SO, basically I am hoping to grow my business, by being hired to PROVIDE A SERVICE for clients, which will help me financially AND also to BE OF SERVICE to people in need.
Finally, I am trying to do my part to preserve our planet for future generations. Even though I don't sit across the hall from you or right outside of your door, I can still maintain and complete tasks and projects in an effective, efficient and timely manner.
Although the virtual assistant is a relatively new phenomenon, it is becoming a very important aspect of the business landscape.
Administrative tasks are repetitive tasks that form the bulk of what need to get done in the work place. These tasks include setting of appointments, typing documents, filing, answering phone calls and other tasks. These tasks may be time-consuming but they are necessary to be able to run a successful business. To ensure the success of a business, a company must make sure that all tasks- big and small get performed efficiently in the workplace.
Virtual assistants are workers that can do these tasks for your business without reporting to your office. Because virtual assistants provide these services for a good cost to the company they really help companies achieve more in their business. This is why the virtual assistant can be one of the important employees in your business.
Whether they work for your business only part-time or full-time, the virtual assistant can really help your company in achieving its business goals. You should consider the virtual assistant as nothing different than your office worker that do tasks for your business so that you can deliver products and services effectively to your clients.
Even if they are not physically present in the office, they form part of your workforce and definitely form part of your business’ back bone. An efficient virtual assistant with good skills can help you achieve business success. They can help you fulfill your business’s full potential with nothing more than their fees as your investment. Human resources matter a lot in business and hiring virtual assistants can be the best way you can gain good work force without the need to invest extensively on the workforce. The virtual assistants invest on their own office space, equipment, training and development.
So you are essentially paying for the skills and gaining benefits from the virtual assistant’s skills without really investing on them.
If you want have new ideas for your business but do not have the time, the energy and the manpower to implement them, a virtual assistant can easily implement your news ideas for the business.
I decided to post this article on my blog because I think it gives great insight to the wonderful industry that I am apart of. I hope that it helps everyone that reads it to see that Virtual Assistants can help your business and your personal life by leaps and bounds.
Blogs and Sites to read about software and business
Lifehacker.com. The Lifehacker blog, while about productivity, tends towards tips and tricks about using software for work tasks, whether you work offline or online. It’s a must-read for picking up both software and general productivity tips.
Lifehack.org. Lifehack.org is the perfect complement to to Lifehacker. While there is some overlap in the two blogs, Lifehack.org tends towards general life and work productivity tips, not necessarily just about software.
Chief Home Officer: If you’re in a home office, read Chief Home Officer for tips on how to stay sane and improve the way you work.
How to Be Bulletproof in the Outsourced Economy: Employees lose jobs to international outsourcing everyday. Instead of getting frustrated or giving up, learn how to protect yourself against outsourcing and boost your overall job performance.
Today I am sitting here watching the leaves fall to the ground making a golden orange and yellow blanket on the green grass. I love the South. I don't need diversity in my weather. I like the temperature to be higher than 65 degrees. I like to feel a cool breeze and the warmth of the sun on my face when I walk out the door or while I am sitting in my kitchen by the glass door, like I am now.
Today I am thinking about the future. I am wondering what kind of future do I have. How can I make it brighter? How can I be more successful? What is success? Now, I know that is something that is defined by each individual person, so I am thinking about my definition.
I am successful because:
My children are all doing wonderful in school.
My youngest was told by his teacher that he was a joy to have in the classroom because he WANTS TO LEARN.
My oldest was accepted into a dual program, which means he can attend high school to take the required courses AND attend college to complete some of his Freshman courses.
My middle child is in Jr Beta for the 3rd year and hates to be late or miss a day of school.
My children come and talk to me about things that most parents are wondering about or have no clue is going on.
I am successful because:
People tell me that they feel better after talking to me about a problem or issue they are having.
I can look at a situation and work through it in my head without panicking or letting it get me down to the point of ignoring it.
I try to accept people for who they are without passing judgment on their actions or attitude.
I mind my own business.
I voice my opinion on people's personal or professional lives when asked and not before.
I am successful because:
I wake up each morning with the smallest hope of a better day.
I wake up each morning hoping to make someone feel good about themselves.
I wake up each morning striving to be an inspiration and positive influence on my children and anyone that comes in contact with me, my website, my blog or whatever has been touched by me.
