Before you can start your own home business you should designate
a place for you to work. The area that you work in should be free
of distractions and have a computer,a desk, a phone, a connection
to the Internet, and, if possible, a bathroom and coffee pot or pitcher
with your favorite drink. ( I always have a cup of tea next to me -
it is the one thing that I love hot, cold or in between temps. )

This way you will have everything you need until you take your lunch break.

Something to remember is that you are ‘at work’ in this area. An ideal solution is to have
every distraction taken care of. This means that you have someone looking after your child or children, if possible. If your children are younger than school age, hire someone to look
after them during the day.

This may seem strange since you are working at home, but would you take a baby
into your office with you? Probably not – your boss wouldn’t allow it. Having someone
look after them while you are working ensures that you will get everything done during business hours.

If your children are school age and old enough to understand, let them know that you are working, and that you should only be disturbed if it’s an emergency. If they are still young, have someone watch them after school.

This may seem like an unnecessary expense, but if you are talking to someone on the phone, they won’t take you seriously if they hear a crying baby in the background, or children fighting. You want to make yourself seem as professional as you can so that people know they can trust you.

I learned all of this first hand when I started my home based office services business 13 years ago. I had, at that time, a 16 year old girl, a 10 year old boy and a 6 year old girl. I had to set limits once they were home from school – they had their special “Mom times” and I had my “Mom is working here!” guidelines. It took some work but we did manage to survive it.

Like I told them, they wanted me to work at HOME instead of going out to another “job” when I got laid off from being a telemarketer – and in order for me to do this, they had to understand that this WAS a job and that I was working. If I had a “real” job, they could not run in and out bothering me with silly snitching, fighting and whining and they had to learn to pretend that I was NOT here.

It worked – they are all grown and here I am, still working at home!

Remember, I am a Virtual Assistant who LOVES to do editing, proofreading
and transcription assignments along with research, blog posts, article submissions
and social media maintenance!

Why not Schedule a Project now?

This is an article from Donna Toothaker from StepItUpVA who is a coach
for other Virtual Assistants and really knows her stuff.

Set Boundaries to Stay Sane
by Donna Toothaker on FEBRUARY 24, 2011

As a Virtual Assistant, you have the fortunate circumstance of being able to work from home, and work with clients from all over the world via e-mail and phone. At the same time, as an upstart business owner, you also rely on new and longstanding clients for income. Sometimes it can seem like you started your own business only to discover that you have multiple bosses! Here are a few tips to ensure that you always have the ball in your court:

Set expectations early. Be extra clear with potential clients about your services, your work style, what they can expect from you and what you expect from them. Be explicit in defining what you don’t do – as in your services or work style. Things to consider not doing: having an “open door” policy (an invitation to be micromanaged), giving out your mobile number,
or giving the impression that you are in any way “on call”.

Feel free to ID. It may be difficult to let voicemail pick up when you’r e trying to service your clients, but voicemail and caller ID are great time management tools that will allow you to maintain some sanity in your day. Caller ID is also a great barometer for assessing the “neediness” of those clients who tend to micromanage. Outline your voicemail and e-mail-checking routines with clients, and within what period of time they can expect a response, leaving wiggle room for true emergency calls.

It’s nothing personal. Keep your conversations via phone, e-mail, and social media primarily on a professional level. It may be comforting to your clients to know a little bit about you personally, but giving too much information or getting to know your clients too personally opens up a “grey area” from which it is difficult, if not impossible, to return.

So, if you use Facebook for your business, avoid posting personal information, photos, or posts that may be considered off-putting to your clients, even though your friends might respond with an LOL. Use security features to restrict what your clients can see, if necessary.

Say no. When you were just starting out as a VA, you may have said yes to clients, projects and situations that really didn’t serve you in the long run. You may have done it to get experience in a certain area, build up your client roster, to impress a potential client, or in the hopes of getting more business. However, rarely does saying yes to something that doesn’t suit you or pay you a fair price truly help you. Don’t continue to burden yourself by saying yes to clients who demand too much of you and your resources, who constantly haggle or question your fees, or who push you to provide a service outside your scope.
You will find that letting go of them will open a space for a better client to sign on!

Keep the reins of your business firmly in hand by setting boundaries from day one. Doing so will ensure that you will build mutual respect, turn new clients into long-term clients, and truly enjoy working with them.

Donna Toothaker is CEO, founder and coach of Step It Up VA Coaching. These highly sought-after VA coaching programs have been created for established, successful VAs who wish to create the 6-figure business of their dreams. Visit HERE to receive the free report, Top 3 Mistakes to Avoid in Creating a 6-Figure VA Business.

thanks, Donna, for another great gem I am glad to share with my visitors.

This question goes out to other Virtual Assistants AND our customers:

Where do you draw your lines – what boundaries do you set and expect to have set for you? I would love to hear comments from both sides of the fence.

Remember, I am a Virtual Assistant who LOVES to do editing, proofreading
and transcription assignments along with research, blog posts, article submissions
and social media maintenance!

Why not Schedule a Project now?

One of my favorite clients Jennifer Davey, of JJS Coaching
shared this great article with one of the Linkedin groups
we belong to. With her permission, I am sharing it with
my readers, along with my own thoughts on this
very important subject.

You Can’t Do It Alone, By Jennifer Davey

To make money (more than you’re making now) you need someone to help you.
That someone can be a coach, a virtual assistant, a programmer, a copywriter
or any other kind of support staff. It might even be a mix of “someones”.

Tending to all the details involved in running your business can take up a big chunk
of your day. It can take time away from marketing, creating and other activities
that only YOU can do in your business. Bringing on support staff to help you,
or a coach to give you support and direction, can be the boost you need
to take your business to the next level.

You may be thinking, “I can’t afford to pay a coach, or some other type of support staff.”
But remember, this support will help you get clients, build your business and make more income. It’s an investment that will give you a terrific ROI.

Think about it: If you had certain tasks off your plate, would you have more time to market? If you could have someone implement some of your marketing tactics for you, would that be a time-saver? Would it bring in more clients and more income? If you had a coach helping you design a business plan, a marketing strategy or just helping you get out of your own way, what would that do to your bottom line?

Still having trouble justifying support? Check out this finding from the ICF’s (International Coach Federation) Coaching Client Study: “The ROI (return on investment) for companies (that are coached) can be significant….. with a median return of 7 times the initial investment. In fact, almost one fifth (19%) indicated an ROI of at least 50 (5000%) times
the initial investment while a further 28% saw an ROI of 10 to 49 times the investment.”

WOW! It makes you think about how much you’re missing out on NOT having support.

Schedule a FREE Discovery Session to explore how Jennifer can help you get clients,
build your business and make more income.

Thanks, Jennifer. So many of my clients have reported increased business and creativity
once they start outsourcing things that they usually do not LIKE to do or are not at their very best at.

I have helped clients with research, their social marketing maintenance – so that they can spend their time on the fun, interactive facet of this practice, scheduled appointments & booked interviews and a lot more as a Virtual Assistant.

When you think of all of the outsource-able duties you spend your valuable time on,
when you could, instead, be free to perform the ones you really want to do or excel at,
having a helper or even several, may be the way for you to go to grow your business.

Remember, I am a Virtual Assistant who LOVES to do editing, proofreading
and transcription assignments along with research, blog posts, article submissions
and social media maintenance!

Why not Schedule a Project now?

Jan Tallent
Tallent Agency Virtual Assistance

573-775-4520 jan@tallentagency.com