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How to Make the Most Out of Having a Virtual Assistant

How to Make the Most Out of Having a Virtual Assistant

Having a virtual assistant at this time is one of the smartest moves an entrepreneur or an executive would do. With the advancement in technology and easier means of working regardless of your location or time zone, having a remote assistant is no longer a problem. 

In truth, there are tons of benefits that you could reap by having a virtual assistant, which you could start with flexibility. Meetings or even coordination about tasks would no longer be limited to seeing each other personally. Even if you are traveling around the globe, you can relay your thoughts, ideas, and requirements to your VA with ease.

However, in order to make the most out of having a virtual assistant, there are things that you should try to practice. The following are just a few:

Get rid of your menial tasks first. If you are new to having a remote assistant, the best thing to do first is getting rid of your so-called ‘menial’ tasks. These are activities that take much of your time every day, but can actually be handled by your assistant, which will free up your schedule for more important business matters.

Some business people are too hesitant to assign tasks to their VA, which is normal, so considering the menial tasks as a start would be a smart idea. Once you have seen that your virtual assistant is working efficiently with the initial activities you have assigned, you would have a better assessment on what other tasks to disseminate in the near future.

Work with them side-by-side. To reap the utmost advantages of having a VA, it is best to have them with you during your working or operational hours. Flexibility may be considered the best option by others, but if you want to be assisted well enough, then the virtual assistant should at least be reachable whenever you need him or her.

By having your VA work during your operational hours, even if there are urgent matters at hand, you will be assisted. Furthermore, coordination would not be delayed. Flexible schedule may keep your virtual assistant from clarifying some things, which could in turn hold off the completion of certain tasks.

Additionally, working alongside your VA may also help you observe his or her work performance much more effectively.

Give sufficient time for adjustment. Every virtual assistant has the right to have enough time adjusting to their new work environment. If you will rush a VA to have the know-how of everything in your business immediately simply because he or she is experienced, you may encounter issues going forward.

Bear in mind that your operations may differ from that of your VAs’ previous employers’. Furthermore, even if you may be using software applications that your virtual assistant is proficient at, you still need to convey your expectations clearly.

By giving a reasonable adjustment period, you would be able to support your VA from working effectively in the long run. It is somehow your means of orienting them on what your business goals are.

Be open to correcting their mistakes. There are entrepreneurs or executives, who simply decide to give up having a virtual assistant after a single mistake and not allowing him or her to correct it. 

If you want to make the most out of having a VA, treat them as a typical office employee, who may err from time to time. With proper guidance and correction, he or she would improve by seeing mistakes as their learning curve.

Moreover, if you do not present the errors done by your virtual assistant, it would be difficult for him or her to even keep up with your standards or requirements. Guessing what should be done is not the way to go in having a VA.

Allow learning of new skills. You should not limit your virtual assistant to doing the same things in the long run. If you would allow him or her to learn new skills, which are beneficial for you, then it is a good move. 

For instance, instead of allowing your VA to work on administrative tasks solely, you should also be open to the possibility of getting help in advertising or sales. This is in consideration to getting the nod of your virtual assistant and assuring that his or her workload is still fair.

Instead of getting more and more people to do tasks separately, an efficient VA can get a lot of things done with sufficient time, resources, and support.

From the provided practices, you would realize that a virtual assistant could be the independent contractor or employee that could fill in the gap in your operations. All it takes is to carry out the said steps and you would be able to get the most efficient assistance you could find.

Efficiency at Work Should Be in Continuity

Efficiency at Work Should Be in Continuity

Working from home does not imply there is much difference with what the employers expect from you in terms of efficiency. Regardless of your location, office or your abode, you would still be required to be effective in carrying out your duties.

Nonetheless, similar to typical office workers, there are instances that virtual assistants tend to find boredom in their work as time passes, which should not be the case. It is highly possible that you may have a monotonous daily routine at your workplace. However, it does not warrant your performance or even your general outlook about your job being affected negatively.

If you let uninterestedness overcome you, this could lead to lack of focus. Apparently, when you lose concentration at work, you will end up failing in every task that you would carry out.

Should you find yourself in a situation that makes you think that you are stagnant, consider doing the following:

Reflect. You should reflect on yourself. Are you experiencing boredom because of the sameness of your daily work routine or there is more to it? For instance, you may not be content with your present situation.

There are times that you are simply insinuating that you are doing the same things repeatedly daily, but in fact, you are complaining about how you are not being given new roles in the organization. You simply have to be honest with yourself so you could tackle this problem head-on.

