“What do you do when you’re not working?”

Ever faced this question? Perhaps unusual in a virtual assistant’s everyday routine but it is an important aspect of a career. Life is not all about work; neither is it about being a lackadaisical person. Work/life balance is a goal that most professionals and workers try to achieve. Some factors to consider in striving towards it are family and friends, meditation, and hobbies.

When thinking of time to relax, make sure to include family and friends. In challenging times, care and encouragement from them carry you through. Listen and pay attention to the conversation when at an outing, for example, at a brunch on a weekend. Turning off the proverbial cell phone would be appreciated and downtime can also mean leaving work half an hour early. Rest and relaxation are vital to humans.

Did you know that work could be used as meditation? The Zen Entrepreneur (http://venturevillage.eu/the-career-warrior-how-to-achieve-spiritual-and-business-bliss) says it “begins with being mindful at work and finding ways to really focus on a task and cutting other distractions during a period of time – and that’s really hard these days.” To recharge and reduce stress, stretch arms, stand, and walk around the office. Virtual assistants are constantly looking at computers and screen savers that have a calming effect are very helpful.

Hobbies have a way of making us feel good, taking our minds away from work. Focusing on a completely different task, such as knitting or crocheting that alters hand-eye coordination provides a mental downtime, so to speak. Hobbies generate creativity; they develop insight that spill over to the workplace.

All these factors work together to form a strong foundation from where work-life balance can be built. Awareness that we work to live and not live to work is possibly the best indication that work-life balance can be achieved.

When the question “What keeps you active when you’re not working?” comes up next time, make sure the answer is in the making or, at the very least, the search is on for one.

Written by Yoli P.- The Help

Workers become productive employees when they go beyond the call of duty, applying skills and knowledge to the task at hand. To deliver on their assignments effectively, employees must continue learning. It is at this juncture that the importance of continuing education, workshops, and conferences must be emphasized.

The Internet opened doors to online workshops and classes making continuing education readily available. Vital encouragement from company owners and managers in the form of subsidies will motivate employees to look for knowledge enhancement courses. Sometimes workshops on integrating technology with office administration are offered at conferences. Staff can also lead internal workshops whereby colleagues learn from a peer.

Companies understand that investing in their employees is profitable.

Perhaps the company is not able to extend financial assistance; there are other ways to support staff. For example, allowing an employee to leave 10-15 minutes early to arrive on time for classes. Logging off a few minutes early will give staff time to collect thoughts and focus on the workshop. It may also be possible that the company recommend that personnel attend a specific networking conference on business process outsourcing (BPO).

On the other hand, each employee must show interest in skill acquisition. Making time to search for continuing education available at the local community college or staying in touch with information technology professionals can lead to niche workshops. Join same interest groups such as Virtual Assistance League http://valeague.com/ or International Association of Virtual Assistance http://www.ivaa.org/ to stay abreast of industry developments.

Good workers in a positive and encouraging environment bring up a sense of accomplishment that benefits both clients and the business. Continued upgrade of skills and tools is indispensable in fostering staff talent. When new information is integrated from the classroom to the virtual office, employee confidence gets a 100% boost.

It pays to remember that learning is a long-term investment for one’s career and an important step not only for work but also for life.

Written by Yoli P.- The Help

The universal access to the Internet by a large number of computer savvy employees changed the way we look at productivity. For example, in the old days, filing the boss’s sent letters, signed contracts, and reports into its proper folder was a measure of being productive. Nowadays, electronic signatures make sending out business letters and the subsequent filing done with a click of a mouse.

Which brings us to the question – how productive are virtual assistants (VAs)? What mindset, attitude do they bring to the table to have pushed the virtual assistance industry to the global phenomenon it is now?

As an on-call virtual assistant, let me share some traits that made virtual assistants a force in the worldwide administrative and business support community.

