Productivity – Page 3

Turn your Passions into Pursuits

Join Avon Today![/caption] My most recent passion involves my love of makeup. Yes, I’m a girly girl… I have always loved makeup, nail polish, and so on. When I lived in California, I even completed manicurist training in a cosmetology school and opened a mobile manicurist business that thrived until I sold it and returned to my home state of Colorado. I still do nails but these days, only for myself. But I have always loved the entire process of beautification.

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Currently, I turned my love of all things beauty into a new venture and became an Avon Representative. I’m thrilled to say that I’m loving the entire process. I’m realizing its not that much different than my Virtual Assistant business in that I have clients, and I try to be sure they have the exact thing they need and I try to provide the best customer service I can to them. Avon is amazingly empowering. It is truly THE Company for Women. I have seen positive changes in my ability to interact with ‘real live’ people instead of only via the internet. I’ve even been able to use some of the techniques I’ve learned while selling Avon in my other businesses and have seen very positive results. To me, my business Hilltop Secretarial and being an Avon Representative are a perfect combination! I can work both during the day. During off moments from virtual assisting I’m working my Avon business. Win-win for me and my day speeds by! Why Avon? It costs $15 to start, people love the products as much as I do, and they have a solid record of supporting cause that are close to my heart. You get a suite of tools and an estore – Where else can you get all that for one $15 startup fee? Right now it doesn’t take too much time but I’m hoping it will grow much larger and will someday take over in the income I will lose I and when I retire from virtual assisting. I highly recommend Avon as a revenue stream – It is very rewarding and I love helping people feel beautiful and empowered. Get signed up today – Make extra money for the holidays, and make friends for a lifetime! I’ve also turned my love of photography into a business and sell my images when we show our products at craft shows and festivals. I am a graduate of the New York Institute of Photography, which has enabled me to turn my hobby into a viable revenue stream. Mostly my images sell online so there is some passivity to it. I became obsessed with herbalism after the medication I took when a migraine hit was pulled from the market – for no real reason other than corporate greed – and I had to begin anew the oddysse to find a new effective medication. It only took ten years to find it in the first place! Two medication changes later, both included horrible side effects, I turned to researching herbal remedies. I created a very effective blend I call Migraine Buster Tea. It’s so amazing I can get rid of a migraine generally within an hour with NO SIDE EFFECTS! That was absolutely HUGE for me since I’m entirely too sensitive to medications. This obsession with herbs has resulted in a lucrative revenue stream called Hilltop Herbals. I’ve added to my original Migraine Buster Tea and created a number of other remedies to help you in your daily life. I’m proud to have completed study in Herbalism and am constantly continuing my education with research in off moments. I give consultations, and we sell the remedies with we show at craft fairs and festivals, and on our online store, Hilltop-Arts. Another passion that’s become a revenue generator is my woodworking. While it’s not as steady as my herbal remedies, it’s still income. I love the smell of the wood, the creation process, and the sense of satisfaction I get when I’ve created something I never thought I could build. Other passions that have turned into services I offer include research, graphic design, website and blog design, talking on the phone (I think I’m a born receptionist!!) turned into my Virtual Receptionist service, and when it comes down to it, my love of office work (but hating to go to traditional offices!) turned into the career of over 19 years! Take an inventory of your passions, do some quick research about how to turn them into money makers. You never know when you might discover hidden income potential. ]]>

Staying Productive with a Chronic Illness

Keep Your Mind Active Even when I feel my worst, I find it is helpful to keep my mind active. If I’m not up to being physically active I will research my hobbies for new information, or research new herbal remedies (and no, I haven’t found one to help me yet but I’m researching that too!), or study techniques for photography. Learn New Things In an effort to keep my mind off my illnesses I’ve been learning how to work with wood. I’m not great yet but I’m loving it. I’ve created a beautiful entryway cabinet, boxes and cutting boards. I don’t care if its wood burning or constructing something – its been so beneficial in helping to keep my mind active and off my pain and it helps me to feel more productive. Exercise When You’re Able I mean, use common sense… if you’re dizzy, don’t get on the treadmill and go hog wild – you could injure yourself! However, if you’re able, mild exercise is an excellent way to help your mind – and your pain. Exercise releases endorphin’s which are a natural pain reliever, and it helps your heart too. Reach Out When you’re living with chronic illnesses it can be very isolating because getting out can be difficult. I am a huge letter writer with pen pals around the world so I spend hours each month corresponding – actual ink to paper – with friends. I joined Facebook support groups which have been very beneficial because I know I’m not alone. Reaching out- whichever way you choose – decreases feelings of being alone and improves your outlook. Ask for Help If you find that you can’t shake your depression – which is very common in chronic illness patients – ask for help! Depression is an illness and can be treated. Don’t feel you need to be strong every moment. Thanks, and be well, Kathy ]]>

