Went out for a much needed snowmobile drive on Family Day to burn off some winter steam. Nothing feels better then ripping down the ice in the winter! Couldn’t have been more blessed with the beautiful weather either! How did everyone spend their family day?
To some Virtual Assistants the thought of going paperless literally makes them bite their nails with anxiety. When working from the convenient of your home the last thing you want or need is to see 100′s of banker boxes stored in your closet or basement.
So why go paperless you ask? Below is a brief breakdown of the advantages associated with going paperless.
I encourage all VA’s to start trying to move to Paperless. With a conscious decision to not print everything that touches your desk, we can preserve the beauty that is left on the planet.
Please contact me if you need assistance converting your current system to paperless : Email
Here is the second edition of some of the past scenery images I have taken. If you missed the first edition of this blog please visit the blog Nature at it’s Best 
Check back soon, more images to come in the future!
I have been asked this question countless times. “What is a VA, and what do they you even do?” I usually respond with a serious of answers that have left some still confused. I have dedicated this blog to finally explain what a virtual assistant actually is, and the tasks we perform on a daily basis.
A Virtual Assistant can be described as an independent virtual contractor who offers professional services to clients worldwide virtually.
The professional administrative services that most VA’s perform can be described as the following:
The most common method of communication used by VA’s include the Internet, e-mail and telephone conferences, virtual work spaces, and fax machines. Virtual assistants in most cases perform their work on a contractual basis.
Please e-mail me for further information on the services I offer as a VA or visit my Odesk profile for a breakdown of my skills and feedback on my services.
https://www.odesk.com/users/~~d9b0eecf1f05ba79
Enjoy your day!!
I’m sharing some of the great nature photos I have taken over the paste few years! One of my passions that I haven’t recently had the time to enjoy! Will continue to add as I come across them on my computer. These particular photos are 2005 – 2007 roughly.
As many virtual assistants know, the beginning of your virtual assistant career is truly based on trial and errors. All virtual assistants at one time or another have experienced this downside. It’s common in the virtual assistants industry to fall down and learn how to pick yourself back up.
Below are some of the top mistakes that virtual assistants are prone to do sometime or another during their career:
Committing to a project and not being able to meet the deadline
This common mistake is usually performed by most virtual contractors. We are willing to accept any amount of work, without realizing the workload we have just committed to. In this industry it is essential that we learn how to say NO when we do not have the appropriate time to complete the project.
Bidding Too High or Too Low on a project
I myself have made this common mistake. In the virtual contracting world, we are competeting with worldwide talent. Our skills alone may not be enough to land that great job we are applying for. Your rate or project bid plays a crucial role in where you land on the applicant ladder. However selling yourself short, as many of us have done before IS NOT the answer. Always keep in mind that you possess the skills they require, so don’t go to low, but also keep in mind that you can’t set your rate too high or employers won’t even look at your application.
Delivering Sloppy Work
Always, always, always put your mind into your projects! Ensure you understand each aspect of the project, and when in doubt ASK QUESTIONS! Employers will see that you are really involved in completing the project properly! When you return sloppy work, you are demonstrating that you are a LAZY virtual assistant, and didn’t commit enough effort to complete the project properly.
Ignoring Clients in all forms of communication
Communication in the virtual assistant industry is one of the main roles to the position and is CRUCIAL! I’ve seen this by many virtual assistants, when a project start to turn sour they cut all forms of communication. Ensuring that you communicate with each client via e-mail and phone calls will make a huge difference in how your employer looks at you as a professional.
Priorities List Mismanagement
When I first started my career, I also learned about the important mistake of mismanaging my priorities list. All virtual assistants at one time or another have mismanaged their list. Placing deadlines due the next week ahead at the top of your list and the deadlines that are due the next day at the bottom. Ensuring that you plan your priorities list properly will allow you complete your projects in a timely manner without the stress associated with “approaching deadlines”.
It’s official! I am totally excited about my future fitness plans July 21 2012! Myself and a girlfriend of mine have decided to start training to participate in our first year of Warrior Dash 2012!
Warrior Dash is a mud-crawling, fire-leaping, extreme 5k run. We will be pushed to the test to conquer extreme obstacles and are going to have a lot of fun doing it!!
I will be working on adding a lot of cardio to my current work-out routine. To kick my work-out up a notch I will be working on the bowflex rowing machine for at least 20mins per day on top of a bootcamp workout for strength training. Once spring rolls around, I will move my work-outs outside to prepare for the warrior dash extreme terrain course.
I will post my training progress as I go to keep others motivated and hopefully inspire other fitness enthusiasts to participate this year.
The website for the Ontario Warrior Dash is http://warriordash.com/register2012_ontario.php.
The Warrior Dash is also offered in the US and London http://warriordash.com/
Please share your experience if you have previously participated, and also share you feedback on what you think about this great event!
Have a great day!
Krystle **
In my previous post I mentioned how essential it is to get yourself NETWORKING! Being Social and Marketing yourself is a key task in pursuing your success.
I have created this post to assist you in creating a professional profile on Linked In to get you on your way to Networking.
First and far most to get the best out of Linked In, you need to know what Linked In is. Linked In is used as a interactive business card and portfolio. It breaks down your summaries, experiences, skills, and interests and showcases them to other professionals and employers worldwide.
Create a Creative Profile Headline
When creating your headline you need to keep your description short. Use the headline section to display a professional “slogan” for your services or a memorable way to understand who you are as a professional.
Some sample headlines are:
These are just samples remember. You will want your description to be creative and geared toward you!
