Let’s face it! We are euphoric at landing our new job after months of searching! We’re confident we’ll pay attention to office rules and policies. After all the hard work, we really want to do well.

But what if my colleagues don’t like me? What if my supervisor is a micromanager? What if I fail to meet work expectations?

As we spend more time at work than with family and friends, it’s become increasingly important to develop positive and productive work relationships. Positive means our enthusiasm for the profession and productive would mean bringing our skills to the table, to the team.

A new employee is inevitably the new kid on the block. Scrambling to learn, figuring out the hierarchy, the newbie is an outsider. Let’s not forget that management is keen on making us feel welcome so here are some ground rules.

1. Remember that your colleagues are not obliged to like you. As a team, you’ve come together because of a common employer. Therefore, keep your expectations to a minimum to avoid disappointment. Learn to let unpleasant comments slide to prevent waste of time and energy. Remain focused on tasks to do.
2. Remember that past accomplishments are just that – in the past. A new work environment will require adaptability to the company’s unique procedures. Listen well and when in doubt, definitely ask questions.
3. Remember that constructive criticism is not meant to hurt; we are employees, which means we all have an interest in producing excellent results for our employer.

There is much to learn in accepting individual, regional, and cultural differences. The workplace is where life’s microcosm is presented to us and skills acquired thereat can take you places. When all else fails, stay positive. Try to remember Zbigniew Herbert in A Life

I know

It’s hard to be reconciled

Not everything is exactly

The way it ought to be.

But please turn around

And step into the future

Leave memories behind

Enter the land of hope.

Written by Yoli P. – The Help

Times have changed, and never has this been more evident than in the role of women, both at home and at work. Women continue to prove themselves.They are not only good in rearing kids and taking care of the home, they are also professionally competent evidenced by their success in legal, management careers and government posts.

Eight years ago, The Help’s founder, Astrid Escover Stanek, envisioned a business scenario where mothers can be professionally involved, grow, and contribute to the family income while caring for young children at home. She also wanted flexible schedules that centers on family needs.

On a typical weekday morning, a mother gets kids up and ready for school. If she’s a working mom, she also must get ready. In recent years her office, a few steps away, has been set up in her home. No 9-to-5 hours constraint, she is a virtual assistant (VA), an online employee where businesses get administrative support via the Internet.

A virtual assistant’s daily schedule involves detailed tasks like answering emails, creating blog content, and providing administrative support for authors. Because her office is at home,she can schedule time for herself and her kids. She might pick up the children from school in the afternoon and make them a snack. Eventually, she will help with homework and if her presence is requested at the school, she’s able to go. For a young family, virtual assistance employment is their best bet to have extra income.

Interestingly, motherhood and virtual assistance share organizational and marketing skills. A mother’s management skills are phenomenal. She runs a household involving people (human resource). She’s good at handling finances.Being a chaperone on occasion provides her with the opportunity to carefully observe behavior. She also becomes computer savvy so as to better assist her children in researching the web for homework.School sponsored sales and exhibits are where she hones skills for pitching ideas to future clients.

That all women can be successful at being a mother and, at the same time, in her professional life is a strong belief at The Help. Being a mother doesn’t necessarily mean a woman is relegated to the home. Staffed by mothers who are professionals, the women at The Help can pursue their personal ambitions.

The Help is very much in step with the times.

To all the mothers of The Help, Astrid, Anna, Kathrine, Claire, Maria, and Yoli, Happy Mother’s Day!

Written by Yoli P. – The Help

Congratulations! You’re hired, you have a job! Now, it’s about keeping it or better said, staying employed.

Over the years, I’ve been asked a few times if there was any secret to holding down gainful work.There are no secrets but a lot of sweat is certainly needed in keeping that wonderful, well-compensated position. For success to come knocking at the door, there are many things you can do to tip the scales in your favor. Here are some that I personally relied on.

• Punctuality is an asset. That applies to coming to work, logging on to your work station, returning from coffee breaks, attending meetings, and particularly, handing in assignments.

In 1991, I was receptionist where I literally had to open the office doors to visitors and clients at 9:00 a.m.  Being late horrified me; I made sure I was at my post 15-20 minutes early.

Fast forward to September 1999: a former manager, who wasn’t my supervisor, was looking for an assistant. I wondered why she wanted to hire me and was told, “She was always there.” Yes, I got the new job and the unexpected promotion that came with it.

• Do all, within reason, to have a good relationship with your manager. Some new employees come to the job thinking they know better than their managers. If you have ideas on improving workflow, share them. Career success also means teamwork not just with your peers but also with your manager.
• Be service oriented and helpful. If you would like to be a task leader, even manager,in future then it will pay to know how to serve and help clients and colleagues.
• Invest in your career. Read up on the virtual assistance industry, keeping in mind where you’d like to be in 3-5 years. Share information you discover. Learn how to use new apps through online offerings. Find an English language tutor if your writing skills need polishing. You might find the company is willing to subsidize the cost if you make a case for these.
• Maintain a positive attitude. Experiencing several management re-organizations will be part of a person’s career; mine was no exception. In all those times, I stayed positive. It’s been often said, “When a door closes, another one opens.” This is great reminder that life goes on even when the new job does not.

Notice that all of the above depends on the employee? That’s because a job is only as good as the relationship you intend to have with it. So for a long and successful office employment career in either the virtual or real world, make sure to bring your heart to it then put your best foot forward!

