Many small business owners first try out the services of a virtual assistant when they want to take a longer summer vacation and need someone to handle client care and social media while they’re away. While this is a completely legitimate way to utilize a virtual assistant, there are so many other things they can help with after the summer is over! [Tweet “A virtual assistant can free up large blocks of time, so you can focus on expansion.”] With September comes more business, and more work on a day-to-day basis. For a “solopreneur”, that can mean long hours and…
Read More
Things tend to slow down for a lot of small businesses during late summer, but the smart entrepreneur knows this brief respite from constant client care and project work is the perfect opportunity to really work on improving systems and making changes to the way their business functions. When there’s less daily grind to get through, you have the chance to take a look at how your business is performing, plan for the future, and set new long-term goals. Last week we talked about how to use the slow period to integrate a new virtual assistant into your team, and…
Read More
The slower summer months are made for taking on new employees for your business, such as a virtual assistant. While many folks are on vacations, and most customers or clients are too busy enjoying the nice weather and the many activities that come with it, you can take the time needed to help a virtual assistant become acquainted with your brand and business goals. Instead of waiting around, looking at your empty inbox, and wondering whether there’s anything more productive you could be doing than taking your third coffee break of the day, why not use this time to train…
Read More
Sometimes the dip in work during late summer can seem defeating, but it can also represent a golden opportunity to devote yourself to growing your small business. Attracting repeat customers and new clients can be done year round, and putting yourself out there now can help to improve numbers for the rest of the year. Utilize the slow season to boost your business, read on for tips to get things booming again come fall. Network LocallyIn this day and age of being able to run a business almost entirely online, and rarely needing to have face-time with clients or other companies…
Read More
Just as we teach our children, they teach us. It is an old saying, but has a lot of truth in it. It doesn’t necessarily mean that your children impart knowledge to you. It means that, by taking care of them and helping them grow, we are building and practicing skills that make us better parents. Believe it or not, there are a surprising number of parenting skills and techniques that can actually prove invaluable when it comes to starting or grown your own business. Read on for some of my favorite ways that parenting can teach you to be…
Read More
As entrepreneurs, we sometimes find ourselves pulled in many directions at once. Working from home can add a whole other dimension to this challenge. It can be difficult to keep focused on doing your job from home when your family is also competing for you time. This can be especially challenging when your children are home from school on summer break! So how can you keep focused when your kids are home this summer? Read on for some of my favorite tips! [Tweet “As an entrepreneur, how do you stay focused when your kids are on summer break? “] Create…
Read More
Here is an important question to ask yourself: How long has it been since you last had a vacation? If you need to put any thought into it, it has probably been far too long. Time away from work revitalizes us and keeps us energized and passionate about what we do. Vacations can be the perfect time to reconnect with your family and friends, see new places, or simple to explore some of your old habits like camping, hiking, skydiving… But the little voice in the back of your head is probably saying “But I am the only one who is holding…
Read More
When you are starting a new business or scaling your existing one, everything can be overwhelming. You are now your own boss, you have to provide your own direction! That direction usually heads to greater demands, pressures, and time crunches. The pressure certainly doesn’t lift once your company starts gaining success either. There will be hundreds of essential tasks pulling you in different directions. How do you know when you have too much on your plate? A clear sign is when otherwise enjoyable or important tasks get put aside, simply because you don’t have the time. For example, if you…
Read More
When partnering with a virtual assistant to streamline your business, you want to make the most of the time you’re paying them for. There are a number of useful tools for organizing your virtual team that can help you streamline your partnership with your virtual assistant. These range from materials you can create yourself, to apps and websites for project or schedule management. Some of the ones I use in my business are listed below, along with other suggestions to make your life easier when partnering with a virtual assistant. Procedure ManualsI’ve written about procedure manuals before in more detail,…
Read More
Regardless of whether you’re running a small business from home, working in shared office space, or still sitting in a cubicle at a large company, having an organized work space is beneficial for both your mood and your productivity. Creating a focused, inspiring, energizing work space is important if you want to be industrious during the work day and have efficient workflow. A messy, disorganized, distracting work space will draw your attention away from the important tasks at hand, make you more prone to procrastinate, and cause low-level anxiety which is counterproductive to accomplishing your goals each day. [Tweet “Workplace…
Read More
