Tag: professionalism

Virtual Assistants Should Never Steer Away From Admitting Mistakes

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It is somehow embarrassing or should you say, unprofessional, when you make mistakes at work. This is nothing but natural, especially if you want to make the best out of your day. However, you should know that there is no person, who does not err. This is the same way with you being at work. There will be instances that suddenly, you will forget to e-mail a prospect or maybe, you may miss a deadline due to your negligence in taking notes of your projects.

Still, this is typical, and the most important thing is, you should not blame yourself. Aside from accepting what had happened, you should not be afraid of admitting mistakes. Did you know that clients prefer employees, who do not feel apprehension when it comes to stating the thing they have done incorrectly? For them, a person with such character is hinting his or her desire to learn. Apparently, mistakes are lessons.

Indeed, it is easier said than done, but why you should not try doing it going forward? You would soon see how your client will appreciate more of your honesty. This is due to the fact that at times, when you cover up your errors, a bigger problem will arise.

There is a good example for this. If you are assigned with a time-restricted project and due to your rushing, you did not read the requirements carefully that you forgot a certain document to deliver during the submission date. It is anticipated that your client may even voice out that you are indeed careless in this situation, but believe it or not, if you will admit your mistake and guarantee that this will not happen again, the tension will be reduced. Your client will see that you are not someone, who protects much of his or her professional image to the point of deceiving people around him or her.

Moreover, when you open up your mishaps with your employer, you would also give him or her indication that you can afford criticisms regarding your actions. From these criticisms, you could move forward with a better mindset in the said situation.

Additionally, if you will tell the truth rather than weasel your way out of the predicament, you and your colleagues or employer will find it easier to determine a solution. Remember, if there is a touch of falsehood with your statement, the analysis of the situation could go astray.

Did you know that you could also teach others with the mistakes you made? Yes, you could, especially now that they could also learn how to cope with it the way you did. Your transparency could also be contagious, that your colleagues will not be too prideful.

Remember, it is never a flaw to make a mistake, more so admitting it. You can never be a perfect employee unless you stumble once in a while.

Tardiness Is Never a Trait to Keep as a Virtual Assistant

Tardiness Is Never a Trait to Keep as a Virtual Assistant

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If you think flexibility is dominating the online or home-based work industry, then you should think again. Since then, clients have never considered remote workers different from office-based ones in terms of performance at work. In truth, there are even cases that they will expect more from you. Why? This is due to the fact that they are aware you are already conferred with convenience to work at home and near your family. Hence, an upraised commitment to your job is anticipated.

One of most important things to keep in mind as a virtual assistant is to practice abiding by the schedule your client has set. Indeed, there will be cases that your tasks are not provided yet, but this is not a reason for you to report late.

Your client or employer is observing you, no matter how silent he or she can be in terms of those aspects. Show your professionalism even if you are at home and working. In such way, your client will consider your ethics praiseworthy, which could end in a stable work for you. Who would not want to work with someone who does not neglect following even the simplest instruction as arriving on time?

According to others, they have this sickness that keeps them from arriving early or reporting on time. You should know that there is no such thing as that. In contrary, what you are experiencing is a result of voluntarily letting yourself get used to the unprofessional habit.

If you are aiming to make a change, then you should start resetting your work-related habits. One good way is to avoid setting appointments near your scheduled reporting time; as much as possible, clear an hour or so prior to your work.

On the other hand, you should also try setting alarms or reminders, particularly on your mobile phone (which you often hold) to keep tabs of your reporting time. This is helpful if you have more than one gig or freelance work.

If you are a night owl and your work schedule makes you snooze involuntarily prior to your reporting time, you should then find sufficient time to slumber during the day. In such way, your body will be able to control its urges to take a rest in the evening. It may be difficult for the first few days, but your system will get a hang of your new sleeping pattern.

Lastly, you should have a psychological motivation – keeping your client or employer satisfied with your performance and eventually, maintaining your professional standing. Be reminded that your reputation as a virtual assistant is also at stake here. Do not ruin it by a habit that can be corrected easily if you only decide to.

It is not too late to make a shift. Remember, it is your choice when it comes to your overall work performance. You choose to be late, to be a not-so-dependable virtual assistant, and to be someone who cannot follow a simple instruction. Yet, you can choose to be the contrary of everything that was mentioned.

your virtual assistance career is more than convenience

Your Virtual Assistance Career Is More Than Convenience

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You should remember that if you are a virtual assistant, this does not mean that the clients will not anticipate you to work as a typical office-based employee. Simply because you work at home, this does not imply that you have the power to everything, such as your schedule. Take note that it is best that you work alongside your client. Thus, you should follow his or her preferred schedule or the company hours. In such way, you could coordinate well with him or her while carrying out the necessary tasks daily.

Flexibility may have become common nowadays among remote workers, but it is not as friendly as it seems. Simply imagine not being able to connect with your client. Be reminded that a harmonious relationship with your employer is best done through communicating consistently. Furthermore, flexibility entails that your client will not always have that opportunity to catch up with you for urgent tasks.

If you are working as a virtual assistant, you should keep in mind that even your attendance should not be influenced by your convenience to ask for absence approval. Truth to be told, it is much easier to ask permission to leave work through written SMS or message, isn’t it? However, this does not mean that you should abuse it. Treat your work with respect and consider the requirements of your clients always.

Provided your client appointed you to work as his or her virtual assistant with a set of tasks akin to executive assistance, this only signifies that you should be present as always as possible. Why? This is due to the fact you would always coordinate in behalf of your client.

The aforementioned facts do not mean that you cannot take leaves at all. There are exceptions, for certain, such as in times of emergencies. The point of the matter is that you should never let the convenience of virtual assistance take over you.

