[TRUE STORY]  Jane lived in Brisbane, she worked as a piano teacher, but her passion didn’t lie there.  Jane also participates in a volunteer ministry helping people to have a better life now and a better hope for the future.  Jane decided she wanted to travel to Malaysia and settle there for a while, with the goal of helping as many people she could in that country. Wow!  That’s a big dream right?

Oh, Jane is not a rich lady!

So how could she afford to just up and move to another part of the world – volunteering to help people without any government, organisational or financial assistance?   Short Answer:  She started to work online from her home office.

Have you ever wanted to travel to and stay in exotic destinations, but haven’t known just HOW you can do it.  Did you imagine yourself having to “scrimp and scrape”, limiting your food intake (I HAVE actually heard of people doing that), staying in rubbish accommodation and or waiting on tables just to make ends meet?  How do you imagine you could travel and work online from anywhere in the world? Continue reading

There are many advantages to building, developing and nurturing your virtual team.  Today I want to talk about just ONE of them.  And it is a BIGGIE!  So sit­-up and take notice. Imagine being able to travel anywhere in the world, with the full assurance your business will continue to operate without you physically being there.

To give you just a few examples…people like Bernadette Doyle, Melanie Benson Strick, and Virtual Team Intelligence, all have businesses that support the lifestyle of their choice. There are hundreds of people who conduct their business from wherever they happen to be – with the support of a virtual team.

To make a virtual team work for you there are a few foundational requirements.  Without them you may have a team, but it won’t be functioning to full capacity.  If you really want to take a break without the worry, if you truly want to unplug with peace of mind, and if you really want to go offline and continue to make money there are some things that must be put in place. Continue reading

[TRUE STORY]  A friend dropped into our work from home office today.  We’d only see *James about twice a year, but it’s always nice to see him and catch up over a coffee. James is a gentle soul who wears his “heart on his sleeve”.  Always thoughtful of others, speaking words to encourage and uplift others.  It didn’t take me long to notice how sad he looked today.  Without wanting to be too “nosey”, I enquired if he was REALLY doing ok. I mean REALLY ok, because he certainly didn’t look his usual self. Short answer…he wasn’t doing ok.  He was soooooo depressed, feeling very, very low.  He felt his frustration and depression was stemming from his work.  He’d lost all enthusiasm, tired of answering to a boss that didn’t really care or understand his role. He worked as a sales rep, tirelessly, without a lot of reward.  He was feeling trapped unable to escape.  Have you ever felt like that? That feeling of being trapped in a job role you just hate? The kind of role where you feel you just can’t face the day ahead. Yes! That’s exactly where James was. Continue reading

Virtual Team Building Tip – Keep Your Team Excited About YOUR Business…

Are you an online marketing entrepreneur?  Do you run an online small business?  Do you have a team of loyal virtual assistants working with you?  OR perhaps you don’t just yet have a team, but the idea of having the support appeals to you?

Then…you NEED to read this.  Why?  Because IF you manage your virtual team the right way, and if you take care of your virtual team properly, it will mean your freedom, your security and your success.  If you can keep your team excited about your business, then your business will not only continue to grow, but it will continue to grow the easiest way possible.

If you’re too busy to bother with your team and all this virtual team building “nonsense”, and feel you don’t have time to read the entire article, I highly recommend you skip straight to the 3 action points at the bottom.  You’re going to need them!

Here are three ways you can do it…Starting TODAY. Continue reading

In this Video following on from part II,  John shows you an easy way to take your requirements list and use it to research the market, and then subsequently make a shortlist of suitable solutions available.  This then will form the foundation to test the software or solution and rate it for your team.

If you use this process, you will save time in researching, you will save yourself headaches in trying to figure out what is the best fit, and lastly you will ensure the nearest fit to your requirements.

Everyday we receive emails from people asking for contract on-line work – work they can do using their own computer from home. They offer services like wordprocessing, data input, email management, article writing, web-design … and the list goes on. Their messages indicate to me, that many virtual “work from home” businesses are struggling to get enough clients to make their virtual assistant business viable.

