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What's a Virtual Assistant?

A Virtual Assistant is a business owner who provides administrative support and specialized services to assist businesses and executives with their overflow. A Virtual Assistant can handle any task that is usually handled by an in house employee, but unlike an employee, a Virtual Assistant shares your goals to succeed in business -- we only succeed if our clients succeed.

All Work and No Play – There Has Got to Be a Better Way!

Many Virtual Assistants, myself included, chose this profession as a way spend time with our families. By being a VA, we have the opportunity and flexibility to be there for all the important events and happenings of our children (and grandchildren). As parents we don’t worry our children will take their first steps at daycare and as our children age and begin school we are the last face they see before they go to school and the first face they see when they return. How many of us have truly stopped to remember this and how many of us are taking this for granted each and every day?

Recently I attended a networking event where another business owner spoke about someone who worked in their office who had actually suffered a heart attack and died. This man left behind a wife and two small children. What struck a cord with me was the age of those children as they are the identical ages of my two children. It made me stop and really take a good long hard look at my business. Had I taken the time to set up my business so that I could stop putting in so many long days and truly take the time to enjoy my children? The answer for me was yes. I had taken the time, but I wasn’t following through on all those things I had established to allow my business to thrive with or without me. For me, the wake up call was that I needed to not only establish these things, but follow through on them as well. Have you set up your business to run on “auto-pilot” if need be?

If not, you are definitely not alone. Here are just a few tips on things you can set up for your business:

Set a Schedule and Stick to It
Find work times that work best for not only you, but also for your family. Make sure you are not scheduling work time during important family time. Work while your children are sleeping or at school and then make sure the time they are home is filled with quality family time. Don’t ever go outside this schedule because doing so will only mean taking time away from your family; time you can never get back.

Establish Your Own Business Team
Take the time to find several other VAs willing to assist you with the overflow. Don’t stick to having one or two VAs – but have a whole entire team ready and able to assist you at a moments notice. This will ensure you are never stuck doing a project because a “subcontractor” is sick, unwilling or unable to assist you. If the first can’t help you have others lined up that are ready, willing and able.

Document Your Business
Take the time to document how you do business and what level of service you expect your clients to receive. By having every facet of your business documented it becomes possible to “hand over the reins” at any time to any person with confidence that they will not only perform exactly as you would, but that your clients will receive services in a manner they have become accustomed and you would expect.

If you were to travel twenty years into the future, how many people would say “I wish I spent more time with my family”? Don’t let yourself be one of those people. I am sure that there won’t be too many people walking around saying “I wish I spent more time at work”!
 

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