Reliability

re·li·a·ble (r-l-bl) adj. 1. Capable of being relied on; dependable: a reliable assistant; a reliable car. 2. Yielding the same or compatible results in different clinical experiments or statistical trials. When you are working your virtual assistant business, do you endeavor to come in and leave at specific times? Are you available when you state? When you quote a job do you let the client know you’re approaching the top threshold? Being reliable is being trustworthy. Your clients trust you will complete their work on time and within budget. Your colleagues trust you will do the things you say you will do. I once had a client who initially sent their work ‘offshore’, believing that the low price and the ‘we work while you sleep’ slogan would take care of the project both timely and affordably. They were wrong; the client was entirely unhappy with the project and contacted me to fix it. I think it would have been simpler for me to start fresh and complete the project from scratch but they wanted me to work with what the client received back from the offshore company. Honestly, it was terrible. The project demanded I go line by line and correct where needed – which was extensive. My point is sometimes less is not more. Being reliable, but not the cheapest is often the less expensive way to go. I had another client who was completely floored by the cost of their supposedly affordable assistant and contacted me to simply provide an honest assessment of how long a project should have cost. That’s not easy to do especially since no two assistants are the same. In the end, I got opinions from several VAs I trust and we averaged out the cost and the client was still significantly overcharged. Here’s some on Reliability: State your hours of operation and stick to them. If you aren’t available on a certain day, have a calendar your clients can see so they don’t have to wonder. Email them with your calendar periodically, especially if you have out of office appointments. State your rates to your clients and stick to them. If you feel the project will require more time than you originally estimated, be sure to let your client know. Follow Through! If you say you’ll do something, do it! If someone is making their plans based on what you said you would be doing, be sure to complete your part as soon as possible to not delay the project. Your credibility is crucial to building your business. If you aren’t reliable, you aren’t credible and your business will not survive.]]>

Must Have iPad App: Air Display

I am in love with a new (new to me!) iPad app! Air Display allows you to add an additional screen to your desktop (PC or Mac) and at $9.99 is far less expensive than a new monitor (available in the iTunes store). Anyone who knows me also knows I love screen real estate. I have an extra monitor on my desktop, my phone system is digital and on my laptop, and now, with Air Display, I can drag windows from my desktop right onto my iPad (I use it for my website visitor monitoring, webcam window so far I’m sure I’ll find more!) and be even more productive! For me it’s a no-brainer, this is one of the best investments I’ve ever made. Speaking on investments, I was reading the 17 trading books and got some great ideas on how I can invest and make money. So now, I’m using my iPad even more as an extension to my office. When I’m away from the office, I log in using Logmein.com’s Ignition, and at the desk, I easily incorporate a third screen. Now that I have it, I wonder why I never invested in a third screen before! 🙂 Thank you Ed Kaplan for the heads up! (One thing to note, it would be efficient to use a power supply with it since it is always ‘on’ and doesn’t allow the iPad to sleep.) Make it a great day! Kathy McCabe]]>

Fun in the Office

Play your favorite music – just be sure to mute it during client phone calls. It doesn’t matter how loud you play it, who are you going to disturb? (Sometimes my husband will work from home too so I have to be quieter then)

Put up fun twinkle lights around your desk

Deck out your office with fun gadgets from places like Office Playground

Put up artwork from your kids and favorite pictures of playtime

I have a stuffed animal collection – all the adorable little cuties Michael’s given me since we met

Create nooks in your office that inspire you and bring happiness to your soul (here is where I’ve created my Castle).

Have your pet provide comic relief – our pet Patches is a nut, and we’ve decided she’s our Director of Puplick Relations.

The list of things you can do to make your day fun while working from home are endless. Use your imagination, and remember, it’s YOUR space – go crazy! [caption id="attachment_572" align="alignleft" width="168"]

Castle Nook[/caption]]]>