There is growth in virtual assistance work. You should remember that if you want to grow as a better professional worker, you should act like one. Perform your duties with relentless commitment and do not ever think that a job is easily replaceable. If you will show your client that somehow, you are way too comfortable and dilly-dallying, he or she will have a concrete reason to let you go.

Do you know that even clients who hire remote workers look forward to a long-term relationship? Yes, they do, for trust is difficult to build. If you will successfully establish a good reliance from your client to your person, you could secure a stable work.

Respect: A Trait That Every Virtual Assistant Should Have

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Virtual assistants have the freedom to work as they please, as long as they provide the deliverable required of them. They could wear anything and neglect work clothes, if they prefer to. They could even work at their most convenient times, as long as their client allows to. Most importantly, they could spend more at home without worrying about their job. Their laptop is just an arm away for them to take care of things.

However, due to the aforementioned convenience, there is a tendency for a virtual assistant to neglect important factors in sustaining a healthy client-freelancer relationship. For instance, VAs tend to forget how important it is to connect with their employee. Apart from the work relationship becoming automated and seemed machinelike, virtual assistants could become less friendly towards their client.

Be reminded that you are still an employee regardless of the fact you are working remotely. Home-based job does not entail lack of personal touch with your work.

If you do not want to end up your job without a harmonious relationship to recollect in the future, you should start shaping your personality as it should be. One good start is to learn how to become respectful to your client or employer. In truth, there are so many ways to do so.

A few tips below may help:

Always start your shift in a positive note. How could you do this? It is simple. You just have to avoid forgetting the most important greetings – good morning, good evening, or good day. You should always initiate a beginning that would affect your client’s mood positively. Be reminded that positivity is contagious. Thus, make yourself a source of it.

Apart from the common greeting, never forget how essential asking how your client or employer is. No, this is not an act of uttermost comfort towards your superior. This is a way to show him or her that you do care despite your type of relationship. A client or an employer may not say it, but they prefer that their staff at least give credit to them even in the simplest way.

Accept your mistakes and lower your ego. Yes, you may be an experienced virtual assistant or even an accomplished professional outside your remote working space. However, this does not mean that you already have the privilege to disregard the corrections and criticisms of your client.

Hear your employer out when he or she is pointing something that did not turn out right. Accept if you are wrong. Otherwise, explain your side in a respectful manner.

If your employer is wrong no matter how you see it, but he or she kept on insisting his or her side, simply keep mum. Follow what he or she wants to happen, for in the end, the result will convey which of you is right.

Understand the personal space of your client or employer. There are virtual assistants who only focus on work that they forget that their client also needs their personal space. For instance, they still send messages or e-mails during the night despite knowing that their employer may be with his or her family at home already.

Although there are cases that urgency requires you to speak with your client even at night time or beyond working hours, you should always prioritize respecting the time he or she has left for himself or herself. If your inquiry could wait or you could find means to sort out your concern, then you should keep yourself from pressing the send button.

The provided tips above are just a few of what you can do to maintain respect in your personality. You should take note that employers do not retain their staff based on their skills alone, but also on how they deal with their superiors or co-workers.

learn the unheeded power of follow-ups

Learn the Unheeded Power of Follow-ups

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Follow-ups are often considered annoyance, which is why even virtual assistants forget and neglect how important it is. Do you know that it has immense power that you may be missing? Have you ever thought why some marketers usually take note of following up or reconnecting? This is not to cause repetitive offering of their products or services. Instead, it is one way of actually catching a client.

There are also reasons why you should consider follow-ups in your virtual assistance work as early as today. To begin with, the following facts will open your eyes relative to its efficacy:

Keeping your clients organized. It is understandable that clients are always filled with schedules and appointments to attend to. This means that you are hired as a virtual assistant for you need to at least keep your client aware of his or her upcoming endeavors. Yes, they do have calendars and software applications to remind them, but this does not mean that they would always notice it.

This is when follow-ups are best used. Before even a meeting starts, follow up with your client. This will not only help him or her be prepared but this may also open for early cancellation, if an urgent matter arises. At least, you can still reach out to other participants of the meeting and notify them of the unforeseen revocation.

Avoiding deadlines. If your client has a deliverable to submit to the management or company concerned, following up with him or her would definitely help. Similar to what has been indicated earlier, a client is anticipated to be filled with a lot of things to do, so he or she needs reminding.

This also goes the same with you. For instance, you will be missing the deadline if you still have not obtained clarification regarding the instructions of the tasks given to you. If you would follow up, you would urge your client to attend to your concerns right away; thus, avoiding your output from being late.

Tracking the progress of your team. Team leaders would find follow-ups useful, especially if your subordinates have to work in unison. By following up, you could always remind your team members to avoid deadlines and focus on what has to be done. Moreover, follow-ups also prevent your subordinates from procrastinating.

Naturally, when employees are not receiving any follow-ups from their superiors, the tendency is for them to think that they are not being monitored. Additionally, this could lead to lower productivity.

Ensuring seamless transactions with customers. Considering you are working for a client, who has required you to work on invoicing and coordination with their clients for payments, you should also learn the essence of follow-ups. It may be quite disconcerting for you to follow up regarding a payment, but remember that this is part of the sales system. Thus, there would always be a time wherein you have to remind a certain party of an upcoming bill or missed payment. You cannot always rely on the fact that your customers will remember their due dates.

Better customer service. If you are assigned as a customer support, follow-ups are also powerful in making your company’s clients’ experience better. For instance, there is an issue that has been reported to you and you have provided a solution. If you would add a follow-up treatment on how the client is doing subsequent to your support, you would definitely find him or her pleased with your relentless concern.

With the provided facts, hopefully, you would already be encouraged to use follow-ups at work. But of course, too much is never right. Thus, you should reconnect in respectable manner – professional and alike to a soft reminding.