I have been thinking this over and I need to voice my thoughts. I don't understand how another American citizen that is living and working in the US at this time can advocate sending work over to another country at a rate so low it is degrading to even mention it...BUT I WILL...how can you advocate outsourcing to another country work at a rate of $.50 to $2.00 when WE (THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA) is in a RECESSION? There are people struggling to make ends meet, people wondering how they are going to get to work next week because they have paid all of their household bills (the necessities) and are left with $15.00, not enough to put gas in their cars to make it to work for 5 days. Or those people that have no job to go to next week and are wondering how they are going to feed their kids, or pay for medical insurance, or tell them that Thanksgiving isn't going to be a big event this year or that Christmas won't have the trimmings like last year? Come on, at least over minimum wage to the millions of out of work, working poor or working middle class here in your own country.
I was watching a special on HBO Saturday (Schmatta:Rags to Riches to Rags) and the show was concerning how we went from making 95% of our own garments here in the US in the 60's to 5% in 2009. I was watching it with my husband and sister. My husband told my sister that alot of the points the people were making concerning our economy, displaced workers and outsourced jobs, I have been making for months and I am no financial guru nor am I a political wizard.
How are we going to be able to help our economy rebound if all of these people are out of work and unable to purchase anything or even pay for necessities? How are we going to put our children through college if we can't afford to pay for the PSAT? How are we going to convince our children to attend college if we with our college degrees, PHD's, technical certificates and course diploma's can't even stay employed because the jobs are being sent to India or the Phillipines? What great things will they have to look forward to if they see that their parents are struggling even though they have more than a high school education?
How are we going to have a "Global Economy" when all I hear about are the jobs, blue collar and white collar being outsourced to other countries? I have yet to hear of jobs being INSOURCED to the United States of America.
There are hundreds, thousands, probably millions of people like myself that have and still are taking classes, trying to better ourselves, giving a zillion percent to make sure their families have the necessities in life. There are people willing to work for minimum wage who are out of work and accustomed and highly qualified to earn five to 20 times that wage BUT meeting their needs is the priority.
I am a Virtual Assistant, which means I can Assist anyone, anywhere at anytime...VIRTUALLY. I wake up every morning with the goal to have at least one person contact me with their outsourcing needs. I wake up each morning optimistic that "today" is the day. BUT then I read something that one of my fellow citizens feels is a "helpful tidbit", like hiring a Virtual Assistant from another country for less than what minimum wage is here in the US and I get angry, scared, frustrated, concerned, worried and very unoptimistic about my future, my family's future and the future of this country.
I just want to know what happened to the country that a few years ago ran commercials in between my favorite television shows that proudly advertised "MADE IN THE USA". I want to know if we are supporting the foreign worker what is going to happen to the American worker, the American business owner, the American and ultimately the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.
Now, I know of the power that Tea Tree Oil has. I use it. I have my family members using it. I use the hair products, oil, soap and lotion. I haven't been disappointed by any product containing this ingredient.
I was pumped when I saw this posting. I had to share it with everyone else in my world. I hope that you read this and come away with knowledge that will help you in some way.
Happy reading!!!!
In 2006, the world consumed more than 3.5 billion gallons of oil per day. A lot of that oil has caused environmental damage and conflicts between nations. But there isone type of oil that's green, sustainable, healthy, and as far as I know has never been the rationale behind a major military intervention: tea tree oil.
Tea tree oil, explains the UWA Tea Tree Oil Research Group, is the essential oil steam distilled from the Australian plant Melaleuca alternifolia (unique to Australia and native to Northern New South Wales). Tea treeoil is usually clear to very pale golden in color and it exudes a fresh, camphor-like scent.
Kathi Keville of HowStuffWorks.com says this oil is often called a medicine cabinet in a bottle and is effective against bacteria, fungi, and viruses and stimulates the immune system. Here are 20 ways to use this magical formula for health and for the home.
But first, two important notes, courtesy of Sheila Shaigany:
*Make sure it comes in a dark glass bottle with a dropper. This will prevent light from shining in and reducing the oil's potency.
*Do NOT ingest it orally.
*Editor's Note: This article does not replace medical advise.
20 Great Ways to Use Tea Tree Oil
For Health
1. Use a dab to treat acne.
2. An anti-fungal for treating Athlete's Foot, eczema, various yeast infections, etc.
3. An antiseptic to be used on cuts and burns.
4. An anti-viral: it may lessen the symptoms of colds and flu. Try using a few drops in the bath.
5. Add to a vaporizer to loosen chest congestion.
6. Add a small amount to shampoo to destroy head lice.
7. A small amount added to your bath can help with persistent body odor.
8. Treating sinus infection.
9. For dandruff and dry scalp.
10. In the form of aromatherapy, tea tree oil is used to treat colds, persistent coughs, acne, toothaches, and sunburn.
For Cleaning
11. To create an all-purpose cleaner, combine 2 teaspoons of tea tree oil in 2 cups of water in a spray bottle.
12. Another version would be 14 ounces of water with 1 ounce of Murphy's oil soap and 10 drops of tea tree oil.
13. Mix the above solution with kosher salt to scrub bathtub and bathroom tiles.
14. Add a few drops to dishwasher dispenser, then fill with a green dishwashing soap.
15. A few drops added to each load of laundry leave your clothes smelling cleaner.
16. Control mold with a tea tree oil/water spray.
17. Remove mustiness with that same tea tree oil/water spray.
18. To keep germs at bay, spray it on high chairs, car seats, and other high traffic spots.
19. 15 drops in a quart of water can be an effective insect repellent.
