One of the team asked me today a question I'd not thought about before - at least, not in detail. It's one of those things that you tend to develop an unwritten law about - and each person has their own law. She was responding to a job request late in the day and asked up to what time would be suitable to call the client? We discussed some times and I suggested that anything up to 8.30pm is often ok for many people but not for others. Probably best to call and ask if 'now is a convenient … [Read more...]
Guest Blogger invitation
I've been invited to be a guest blogger at The Small Business Blog by Stefan Töpfer of Winweb. Stefan and I began conversing just before Christmas 2005 and have met twice since then - once in London and then again in Melbourne a few weeks later. We both just happened to be travelling in the right area for meetings to take place in our own home cities. Winweb has a natural synergy with what Virtual Assistants can achieve for their clients online and so it is worth checking out. So is The … [Read more...]
When a VA is seeking work
I periodically get emails from new VAs who are seeking work as a VA. Most of the time they are from countries in which English is not their native language, and they offer to take on my work and do it at a much cheaper rate so that I am still getting paid by my client at my normal rate but they're doing it for me at a cheaper rate. Whilst, in theory, this might seem like a good idea to the new VA who is keen to get established, there are a number of problems with this approach: 1. Virtual … [Read more...]
Attention New VAs!
I belong to a number of VA chat forums and the common request from new VAs on all the lists, is 'how do I get started?' I encourage you to read through the archives on those forums - it will help give you a foundation to build upon and start putting you on the same level playing field as those who have already begun. There's a steep learning curve in front of you. You'll find a lot of answers at http://vadirectory.blogspot.com/2006/01/advice-for-new-vas.html and other posts on this blog. If … [Read more...]
What Does It Take To Be A VA?
I had an interesting email discussion with a member of my team in the past week. She's trying to decide whether or not to renew her membership or whether to return to the workforce. She's only been a member for just under six months, so not very long. I had to ask her some questions to get an idea of where she is at and what has taken place at her end to know what to advise her - she was obviously seeking advice, rather than just tell me she wasn't staying with the team. A number of items … [Read more...]
Maintaining Professionalism 24/7
I belong to the TrumpU forum and post periodically when a topic pushes a hot button. The latest one was about whether spelling and grammar matters on posts. Below is a response from another member of the forum and my answer follows. I was pleased to get encouraging responses thereafter. RE: Thankyou Mr. Trump for getting these Forums going ...Yesterday @ 11:31 PM EST I must disagree with you about not wanting an edit / spellcheck feature on this forum. We all make mistakes typing. This is a … [Read more...]
Steps for operating a blog
As I often share information about using blogs these days I’ve been asked several times, how do you go about it? So, for the benefit of those who wish to learn, and don’t yet fully understand, here are the steps: 1. Go to www.blogger.com and create a username and password if you don’t already have an account (if you are reading this at blogger then print it off, follow the steps and click on the blogger logo at the top left-hand of the screen). 2. Next choose a name for your blog – try … [Read more...]
Requests for Help
I often get requests for help from those just starting out in our industry. Often they have set up great looking websites, have some brochures ready to give out - they just don't have the clients and don't know where to start. So they ask if I can get them started, or send work their way, or give advice... there are so many things they ask for, and I could spend all day, every day, assisting others and not getting my own work done. There's a saying: Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day, … [Read more...]
Making Things Add Up In Business
One of the topics of discussion via our forum this week has been about required registrations for the Tax Office. Here in Australia we need to register for Australian Business Numbers (ABNs), and also Goods & Services Tax (GST) if earning over a certain amount. I'm sure in other countries there are obligatory requirements for people in business - small or large. It amazes me how many do not investigate this side of getting their business started. They ask via chat forums for advice on … [Read more...]