If you admit that the aforementioned truth is on hand, then you should consider opening this up to your superior. There are instances that you should step up and convey your concern. Be confident to say that you deserve to take on more responsibilities for the company’s growth. Know that an effective management would not keep you from challenging yourself, which would result in your development.

Gauge. Find out if you are indeed in your most efficient position as an employee with regards to the tasks you are assigned with. Since you are already finding yourself in boredom, this should signify that everything you do is plainly easy for you.

However, if you gauge your current performance and still find faults in it, such as missed deadlines, repeated mistakes, and poor coordination with the team, then your boredom should not be justified.

You are the one who is actually taking your work for granted in this case. Basically, you have to accept this before you can proceed into correcting yourself. Once you do, you would be able to improve not only your performance but your overall perception about your work.

Learn. If you find that you are not moving forward from your current situation at work, it may be the right time to explore other skills you may study about. If you are confident that you are at your best in the responsibilities given to you, then you should open yourself to finding out other fields you may also excel in.

For instance, you have been in the administrative field for long, then you should try learning other skills that interest you, such as marketing. By doing so, you may even jump from one department to another in the organization. You would never know for you may actually progress more in a different department.

Various materials and trainings are available on the web to make this plan happen. There are also cases that your company may provide you the opportunity if you simply inquire regarding it.

Maintaining efficiency at work may be difficult, but can be done. You simply have to be open to self-assessment all the time. Never stop tracking your progress and drawing your plans for your career.

Start considering the above mentioned tips and you will be able to pinpoint the main problem of your efficiency discontinuity. It is never too late to keep your work performance in check and have a better outlook on your career.

A Thanksgiving: What to Thank For in Having a Virtual Assistant

In line with the Thanksgiving holiday, which is being celebrated in a number of countries, it is a good thing to discuss what to thank for in having a virtual assistant. With the recent development in staffing, there is no refuting that more employers are appreciating how valuable it is to have remote workers. Instead of being skeptical about it, they are now welcoming a team creation out of virtual assistants.

There are various reasons why you should be well pleased for deciding to hire a virtual assistant. To give you a few, which will remind you that your gratitude is laudable, here are the following:

Utmost Convenience. There is no invalidating the fact that having a virtual assistant would provide you a high level of ease in different aspects. One good example is being assisted everywhere you will go. Even if you are someone who travels a lot, with your remote assistant available to communicate anytime and anywhere, you would not lose any needed help.

As long as you have the platforms to use, internet connection, and gadgets necessary, you can get in touch with your virtual assistant conveniently. This means if you need urgent appointments to set, travels to schedule, or rooms to book, you are all set.

Accessible Skill Diversity. A typical virtual assistant has various skills to offer. This is brought upon by his or her experiences that were obtained through open opportunities online. Unlike office-based work, most remote projects or positions are open to anyone willing to be trained. As a result, a virtual assistant can easily gain more knowledge and skills to offer as his or her years in remote industry increase.

Flexibility. Since a remote worker is usually based in his or her home, there is no problem if the work schedule has to be changed instantly, whenever necessary. This is regardless of the virtual assistant following a different timezone to that of the employer. 

Most virtual assistants can even work on a night shift basis to keep up with the operations of a company based in an area, which can be 12 hours behind.

High Level of Commitment. Since there is a high level of convenience on the end of the virtual assistant, he or she has no further reason to go on frequent leaves or absences. Being at home and near his or her family would make a remote worker more motivated to report for work. 

Productivity would certainly increase, as well, given the much-needed work and life balance can now be achieved by any virtual assistant. Imagine being able to take care of your loved ones just a few steps away from your office.

Small Business Friendliness. A virtual assistant could be the best answer for small businesses looking into gearing up for expansion without having to suffer from too much labor cost. For instance, by hiring a remote worker, you can already have customer service without having to deal with office space and lots of taxes.

The provided benefits of having a virtual assistant are unquestionable reasons for you to give thanks. With this development in the employment system, running your business is more trouble-free without having to compromise your much needed growth.

Simple Tips to Keep the Team Inspired to Work

Working remotely does not necessarily imply you would be distant to all of your co-workers. Though virtually, you should anticipate that you may work in a team. There are projects that cannot be accomplished individually but require several people of different skills. This is where teamwork is highly imperative.

Nonetheless, not all succeed in keeping a team inspired to work. There are instances that the spirit of encouragement is absent. Furthermore, conflicts may also arise over time due to differences in personalities, miscommunication, or even trivial matters.

Regardless of being the leader or a member, you can be the driving force to maintain the team’s inspiration to aim for triumph all the time. There are simple ways to sustain efficient teamwork, such as the following:

Keep everyone connected. Team buildings may be a good idea, but regular meetings would be best to maintain everyone’s connection with one another. Through a meeting, everyone could share each other’s ideas. Moreover, problems could be solved together. 

