It has been both a pleasant surprise and an honour to be nominated for the 2011 Thomas Leonard International Virtual Assistant of Distinction Award. I have spent today putting together my submission as to why I deserve this award and in reading over the ...
Category Archives: Author’s thoughts
Happy Birthday/Anniversary!
I'm never sure whether to say 'birthday' or 'anniversary' but either way today is a celebration! Today marks the fourth year since Butterflies Secretarial Solutions first began operating. Happy Birthday/Anniversary to us! The Oscar Speech I love this business, this industry and all the ...
Virtual Assistants are not storage facilities
There has been some recent interesting discussion on one of the VA networks I belong to regarding storing files for clients. How long do Virtual Assistants (VAs) store your electronic files? It depends on the VA. Some have continued to stockpile files and are now reaching a point where they need to make a decision about what ...
Five Important Balls to Juggle
I came across this on one of the VA Networks and thought it was too good not to share. 30 second speech by Bryan Dyson, former CEO of Coca-Cola: Imagine life as a game in which you are juggling some five balls in the air. They are WORK, FAMILY, HEALTH, FRIENDS AND SPIRIT, and you’re keeping all ...
VAs and Sub-contracting
To sub or not to sub? As a Virtual Assistant (VA) I have sub-contracted out jobs many times with varying levels of success and I'm also a sub-contractor myself. I like to think I'm a very good subbie, well the wonderful VAs I work with keep coming back so that says something about my skills doesn't ...
Twitter, Facebook? Mysteries of Social Media.
Over the past 12 months I have been well aware of the impact of social media on business. Facebook has transformed from being 'for teens and young people' to being a valuable tool for promotion of businesses and interaction with colleagues and potential and existing clients. Twitter has gone from a 'passing fad' to the ...
When a quote is not a quote
I have recently been astounded to discover that I have been a victim of an unscrupulous small business operator. I have discovered that even when you have been around for a while and take due care when dealing with people, you can still be taken for a ride. This is the story: I was approached ...
iTunes Gift Certificate Scam
Have you ever wondered how people know whether an email is a potential scam? There are some easy ways to spot a scam email if you know what to look out for. Here is an example of one I received yesterday: Email title was Thank you for buying iTunes Gift Certificate! Hello! You have received an iTunes Gift ...
If your computer crashes…
We rely so heavily on technology these days that an internet or power outage can create havoc within a business. Equally devastating can be the collapse of a computer network or even just a 'simple' computer glitch if you are a sole operator and rely on one machine. After my computer crashing a couple of years ...
Coaching
Business Coaching - have you tried it? Perhaps you are like me and thought that you didn't need it. I have goals, I have a vision for my business and where I'm heading. I'm motivated, I do pretty well on my own. Why would I need someone to tell me what I already know? Pah, ...