1. Focus – these employees are focused. In some cases, they can have tunnel vision; totally tuned in to the task at hand until the job is done and the client satisfied which will guarantee future repeat business.
2. Patient – they know how to ask questions, follow on loose ends, close the loop. They are willing to restart tasks, doing it differently each time, when necessary.
3. Persistent – they are willing to learn, try, and master new applications. They look at each new business relationship as an opportunity to grow their company and themselves, professionally.
4. Passionate – they believe in their profession and are happy in assisting clients. As they are committed professionals, the satisfaction for each successful transaction spreads from the work environment to the personal.

Given that virtual assistants are remotely located from employers, productivity is crucial. Effective execution of tasks such as filing of reports, contracts, setting up appointments and conferences electronically is still a parameter for work performed. Because a VA will quickly find and use a phone number or a case study in the files as reference for the business at hand reflects productivity at its most effective.

Developing focus, patience, persistence along with excellent job execution equal high productivity, a win-win situation like no other.

Written by Yoli P.- The Help

The ability to appreciate is part of us, human beings. Some of us are more conscious of it while others are not. According to an anagram solver, the word appreciation contains 746 words but its innate importance is in our realizing the worth and quality of a person or a service rendered. Having a spirit of appreciation for someone or something where we benefit produces a feeling of well-being that is experienced by both recipient and giver of such benefit.

Last Saturday, June 28, The Help Staff was at an Appreciation Dinner in Tagaytay City. That the staff isn’t reporting to a common physical location didn’t affect the conversation and laughter. The buffet dinner that started at 6:00 P.M. went on till shortly before 9:00 P.M. Afterward everyone proceeded to a videoke place to sing live to popular songs accompanied by pre-recorded music. That was even more fun!

Reminded of appreciation and how much the grind of daily life makes most of us forget to be grateful, I thought now is a good time to write a list of the things I’m most thankful for.

1. I belong to a great team at The Help
2. I continue to learn new things in the world of Apps and Internet
3. I work toward goals I’m passionate about
4. I am honest even when there’s discomfort in it
5. I have family and friends who support and believe in me
6. I have a spiritual space that I go back to all the time
7. I bounce back from disappointments
8. Almost 70, I still enjoy life and take on its challenges
9. I take care of my health
10. I remember that I stand on all other women’s shoulders who made today’s opportunities possible.

How about you? What are you grateful for?

Written by Yoli P.- The Help

The increase in telecommuting and work from home arrangements over the last decade can be traced to two benefits – good economics for corporations and flexibility for employees. Companies and its management can reduce full time workers, freeing funds for business expansion. Meanwhile, workers are hired and retained, able to focus on tasks without neglecting family demands.

Virtual workers flock to the industry because of the freedom it allows them. While some new college graduates do not stay long, others have made virtual assistance a career, discovering life/work balance is possible in the profession.

Traditional workers are bound by a central place where tasks are distributed and coordinated by a manager or supervisor. In contrast, virtual workers are hired and retained because of talents they bring to the table – high self-motivation, organized, multi-tasker, adaptable – among others, all the time based in remote places. Teamed with a manager skilled at communication and relationship building, both company and employees thrive.

But how do virtual personnel flourish at their jobs? Trust, the feeling of connection established by supervisors and managers alike, together with open communication between management and staff all contribute to workers career satisfaction and growth. Staff retention, however, is the win-win result that all companies aim for.

Constant communication is the most important key to keeping staff morale and motivation high. Honoring commitments and staying engaged with staff career plans encourage employees to open up, propose alternative procedures to streamline work performance. More so with virtual staff located in several cities in different parts of the world. Employees and management alike must not overlook the long hours and isolation that virtual work entails. Burnout can easily set in which in turn cause staff turnover.

At The Help, new ideas and suggestions to improve staff productivity are welcomed. Recommendations on new apps in the market are discussed and evaluated for possible use in the company. The Help also conducts team-building activities such as community assistance for victims of natural disasters, last conducted on December 14, 2013.            (The Help’s Outreach to the Haiyan Survivors)

Several factors make an employee flourish but in the virtual world nothing beats shared core values of honest communication, empathy, and team work cultivated by both company management and staff.

Written by: Yoli P.