20. Be sure to take some with you when hiking and camping to put directly on insect bites or blisters.
If you found this to be useful, click here for other information concerning health and wellness from Catherine Bass.
Now, I never knew I would end up working with Real Estate. I always thought that only "special" people worked in that field. I mean, I offered my services to Realtors and always got the brush-off or told I wasn't licensed so I couldn't "work" in that area of business.
BUT, one day, I got a call. And unbeknown (yes that is a word) to me, there was a Realtor on the other end. She wanted my services. WHOA BABY!!! She said she had been told by someone in her area that since she was a "one woman show" and her "To Do" list was longer than her arm, to invest in a Virtual Assistant.
So, she went out on the internet and starting searching and found my website. YEAH!!! We talked and guess what...Yea I am going to tell you...alot of the skills I have been learning, developing and using for almost 20 years...wait for it...THEY CAN BE USED IN A REAL ESTATE OFFICE...
Real Estate Agents use and need databases, documents, presentations, email and calendar coordination, scheduling confirmation, blog and website updates,
ESSENTIALLY A VIRTUAL ASSISTANT!!!
Check out my website and see what a Virtual Assistant can do in your
I was thinking today as I was sitting here adding links to my page. The links I added are businesses of some pretty amazing and talented Women / Business Owners / Moms. Please take a moment and check them out, you may find something you have been wanting to run out to the mall and search for right there at your fingertips.
Now back to my thought...
I am a Virtual Assistant. This means that I support clients that are not sitting here in my office, they may not even be in the same state as I am. We or better yet, I am always reading how "virtual" is the "new" thing. Well, it really isn't. Wait a minute, let me explain. Every since I was a little girl, and that was years ago, we have picked up the telephone, dialed a number and requested services. Once we hung up the phone, we trusted that the call we placed would result in our request being handled in a timely manner, positively and accurately. Now, depending on who we called, we never saw the person themselves or we never saw anyone.
Let me give you some examples:
You are watching television and you want to order a "Pay-Per-View" program. You either order it via the remote or place a call into your provider. Your show comes up and you receive a bill.
The only time you see a provider is if there is a problem with your service and then you get a technician, IF you can't be helped virtually.
You get into a fender bender, you call your insurance company. You either get paperwork in the mail or via email. Once all of the paperwork is completed and returned, you receive a check for damages depending on your coverage.
You want to purchase insurance, you research the providers and rates. Then you call the company or you deal with them strictly via the internet. You never see anyone or even meet them but you are trusting that you are covered and that your payments are being received.
In all 3 examples, there is someone that you dealt with and didn't see them. This is the way it has been for years. There are areas of our lives that have always been virtual to some degree. Even before computers were accessible to us in our personal lives, we were virtually connecting to people either through mail or telephone.
Virtual Assistants are people that are available to assist you in your business or personal lives. Virtual Assistants are people with reputations that they work to maintain in high regard. Virtual Assistants are people that are accessible via email, telephone, mail and fax. And with the technology of today, most Virtual Assistants have cameras and microphones on their PC's, so if you want to have a "virtual call", that can be managed.
Chat with a VA, find out what they can bring to the table in terms of support for your business as well as a sense of security for you in knowing who they really are.
It is Friday. I for one, am ready to wind down and put my feet up. When I do this, I like to read or watch television. So, what I do is, all week when I come across articles that I find interesting but I can't read at that moment, I bookmark. I have a folder and it is titled, "This Will Have To Wait Until The Wknd". I have put some of those interesting (I think) bookmarks below along with some other things that might grab your attention.
Smartphones are mobile phones, which you can use as little portable hand-held computer to stay in contact with your laptop, desktop and Virtual Assistant.I as a Virtual Assistant utilize a Smartphone to keep in contact with the information on my laptop, my clients and their information.Now, I have outlined some ways that you can utilize a Smartphone and a Virtual Assistant in order to keep your day flowing if you are away from your computer and landline.
1.Send e-mail and text messages.
