago? I just did whatever was needed, typing, data entry, minutes of meetings, bookkeeping, phone answering. Whatever I could do. It was three years … [Read more...]
What platform should you build your website?
One of the things I do as a VA is manage websites for clients and I've built many too. I started to do this out of necessity for myself back in 1996 when it was hard to find a web designer and I've learnt along the way. Having transitioned from MS Publisher (yes, seriously!), to MS FrontPage to Dreamweaver and eventually WordPress (2006) there is still much to learn. I doubt I'll ever know it all but I know enough to get websites up and running in reasonably short time and teach my clients how … [Read more...]
The day I stop learning is the day I die
"The day I stop learning is the day I die". Dorothy Brimble My grandmother told me this when I was just 14 years old. No idea what we were talking about at the time, but she was a lady that taught herself a new word from the dictionary regularly through her life, did crosswords, hand wrote out music just to keep her hands working well and because she loved the way the notes played on the bar lines and the curves of the treble and bass clefs, played multiple instruments, wrote stories and spent … [Read more...]
14 ways to help your NFP run smoothly
Having a good Secretariat help run your daily administrative requirements is a must-have if your NFP is going to move forward. Over the past 20 years I've worked with several NFPs. Some have moved on because they got to a point where they needed a full-time staff member to handle the role, others I handed over to other team members of my VA Network when the hours increased and I was no longer able to manage the position. There is a lot to managing the office of a NFP and many get to the … [Read more...]
Health & Fitness and Being a VA
Do they mix? Some years ago I wrote about the importance of getting outside and about vitamin D deficiency. And another about the size of our shadows. I probably haven't covered this topic as often as I should. I, more than anyone, know how easy it is to stack on the weight when you're sitting in front of a computer at least 5 days a week and not venturing outside much at all. To get something to eat is just a walk to the kitchen which is in the room next door. Hardly any exercise … [Read more...]
How do I become a VA?
I see this question often at Facebook groups (where I hang out most online) and here is one of my answers: work out what services you want to provide and what your rates will be set up an online presence, through a Facebook page, LinkedIn profile, and a website (if you can manage it) spend time networking with other business owners - not VAs but people who need your services. This can be through online business groups at Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+ and elsewhere, as well as locally … [Read more...]
23 years on………
Friday 24th March marks 23 years in business for me. Yes, 23 years! My kids were young and in school when I began and today they're all married and 3 of them have children. They all run businesses at home but none of them do what I do, although most of them did do work experience with me during their teens. It gave them an opportunity to earn money and learn something of what I do and develop their computer skills. I like that working at home can provide your children with an example of what … [Read more...]
Are your emails getting through?
Email is not 100% proof and probably never will be. So why do people just assume that all their emails are getting through? Or that they're receiving everything they should? It really hurts when you miss an email from a client or potential client and, therefore, totally miss out on a job - because you didn't know they were trying to contact you. What is wrong with using the phone these days? Or make contact other ways, i.e. PM via Facebook or other social media if those people are … [Read more...]