Written by Yoli P. – The Help

Professionals in different industries share a vocabulary with which they communicate. One that is commonly used is the word mentor.Greek in origin, it is said that Mentor, a friend of Ulysses, was entrusted with Telemachos, (Ulysses’ son) while the father was at the 10-year Trojan War. Mentor brought up the son in his father’s absence. Today mentor refers to someone who shares experience and knowledge.

Businesses embraced mentoring programs because it helps staff retention, supports professional growth, and develops a diverse workforce.

But what is mentoring? It is defined as a formal or informal relationship whereby an experienced person helps in bringing out and strengthening an individual’s potential, usually manifested in applicable skills.

Mentoring is not a new concept; technology advance provided mentors a foothold in the virtual assistance industry because communication options are now readily available. It could be looked at as a situation wherein someone advises. For example, college students seeking counsel from a particular professor about career choices or asking for a different view on issues such as marriage. Having a mentor can be crucial in creating work/life balance and self-confidence. It is important for an objective look at the impact of the personal on the professional aspect of a career.

Relating to a mentor comes in many forms. We could have the same alma mater, her/his career path is exemplary, and her/his world vision is worth emulating. In the workplace, form a relationship with peer or manager who makes you think, “I’d like to be like her/him.”

Feedback is essential for a career to move forward. Honest advice on improving one’s communications and interpersonal relationships from a mentor is worth its weight in gold.

A mentor is a listener with whom successes and frustrations can be shared and discussed. She/he provides a broad view of a career especially if she/he is an expert in the field as could be the case in the virtual assistance industry.

She/he can assist in deciding which training modules or studies are worth pursuing. Having a mentor is an opportunity to work with someone whose industry knowledge and network goes back several years, an invaluable asset when starting a career or even in mid-career.

The line manager could be a great mentor. When such a relationship is established, huge gains for the staff and the company waits around the corner. Possible immediate result is reduction in staff turnover and high morale of employees.

Alumni and industry events along with professional associations are sources of potential mentors. If you cannot find one or if the one you found has no time, keep searching. Your career may depend on it.

Written by Yoli P. – The Help

The workplace and business in general is often associated with hard work and determination but ironically, the advent of technology also paved the way for the emphasis of “softer” human attributes in the workplace. Compassion and empathy are two of these and have become the topic of business research of late. We shall be taking them as one blog entry for this week since compassion and empathy are interrelated in the sense that empathy is said to be a means towards achieving compassionate businesses while compassion is sometimes described as empathy in action.

The definitions of empathy and compassion even refer to each other, further solidifying their relationship. Empathy is more than recognizing emotions in others as it entails thinking beyond one’s self, one’s concerns and motives. It is putting yourself in that other person’s shoes, allowing you to discover, understand and appreciate that person’s perspective because you see her reality with your own eyes. This enables us to connect with other people, leading to feelings of compassion towards them. Compassion on the other hand is a deep understanding of the emotional state of another person, which can lead us to feel empathy for another person. In its purest form, compassion means making the suffering of someone else as our own.

The question has always been how these two traits come into play in the world of business wherein it has been said time and again that the heart has no place in. Clearly, compassion and empathy can be associated with having a heart because it deals with emotions more than anything else.

Research shows that a business wherein a compassionate culture is present have high performing, less stressed, satisfied, loyal and committed employees. The fact that colleagues and management itself go out of their way to help employees who need it by providing emotional support, material goods and granting flexibility and time to help alleviate suffering, trauma, etc., allows companies to further strengthen their relationships with their employees. Because employees feel valued in the workplace, a mutual feeling of connection, trust, protection and care is generated. Employees are more able to move forward and recover from personal challenges. This in turn improves customer service and the bottom line. As mentioned in previous blog entries, relationships inside and outside the company can make or break your business. A compassionate and empathic business can also build lasting partnerships with other companies with the same advocacy, culture and values.

Showing Empathy and Compassion in the Workplace

1) Listen without interrupting and develop an attitude of openness. Listening to colleagues and letting them finish without interruption does not only show respect and that you value what they have to say but also allows you to absorb the message and respond appropriately. Communicating to employees that there is an open door policy from management will also encourage employees to share their thoughts, decreasing the time spent skirting around issues. Such a policy will encourage them to be honest with work concerns.

2) Show empathy through body language. Maintain eye contact to show sincerity, keep a good body posture to convey openness and not disinterest in what others have to say.

3) Validate other’s emotions by agreeing with them when applicable as this shows acceptance and understanding.

4) Offer personal support. Let them know that you are there to help and that you can work on a task or a project together or that you can guide them or they can ask you should they have questions.

5) If you’re a leader, lead by example and adapt to the needs of the employees if they are for the greater good.

We at The Help, and the owner Astrid Stanek in particular, believe in the importance of cultivating empathy and compassion in virtual assistance. All tasks must be approached with these two traits in mind as both enhance all other virtual assistance skills. Virtual Assistants as partners of clients should learn to put themselves in the shoes of their clients to understand their needs, desires and expectations bearing in mind that there are business goals to meet. The VA aside from doing her job well, exerts effort to inform her/himself about the client’s business. Because of the dynamic nature of virtual assistance, the VA must be prepared to adapt to the goals of the business and her subsequent role in it, thus creating an organized workflow and better use of technology.

Empathy and compassion are at the heart of productive, meaningful relationships that are keys to the growth of any business. But these words only come alive when we, employees and management, open our hearts and minds to the challenges and joys of our colleagues and clients. We can better communicate with one another, with our clients; we create value. A united workforce and a positive VA-client relationship require constant work to achieve the goal of unity and continued success of The Help.

Written by Kathrine E./ Edited by Yoli P.- The Help