This is how the typical enquiry goes “I’ve been running my own Virtual Assistant Business from home for 3 years now. It’s a part-time business for me right now but I’d like to expand and I do have capacity to take on extra work. I’d like to apply for a contractor position within your company …”

Is that you? Are you desperately trying to break away from the office politics and set yourself up to work from home. I don’t blame you – I’ve been there. Or maybe you have already started your own business from home but are struggling to find clients and build your income. I’ve been there also, so I know how you feel. It isn’t easy right?

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In this video John discusses the second part of the process in choosing  The Right Tools For Your Virtual Team.  Following on from Part 1 – making a requirements list, this video discusses turning it into a Research list to be used to research the right tools for your Virtual Team.

When we do a strategy meeting with someone to help them outsource or streamline – one of the easiest ways we find to fix major problems and obstacles in a business is to find the right technology tools.

It is also one of the biggest challenges solo-prenuers and online marketers face, especially if they are not good with computers and software.

I am here to tell you that the challenge is not the “technology” nor is it “the problem”.  I am also here to tell you that it is easy to find the right solution for your needs – and YOU don’t need to be a tech-head.

That is why I am devoting the next few issues to showing you a really simple process to help define your needs, research a solution, and choose the best fit –  whatever your problem or technology requirement.

This happens every day in business around the world.  Someone is searching for a solution they “think” they need but have never actually brainstormed and written down the specifics of what they need.   100% of the people we meet with have never written a “specification” of what they want.

Now I know what you are going to say “I am not a techie”, “What would I know about a writing specification”, “This is above my head”.

By specification, I simply mean a list of specific needs

How do you think you would go finding your dream home if you told a real estate agent you wanted a 4 bedroom house with water views?  You might get lucky but I don’t think so, I think you would be searching for years to find the exact house with the exact features you want.

The same applies to your business.  You need to get specific and detail exactly what you need.

I have seen major deployments go wrong because they had a technical specification but not a “User specification”

So this is what I want you to do. Open a new word document and title it My Requirements

The next thing I want you to do is start typing, type what?

Type exactly what you want, don’t worry if you don’t think it exists, type exactly what you think would fix your problem.

Please note – if you have a team, have each and every member do this same exercise – you will be surprised at the great ideas they will come up with.

Here is a very simple example of a requirements list:

• I would like an way for my clients to automatically book an appointment with me
• I would like to select the days to make available for different types of appointments
• I want my VA emailed so she can set up a recorded phone call
• I want it to automatically update a calendar
• I want my iphone calendar updated also
• I want my client to fill out a questionnaire before my meeting
• I want to access the questionnaire in a central location before the meeting

Now this is a simple solution that would not even really need the process I am about to show you, but the principle still applies.  Write it down, it does not matter how stupid or simple it sounds, write it down.  Be as specific as possible, the more specific the more chance at finding what your require.  A lot of people have the first thing they want to fix in mind, find a solution and pay money only to find down the track that solution can’t grow with them or does not even satisfy 50% of their requirements.

This process will help you get in mind the “Bigger Picture”, and gets your team to think about a “total solution”.

It will also lay the foundation for the next critical step in the process – Creating a Research Wishlist

So before I write the next article, you have some homework to do – get writing and get brainstorming with your team.

If you have any questions, leave them below in the comments, I would be happy to help.

Also, if you have had a good or bad experience, let our little community know, maybe there is something we can do to help.

“Opportunities that sound too good to be true are usually scams… If something sounds too good to be true, trust your instincts”

Would you agree with this statement?

The thing is, in many circumstances I’d say I agree.  But today I’m disagreeing.  I’m going with – “If it sounds too good to be true – go for it!”

Now, if you’re a skeptic and have been looking for a genuine work-from-home opportunity you’re likely wary of all the online job scams out there.

Continue reading

“I’m feeling like absolute rubbish.  I’ve worked my butt off – tried so hard and nothing is ever good enough. I’m not appreciated.  They take me for granted.  It’s time to move on.”

Chances are – if you’ve got a loyal virtual assistant on your team, who’s been around for a while, they’ve said that about YOU.  Yep you!

Sure you might think you’re doing your best – but is that enough?   You need to take good care of your team.  And especially take care of those that have been with you for a while.

Here’s some insider tips on how to keep them happy and on your team …

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