To be certain that meetings are used effectively, no one should be left out whenever a conversation is ongoing. Give each team member the opportunity to voice out their thoughts or concerns. 

By keeping everyone connected, lasting friendship may even be fostered over time.

Address issues immediately. Small problems become bigger when not solved right away. This can hamper good teamwork. If there are clashes among team members, it should be given resolution head-on. There must be a face-to-face discussion on how to solve everyone’s differences. 

There would definitely be dissimilarities to each member’s personality, but understanding should be everyone’s common ground. Teamwork should be instilled as a give-and-take relationship. If one makes a mistake, he or she should admit it and apologize. On the other hand, the one who was offended must be willing to forgive and make amends.

Mistakes should be regarded as learning points not only to those involved, but to everyone. 

Consider that seniority comes with the responsibility to guide the junior members. Being a pioneer in the team does not mean you will simply order the rest of your team members around. Be reminded that you are a pillar that they would depend on. Consider yourself as someone that would help them with the ropes in the operations and support their growth over time.

With senior and junior team members working harmoniously, things would definitely be much easier. This is despite the fact that the new members may go through an adjustment phase. When everyone is helping one another, there is no task that cannot be done.

Assign responsibilities based on each member’s strengths. Although it is also advisable to have every member learn each task involved in a project, nurturing their strengths would be most efficient. 

For instance, if one of your team members is most proficient in copywriting, then you should assign him or her in that area. Do not insist on putting him or her in a position that he or she may not even be motivated to work. With every functioning part of the team in the right place, you would never go wrong in carrying out things more quickly and productively.

Do not set fun activities aside. Everyone deserves a good rest. This is why you should not forget to schedule fun activities with the team. You do not have to make it grand all the time. You may simply invite them for lunch on a regular basis, which does not involve discussing work-related matters. Alternatively, you could schedule short trips, such as hikes, site visits, or any social outings, whenever the team accomplishes something valuable.

If the said activities are not possible given the team members’ locations, then try inviting them to hang out virtually. You can organize a short get-together via video conferencing with games and prizes just for fun.

This would motivate them more to do well and recharge them for future activities.

With the aforementioned simple tips, you would find it much easier to maintain a thriving team. It may be a rough road at first, but all it takes is perseverance to instate a harmonious relationship among members. Keep in mind that a team’s triumph is yours, as well, and the other way around.

Tips on Better Etiquette of Rescheduling Meetings

Meetings are often scheduled in advance. However, changes in the participants’ commitments may change over time. This may be due to an emergency. On the other hand, it could be caused by alterations with the agenda for the meeting itself. Regardless of the reason, rescheduling a meeting can be a headache if not done properly.

Hence, a better etiquette in doing so should be followed. This would not simply reduce your problems ahead but ensure professionalism is sustained while dealing with the meeting participants.

To provide you tips to start with, given below are the following:

Make sure to write a correspondence. It is not proper to simply reschedule the meeting via the calendar application. This would appear discourteous and downright improper in a professional setting. On the other hand, sending an e-mail shows your sincerity in apologizing for the rescheduling matter. 

You simply need to keep it short but concise. This would be much easier for the participants to absorb. From this e-mail, you would be able to convey the reason more effectively. State it plainly and respectfully.

Avoid letting your assistant write the e-mail for apology and rescheduling. If you are the cause of the meeting changes, it is much better to send the correspondence yourself. This is how you would be able to exhibit your care for the meeting attendees, which may be your employees, as well. It is a sign of courtesy regardless of one’s position.

Use a forthright subject. Not all people are fans of using e-mails frequently. Hence, it is necessary to catch the attention of the recipients just by the subject you will use. Try using words, such as “MEETING CANCELLATION” or “RESCHEDULE MEETING.”

By doing so, you would be able to notify the participants accordingly and make them read your correspondence right away. They would know how important it is to check it given it involves their commitments.

Do the rescheduling as soon as possible. Though some emergency situations do not allow, whenever you can, reschedule the meeting as soon as possible. In other words, make changes with sufficient time for the attendees to allocate a slot for the new schedule. This would also be easier for you to check and coordinate every participant’s availability.

Provide different date and time options. Given you have caused the inconvenience to the participants, it is best to provide them options for the rescheduling. More choices would give them comfort out of the adjustment that would affect their calendars.

With the provided tips, you would be able to ensure that despite the meeting changes, you would save yourself and the participants from further inconvenience. It may be difficult to modify one’s calendar, especially one that is often filled, but if done with utmost care, all will work out accordingly.