As a business owner, you have to keep on top of all costs in your budget. And yet, you’ve probably heard that virtual assistants make between $25 – 75/hour depending on what type of technical skills they have. Why are they paid so well?
When you hire a VA, you are not paying to house the employee, provide supplies, and are not paying payroll taxes. You do not pay for coffee breaks, water cooler time or office party time. You aren’t paying for all the down time that all employees have while working in an office. You rarely will pay for training, too.
You pay for a specific project to be completed. As their client, a virtual assistant will bill you for a newsletter or blog post. A VA will charge you for the social media plan that she created or for weekly upkeep of your website. Although various VA’s have different policies pertaining to billing hours such as some virtual assistants bill by 15 min increments. Some VAs use monthly retainers with their clients.
Hiring a virtual assistant is a cost-effective way of doing business that cuts waste, too.
Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experience of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, ambition inspired, and success achieved.
Helen Keller
Acceptance of one’s life has nothing to do with resignation; it does not mean running away from the struggle. On the contrary, it means accepting it as it comes, with all the handicaps of heredity, of suffering, of psychological complexes and injustices.
Paul Tournier
Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.
James 1
Am I doing the right things with my blog, with my website and with all of my social media interactions?
Because the right things do help.
Learning tips about how to market yourself better on the net are important. Learning when and how often you should tweet or post on Facebook will improve your online visibility.
The right things are good.
But sometimes, I need to give myself a break and write a short post so I can go play today.
And do what’s easier for me so I won’t be a grumpy VA or a cranky mom.
So today I wish you the happiest first day of summer you’ve ever had.
Last year when I was starting out in the VA world , I met a wonderful VA over Twitter who was very encouraging. I would ask her general questions every once in awhile on Twitter and she always answered me with helpful information. She even offered to show me how to do a screen share with someone and then took an hour of her time to show me the mechanics over Skype on how to use a screen share. It is my pleasure to introduce Jeanie from TaskJeanie.com.Jeanie, thank you for being my guest today.
You’re talking on the phone with someone while sitting at your computer. You’re trying to explain something on your computer screen to that person, but it would be a much more ideal situation if that person could actually see what you’re referring to.
Fortunately, there are free (yes, FREE!) programs and apps that you can use to share your screen with someone. This post will focus on one of the most popular, free programs – Google+.
Screen sharing with Google+
It’s helpful to have the window (a.k.a. “screen”) that you want to share already open on your computer. You can share a screen of a program, photos, videos, a tab in a web browser, your desktop, etc.
Start a Google Hangout and invite the person that you want to share your screen with.
In the main menu on the left side of the screen, choose “Screenshare.” If you don’t see that option, click on “View More Apps” at the bottom of that menu and you’ll see the option to download the app. After the download is completed it will automatically be added to the menu on the left side.
A box will pop up with thumbnails of the available “screens” you can share (all the windows and programs you have open on your computer that are available to share). Click on the screen you want the other person to see.
Once you select the screen, it will appear on the other person’s video feed. You’ll be able to see it on your end as well, and you can actually use the screen that you’re sharing like normal…scroll, click, type, draw, highlight or select text, etc.
Special note: You can only share your screen if you’re on a laptop or desktop computer…if you’re on your iPad or cell phone, screen sharing is not enabled. However, if you are on one of those devices you can still view the screen of the person you’re talking to if they are on their computer. Task Jeanie LLC offers virtual administrative support and services to help you meet your goals while saving you time and money. Learn more at www.taskjeanie.com.
This summer is my first summer that I have projects and deadlines as a virtual assistant and my kids are home from summer. What does any entrepreneur do when she works at home and school’s out?
1. Get up Early
With my kids being older, I can easily get up by 6 AM and have 4 hours to get work done. However with younger children, you’ll have to learn to get up with stealth like a ninja so they don’t hear you.