Profile Photo
I have seen this time and time again. A professional profile with a photo of a half naked man on the beach. We all need to change the focus on how “beautiful” we are, to how professional we are and the confidence we have in ourselves.
So when choosing the image for your profile, you should choose an image that is high-quality and is a headshot. Now I would suggest using a professional photo, however to some this service is not available or finances may not be available. So I have a cheating tip for you.
Throw a white or neutral toned sheet up against a wall. Have a friend or family member take a few photos of yourself. Choose the best image that was taken and crop the image to a head shot using Photoshop or any other image editing software. This will save you hundreds of dollars in photography fees. TRUST ME!
Education Section
The education section is one of the most important sections to define yourself and your accomplishments. Brag about all the institutions you have attended, highlight your main activities and showcase your GPA, honors and awards.
If you don’t have a list of education. My advice is to start researching some free online courses that you can work through. This will assist your skills, knowledge and your professional profile on linked in. Employers aren’t looking necessarily at where you studied, only that you have the educational and skills required.
Professional Summary Section
This section has been a hit a miss for millions of linked in users. Some of the professionals on linked in have used this section to display their cover letter.
My advice would be to not just cut / copy your cover letter into this section. It looks terrible visually, and most employers seeking professionals don’t have the time to sit and read through everyone’s cover letter. To get the best out of this section use bullet points to display your:
Specialties Section
This section is another section that is commonly confused by most. I’ve seen this section wasted on countless sentences and paragraphs that no one wants to read.
This section is the location to include keywords that if a HR manager was to type into Google to find a professional like yourself. Some examples of keywords that you would use as specialties are:
KEEP IT SHORT AND SWEET!
Portfolio
By far the most important section available on LinkedIn. This section is used to showcase your work and what you are capable of creating. For instance if you are a web designer. You would use this section to showcase some web designs that you have previously created. If you were a writer you would showcase some of your best written pieces.
Please keep in mind, that this is not your show everything I’ve done section. TOO much isn’t always the best. Showcase your BEST work, and projects that you are truly proud of.
This will start you on your way to displaying a professional profile and getting you involved in networking!
Along my journey of becoming a successful virtual contractor I have picked up key habits that have assisted taking me to the next level. I am going to share these key habits with you to help take you to the next level as a virtual contractor.
Market yourself as if it were like a business
A great virtual contractor understands methods on how to market yourself and your skills online. To become a great contractor, you need to learn how to market yourself and your skills.
The first step is to NETWORK!!
Be social on professional social media sites such as linkedin.com. Create a portfolio to display your skill set to millions of employers. Join communities, and blogs and get involved in the conversation. You are not going to fully succeed if you are not open to marketing yourself.
Be Hungry for Success
Learn to adapt to being a seeker. From personal experience it took over a year, 4 hrs a day to finally land a great online career. You need to seek day in and day out for project postings. A successful career contractor doesn’t wait for the next great job to find him/her. We find them. Visit Odesk.com for virtual contractor posting worldwide to assist in your search.
Be a True Professional
I’ve seen contractors over and over again be extremely talented and qualified for a project, however don’t have a regular contractor routine and aren’t organized. These are major downfalls when becoming a virtual contractor. It is essential to stay on top of tasks and deadlines and be available. These skills will assist pull you on top of the millions of virtual contractors who aren’t seeing the big picture. Google Calender and Google Docs is a great free program to get you organized easily! Try it, it may just make your life easier.
Go Above and Beyond
As a successful virtual contractor, I have learnt time and time again that adding value to your project sets you above the rest. If you feel that your ideas can improve your project, take the initiative to share your ideas. If you can offer more as a contractor , Offer it. Never settle for second best!!
I hope that these key skills help take you above and beyond your career expectations. Please share your experiences and skills that have taken you above and beyond.
Everyday since just before Christmas it’s been snowing! The past three days have been so COLD!!!! -22 Celcius. Driving in the snowy conditions have been awful, dangerous and just plain annoying.
This made me spend some time recently thinking about why I moved here, land of nowhere… I cannot come up with any other explanation other then falling in love. I made the choice to move away from my family and friends to live in the winter isolation to be with my fiancee and start a family.
The city was so busy, and never let me breath. Almost like being suffocated. I never thought that living in cottage country would allow me the opportunity to explore myself and my life options. I had a thought when I moved here, that I was going to lose myself and never succeed because there was nothing here. Population 300 with no cities or normal life in site.
Someone very special once told me “ Live your life each day as you would climb a mountain. An occasional glance towards the summit keeps the goal in mind, but many beautiful scenes are to be observed from each new vantage point.”
I took that to heart and left the city. I lost that message shortly after moving here. Forgot to stop to look at the beautiful scenes around me. Fell into a deep depression from isolation. Lost myself and my career fell apart in front of me. A year later while I was still pushing through my depression and my familys put downs and crappy jobs I landed where I am now. On my own two feet. I have never felt better. I didn’t lose myself at all, I improved myself.
I learned to embrace the true meaning of outdoor enthusiast and started fully enjoying the isolation. Now I’m happily enjoying snowmobiling, ice skating on the frozen lake with the family and sledding.
I have also successfully proven to myself and others that working from home is possible. I have had the opportunity of working with some AMAZING talent over the past year and have learnt an immense amount of skills or information from them. I have also been using a very close co-worker Leon, as my mentor and pulling him apart for all the IT information, life wisdom, and career guidance I can. ( a HUGE thank you to Leon for everything he has taught me and the faith he remains to have in me )
I am extremely thrilled with the outcome of my determination and plan on sharing some of the experiences, lessons and advice to assist others through the rough patches in life and to assist them succeed and land on their own two feet.
Look for more to come in future
