We can’t wait for opportunity to knock as sitting on the sidelines does not create success. You need to go out and make life happen for yourself. Create the opportunities within your network, peers, colleagues and even the coffee shop. Without the dialog, daily efforts, diligence and hard work, life will keep whirring by you as you just continue to sit and wait for your golden opportunity to fall in your lap. It doesn’t happen. You must plant the seeds from your aspirations, your plan for success.

The doors are there but sitting on the bench watching, hoping and waiting only ensures time passes. If you truly want something extraordinary, then set the wheels in motion. Spin it like a web.

“To hell with circumstances; I create opportunities.” Bruce Lee

• Target your opportunity for success.
• Never give up.
• Have faith in yourself and your abilities.
• Make it happen and fulfill your dreams.
• Network.
• Create a plan and work it.
• Make a vision board
• Manifest your dreams
• Work it!!
• Work it!!

The post Creating Opportunities to Target Your Success appeared first on AceConcierge.

WHAT A CUSTOMER WANTS FROM YOU by Jeffrey Gitomer

Instead of simply telling you how important the elements that will make relationships happen are (because you AND the rest of the world already know that), here, for YOUR benefit, are the actual elements:

• Relate to me. Know my needs and issues. Engage me by showing me other customers who are benefiting from doing business with you.
• Prepare for me. Show me that you have done your homework about my situation, not just yours.
• Don’t waste my time. Don’t ask me what you could have found out on your own.
• Tell me the truth. Truth leads to trust. I need to trust you in order to have a relationship with you.
• Tell me how I can use your product or service to build my business. I want to know how I can produce in my environment.
• Tell me how I can profit from the relationship. I want to know how I can profit from buying. And I want to know that you know.
• Show me the value, not just how it works. What are the elements of value attached to your product or service that relate to me?
• Make it easy for me to do business with you.
• Make service available when I need it.
• Be friendly to me. If I’m going to establish a relationship with you, I want it to be a friendly one.
• Respond quickly. If I call you, it’s because I need you, and I need a response now.
• Deliver on time. When you tell me it’s going to be there, I expect it. And it helps reinforce my feeling that you can meet my expectations.
• Have answers for me when I need them. I have questions about how your product works.
• Stay in touch with me. Keep me informed on a proactive basis. Make your messages more about me than you.
• Let me know when things or technologies change. Keep me informed about how I can stay ahead, even if it means buying more.
• Keep your promises. If you tell me something will happen, make it happen.
• Be a partner, not a vendor. Tell me how we will work together. And then prove it by your deeds.
• Serve me. I need to feel that service after the sale is more important than the emotion leading up to the order.

Do you know your customer?

The post Building Trust with Your Customers appeared first on AceConcierge.

 “Action and reaction, ebb and flow, trial and error, change – this is the rhythm of living. Out of our over-confidence, fear; out of our fear, clearer vision, fresh hope. And out of hope, progress.” Bruce Barton

Sure, we often THINK about the changes we want to institute, the direction we see ourselves working toward, but those are merely thoughts. It is time to step up and confront what is blocking our realizations for growth.

• Squander our time and efforts on needless busy work
• Lose ourselves in the abyss of posting and trolling social media
• Become sidetracked with tedious, nonsense task
• Lose focus
• Decide we just don’t feel like it
• Work IN our business instead of ON it
•  We are undeserving
• Expecting other company partners to contribute more
• Afraid of success
• Waiting for bigger and better opportunities

The only way to facilitate change is to learn to become more effective and efficient.
To transform.
To revolutionize our thought process and actions.

Keep a daily log of time and projects, the interruptions, personal ambushes and at the end of the week, scrutinize what you truly accomplished. How you spent your time? What was wasted and where can you improve your focus and time management?

A recent post on Stepcase Lifehack, 3 Ways to Be Less Busy and More Productive, state:  “How often do you actually achieve results while you are busy? Not too often, I bet. Switch your focus from being busy to being productive, so that you can accomplish more, see tangible results, and have time for fun.” They offered some very helpful hints to fine tune and remove the busy from your life.

“Action springs not from thought, but from a readiness for responsibility.” Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Many become defensive when their aspect of busy is challenged and that is understandable, but in terms of accomplishable goals, growth, momentum and successes, busy and productive must be further defined to determine if being busy is just wasting time or working toward an end result.  Entrepreneurship requires 150% dedication, focus and effort. It is not a part time endeavor to embark upon while meandering through life. If you are choosing to operate a business, then you must live and breathe your corporation, from top to bottom, every day.

“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination are omnipotent. The slogan ‘press on’ has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.” Calvin Coolidge

1. Know your goals: long term, short term and daily.
2. Plan your work and work your plan.
3. Create your action steps.
4. Eliminate distractions.
5. Stay on task.
6. Turn off notifications.
7. Be consistent with your actions.
8. Delegate your non-income producing tasks.
9. Learn something new to advance your business.
10. Read pertinent books/articles.
11. Find a mentor.
12. Ask for help.
13. Do what it takes to bring your business to the next level.
14. Be accountable for each step-each milestone.
15. It is up to you

“At the end of the day we are accountable to ourselves – our success is a result of what we do.” Catherine Pulsifer

The post Get in the Game | Your Business Depends on It appeared first on AceConcierge.

Can you really do it all? Commit to every single task, project and activity for you, your company and your clients? Probably not. I know I can’t. Spreading yourself too thin wreaks havoc and diminishes your output, sometimes to the point that things either don’t get completed or they didn’t have 100% of your attention.

It is here you decide you truly need help.

Enter the Virtual Assistant.

Many are familiar with the online directories, freelancing job sites, offshore call centers and of course the established virtual assistants. What do you do?