2. Stay up Late
Apparently people do stay up past 10 PM but don’t call my house then. Kidding aside, staying up to work when your kids go to bed is an option for night birds.
3. Work in your office
Up until a month ago, I had commandeered a tiny corner of the den, also known as the man cave and worked in the corner for a year or so. As of today, I have an office that is freshly painted and moved in my desk and printer today. The room can have traffic at times but I know it’s for a short 3 month season and am so thankful for it. Make sure your kids know that when you’re working, you’re working and let them know when you can be disturbed.
4. Check in with each of your kids
When you have deadlines, it’s easy to push aside your relationships. You may think you have all summer to hang out with your kids but you don’t. I try to take time with each kidlet and see how they’re doing. It may be when I’m doing chores with them, driving them over to a friend’s house, or just snuggling with them on their bed. It’s good to ask them how they feel about you working. Listen to their thoughts about how they feel and acknowledge their words. You may have to adjust your schedule or tweak a portion of your day but you’ll be glad that you did.
5. Go out
Grab some time at your local library or coffee shop to work. If you have younger children, find another trusted mom to swap babysitting so you both can get work done and help each other out.
6. Hire a babysitter
Hire a high schooler to hang out with your kids. Since high schoolers are out for the summer, there aren’t many jobs that they can get until they’re 18 years old so if you find a great babysitter, you’ve found gold! Pay them well and make sure you provide loads of pizza, too.
7. Make a To Do list
One thing I’ve found that a To Do list stops procrastination and takes care of any low level anxiety of what to do next. A list allows you to see what you can do next so you’re more productive with your time.
Summer is a fun time for you and your family and you don’t have to dread that school’s out.
Do you have any tips to share on how you work with kids home?
Are you a brand new virtual assistant and looking for helpful advice about using Twitter? Well, welcome!
Here’s a super easy beginner lesson on Twitter:
Quick Reasons Why You Should Use Twitter
The businesses that you want to work for are online so as a virtual assistant, you need to participate on social media platforms.
When on Twitter, you’ll see the thought leaders in the virtual assistant industry. You’ll find out what’s trending in the VA world.
It’s all about relationship and trust. Twitter gives you the ability to start relationships and grow them.
And there’s always a great opportunity on Twitter to find clients!
Easy Virtual Assistant Tips to Start Using Twitter
Open an account on Twitter and pick a name that you’ll use for your business. Since I have an unusual last name, I use my name and my twitter handle is @JanUdlock.
When you pick your business name remember when people send you a tweet, all of the characters in your name are also counted in the 140 word count so keep your twitter handle/name short.
You can start following other VAs and look for the experienced VAs to follow, too.
Check out specific words in the top right search box to see what people are talking about. Put in words like:
virtual assistant
business
VA tip and
smallbiz
You can also search for any words that best describes your virtual assistant niche. If you are wanting to work with health coaches, journalists, authors, writers, small biz owners or speakers, put those words in the search box.
International Virtual Assistants Association @IVAA_org
Remember Twitter as well as all of the social media platforms is all about conversation and relationships. You may be a bit hesitant but jump in and start. Follow me and I’ll follow you back.
This first video is my son and his groomsmen dancing at the wedding. Then you see, our beloved Chris, Jon’s best man and a second son to us, ask “Where’s mama?”
And that’s when I get a few dancing lessons. (And you can see my son laughing hysterically at me…)
My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person, he believed in me.
Jim Valvano
We are taught you must blame your father, your sisters, your brothers, the school, the teachers – but never blame yourself. It’s never your fault. But it’s always your fault, because if you wanted to change you’re the one who has got to change.
Katharine Hepburn
The most important thing a father can do for his children is to love their mother.
Theodore Hesburgh
My father used to say that it’s never too late to do anything you wanted to do. And he said, ‘You never know what you can accomplish until you try.’
Michael Jordan
Task Jeanie LLC offers virtual administrative support and services to help you meet your goals while saving you time and money. Learn more at 
