Most virtual assistants will have a variety of clients, some out of town and some local, but what happens when a virtual assistant wants to take a vacation?   They can choose to have another virtual assistant cover the workload or attempt a “working vacation” and support clients while traveling.  I chose the latter this past week and was able to complete my  clients requests while enjoying a great visit with family and friends in Kamloops, Gibsons and Victoria, B.C.

Hiccups,  yes there were a few like Cadboro Bay, where I stayed,  which has no cell tower. I had to walk three blocks up the street to get coverage. Fortunately there was internet service at the house so I could plug in my netbook , use Skype and e-mail.  When away from the house (and in cell tower range) I used my Blackberry to stay in touch.

As my clients were aware of my travels I believe they were easy on me but here’s some advice, backup everything before you leave.  I use an external hard drive to back up my computers, then a separate memory stick for each client.  I traveled with the memory sticks, a network cable and a netbook.  I do attempt to go paperless but took a small notebook too.

Please note the new law in British Columbia which is “NO HANDHELD DEVICES” while driving.   I always found some quiet times during the day and set aside a few hours every night to complete tasks and update sites.  The only day I had to take off was the drive from Victoria to Calgary.

This Working Vacation combined two of  my passions, being a Virtual Assistant and spending time with family and friends.

1. Make a list of the tasks you need to complete today, prioritize with the most important first. Take the larger projects and divide them into smaller pieces.
2. Take the most important task and start on it first thing in the morning before the day’s challenges increase.
3. As e-mails arrive act only if they take a minute to respond otherwise delegate, defer by marking for follow-up or delete.  Did you know you can schedule outlook to only “send and receive” when you want, like ever 15 or 30 minutes so you are not interrupted as often?
4. As each paper crosses your desk: act, file or toss it.
5. Always plan a meeting with an agenda in mind and if possible give to attendees beforehand.  Attendees will arrive prepared and it is easier to stay on topic.
6. When you must leave a message, articulate your name and number slowly twice.
7. Estimate time for a project one third more than you think to allow for any unexpected challenges.
8. Take time for yourself, rest and recharge.  Keep your life in balance.
9. Every minute of planning saves three minutes in execution.
10. Hire a Virtual Assistant and delegate those tasks that don’t require your knowledge or hands-on.

This past Sunday, my husband and I were getting ready for a summer festival so I threw a few business cards in my bag along with sunscreen, sunglasses and water.  You never know when you’ll meet a potential client.

So off we go to the festival and within the first thirty minutes amid the crowds and noise I spy my husband chatting with a gal on a bike.  As I move closer I see it is Karen (not her real name), an acquaintance of ours.  I walk over and listen to the conversation; they are telling each other what they have been up to for the past few years.  As they chat Karen turns to me and I get this feeling like a deer in the headlights,  I have been thinking about my elevator speech but nothing comes out.  I reach into my bag and pull out a business card which I hand to Karen.

Karen reads the card and says, “Oh you’re a virtual assistant, I could use a virtual assistant, what is it you like to do?” 

Mouth open but nothing coming out, my dear husband tells Karen about a recent project I worked on.  “Logistics” I mumble, “I worked on logistics.”   Then I blurt out something about project work and web pages but it is weak and forgettable.

Number one place I went wrong, “prepare, prepare, prepare.  It takes time and hard work to get to the point where your speech is concise, clear and comfortable yet  relates just the right amount about your business and personality to set you apart.

I am no expert and I’ll be the first one to say that I’m in the basement when it comes to an elevator speech.

Anyone can start a blog, anytime, about anything. I recall a few years back when I worked on a corporate newsletter, the hardest thing was to find enough interesting content for each issue.   With a blog, content is not an issue, you can say what is on your mind, provide opinions on current events or discuss your passions. 

You don’t need a college education, a degree in journalism or be technically inclined, all you need is a connection to the internet, it can even be at your local library.  You can create a blog in just a few minutes with no prior experience and you can do it for FREE. 

Not only can you write in a variety of languages, you can publish photos, video’s, music libraries or any type of catalogue or tutorial for all the world to see.

So why create a blog?  Well for a number of reasons, to persuade, to inform, to advise, to warn, to express or to teach.  When you blog your message is published instantly.  Your expressions may be considered personal, professional or corporate.  Your blog may be a marketing tool which can aid in the generation of income, but if everyone is blogging, does that not reduce the significance of each blog as more of us blog?

So I blog, and two of my friends blog, and each of their two friends blog, and so on and so on, until the world has so many blogs that there are now blogs about the different kinds of blogs and blogs that rate the blogs.  

If I do blog what is the worst that can happen, I can be criticized for my opinion, or condemned for providing some incorrect information. In either case the blog will have taught me to do my homework before I publish. And if someone blogs about my blog isn’t that a good thing?

Isn’t blogging just another form of communication, could it be therapeutic to blog, could we see things more clearly just because we have written them down?  If we just need to express ourselves does blogging fill that void?

I have tried a few times to start a journal,  never worked with me but this blogging,  ah now that’s something I think I’d like to try.