Send and receive e-mail and text messages no matter where you are in the world.
Sync your smartphone with your laptop or PC and you can download e-mail from Microsoft Outlook and other mail programs.
You can text your VA to find out information for a meeting, directions or to let her/him know some last minute detail.
Access to email is critical for business users who need to respond quickly and a timesaver for everyone.
2.Schedule appointments and share calendars.
You can instantly view your calendar and schedule an appointment with someone while at a luncheon or at a meeting.
You can put your VA’s schedule on your calendar in order to keep up with when they are available to you or to schedule time for them to work with you.
If you use a computer program that allows calendar sharing, scheduling appointments or tasks is easy with a smartphone because you can have yours and your VA’s calendar in front of you.
Create an appointment on your phone and attach names from your address book.
Accept appointments from others via e-mail and sync with your computer later.
Syncing takes just a matter of seconds using a USB cable or Bluetooth with the option of deleting smartphone appointments to save data space while keeping a permanent record in your computer.
3.Stay in touch with friends and events.
Having an Internet connection at your fingertips makes it easy to stay connected to friends through social networking.
Set up alerts to let you know when someone tweets you, your team wins, or breaking news happens.
If you're traveling internationally, talk to your carrier about options to swap your SIM card with local SIM cards. You'll be able to use your smartphone to connect with people from home -- without paying enormous roaming charges.
4.Keep track of spur of the moment thoughts and ideas.
You can use the “Notes” option or if your smartphone has Windows software there is a program called “OneNote”, (I will get to that wonderful program later).
You can put down some thoughts while standing in line at the grocery store.
You can create a list of things to do for yourself at work or at home.
You can create a list of things you would like to discuss with your VA.
You can put down last minute thoughts on a meeting or seminar.
You can keep a list of websites to visit, which you can then send to your VA to put in your database of websites.
You can create a list of people to try and network with, send it to your VA to put in your database of “potential leads”.
You can put down revisions to documents to send to your VA concerning the document she/he is working on.
5.Make travel reservations and get urgent updates.
Whether you travel often or occasionally, for business or for fun, a smartphone can be useful.
Compare prices, make travel reservations, even select your seat location.
You can email or text the changes to your VA, so if she/he has a car meeting you the appropriate changes can be made for you.
Sign up to get e-mail or phone updates to learn about schedule changes and cancellations. These updates save time and stress.
6.Capture impromptu events via camera and video.
You can take advantage of unplanned moments.
You can get a snapshot of a particular color or item that you would like to use for an event, luncheon, meeting or dinner and send it to your VA.
Integrated e-mail makes it easy to share your creative efforts with family and friends immediately.
You can download the phone shots to your computer later for storing and printing.
7.Maintain your safety.
Many smartphones now include GPS making it easy to pinpoint your location.
Mapping features provide directions from where you are to where you want to go so you'll never again be lost in an unfamiliar part of town.
GPS is also handy if you become lost or disoriented because of bad weather, illness or an accident.
Emergency workers have a much better chance of finding you.
You can have software on your laptop or computer which your VA can access to help if needed.
8.Get directions.
If you don't have GPS, enable downloadable mapping programs.
You can enter your departure and arrival locations and within seconds have driving, walking and public transport instructions.
To speed up the search process, enter frequent destinations -- home, office, library, airport, and friends' homes -- as favorites.
If you are visiting a site for a meeting or seminar, you can email these directions to your VA and have her/him import them into confirmation packets for your invitees.
9.Use your smartphone as a portable modem.
With a tethering package from your service provider, your smartphone can double as a portable modem to provide full wireless Internet access to your laptop.
No longer limited to using your laptop in places that offer wireless connections, you can work from your car, a park, or anywhere your smartphone gets an Internet-compatible signal.
Then you will be able to sync up and send the information to your VA or look at a document your VA emailed you for comments.
10.Plan impromptu activities.
Search the Internet using your smartphone for movie listings at local theaters for showtimes and the option to purchase the tickets online.
Search your location by restaurant name or cuisine. Then you can identify the closest restaurants, find hours of operation and even contact them for a reservation.
Discuss with your service provider the options for utilizing downloadable mapping and search applications available for your smartphone.
Virtual Assistants like Smartphones are designed to help you be more productive.
Virtual Assistants like Smartphones are available to utilize “downtime” and make it “uptime”.
Virtual Assistants like Smartphones have the capabilities to make your business more profitable.
Virtual Assistants like Smartphones have software that is vital to your day.
Virtual Assistants like Smartphones can aide in keeping stress to a minimum.
Think about this, with a Virtual Assistant and a Smartphone, you can virtually conquer the world.
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