If you are looking for a vested partner, a real team player who has an honest interest in your business, then choose an entrepreneurial virtual assistant instead of the offshore tasks doers. I would believe your ideal assistant is someone:

• Who understands what it takes to start and grow a company
• Who has administrative experience
• Who has an extensive skill-set both on and offline
• Who consistently goes above and beyond being a task master
• Who takes a genuine interest in you and your business
• Who wants to be a part of your team
• Who prefers a long term partnership to help build and fortify your company
• Who drives to learn and educate themselves on related technologies, platforms and current industry news
• Who can and wants to see you succeed
• Who can provide you with testimonials and samples of their work
• Who “gets” your mission, values and ethics
• Who is available at your convenience, making allowances for work life balance, family and time zone differences
• Who timely responds to your emails and other communications
• Who values and respects your feedback to ensure your 100% satisfaction

The Virtual Assistant Industry | A Network of Professionals http://buff.ly/10WcP2e will provide you with a list of tips and questions to ask your potential virtual assistant.

When you team up with another like-minded entrepreneur, you are given the opportunity to have a dedicated partner in your success not someone who merely receives a task oriented email to complete. While the call centers and other off-shore operations may seem like a financial win, consider what you are opting out of for a few dollars.

I began my business in 2002: Virtual Assistants, Passion, Preference and Persistence http://buff.ly/10Wck8d and like the other virtual assistants in my network, we are here for YOU, helping to drive your business to meet your aspirations and dreams of entrepreneurship.

Think about your business goals, direction and management. What is important to you? Who most will benefit your team?

The post Virtual Assistants | Established Entrepreneur or Offshore Call Center? appeared first on AceConcierge.

The Infamous To Do list

The first step toward success is to be cognizant of the level of disturbances which you allow into your day. It could revolve around the daily notifications you receive regarding text messages, emails, news alerts, phone calls or any other immediate interruption that diverts your focus from the task at hand.

• Are you able to turn off or lower the volume of the notifications?
• Can you schedule 3-4 times throughout the day to review/respond to emails?
• Do you need to respond immediately to each byte of data that crosses your desk or your Smartphone?

Tips

1. Prioritize and set deadlines.
2. Know which projects require the most time and your undivided attention.
3. Create your boundaries for working hours and “publicize” them.
4. Tune out distractions.
5. Stay on task.

Is Your Inbox Overflowing with Clutter?

In 2011, it is estimated that there were 3.146 billion email accounts and 2.8 million emails sent and received every day. Wow!

Email has become the most predominant mode of office communications whether it is a quick hello or dissemination of corporate materials, contracts, projects and data. It is a necessity that we cannot live without. Some inboxes can look like a nightmare of messages and To Dos if not properly maintained or left unchecked for an extended period of time. We are all busy working and managing the flow of information and business operations that it can just become an inconvenience to take the time to delete, file, schedule or otherwise take some form of action with each email.  If you continually shy away from inbox management, it not only becomes unruly like a bad hair day, but it fosters a lack of productivity and organization. Who can afford that?

Have you ever spent wasted minutes or hours feverishly searching for an email that contains an important document? It becomes a frustrating unproductive endeavor that is a misuse of your valuable time AND time is money.

Ding Ding! A new email is awaiting your attention.  

• Schedule time to check your email at various intervals
• Make sure you have appropriate folders and filters for filing.
• Is it urgent?
• Can it be completed in 2-3 mins?
• Can you flag it to read later?
• Have you set up rules/alerts
• Delete it if it isn’t necessary and won’t add any value.
• If there is an attachment, download it and save it in the appropriate document folder
• Forward it with instructions to your virtual assistant
• If it is an appointment, drag it to your calendar
• Have separate email addresses for personal and business use

My Documents

We are inundated with digital paper that requires filing. Creating folders is a simple task to ensure your documents are organized and easily found. It can prove very time consuming if you have to scroll through one larger receptacle looking for a needed document.

Tips:

• Create folders and sub-folders
• Use short names
• Be diligent about filing
• Separate current and completed works
• Archive older, unneeded documents – store in a separate folder, USB or cloud storage
• Create shortcuts or links to documents you use more consistently. Maintaining a single copy ensures you are always using the most current version.
• Delete unnecessary files
• Create shortcuts of your most used documents and save them on your desktop.
• If you routinely share documents with a group, consider using Google Docs, Teambox, Dropbox or another online sharing tool for collaborating.
• Save your data and  make sure you always back up your computer

Taking the time to organize and streamline your office operations, even if it is just your email and documents, help to increase your efficiency and productivity – which saves you time and money. The less time you must spend scavenging through folders and emails, the more time you have to devote to important business tasks and daily procedures.

What are your tips and tricks to save time and organize your office?

The post 3 Simple Time Savers for Small Businesses appeared first on AceConcierge.

“Small-business owners who remain convinced they must do everything alone quickly burn out,” Karen Southall Watts

I need control: It may also difficult to give up control of something you have always done and believe only you can do and do it best. Delegating to a virtual assistant is a learning process for some but I have found that once you begin delegating, it becomes more second nature and such a stress relief to hand off projects. It is certainly more cost efficient as there are no taxes, health benefits, office space, insurances, office supplies or equipment.  Your costs are only project based and that is it!! Delegating is a move to expansion, increased productivity, better time management, enhanced work life balance and a little more time in your day to focus on what is important, rather than on what needs to be done.

I can do it faster: This may be initially true, but after clear instructions, detailed outcomes, a few tips, your virtual assistant will become proficient at your task or project. They may even have more efficient tools and systems to manage your request. If this is an ongoing task, think about how much time you will free up by outsourcing it. It is the job of the virtual assistant to be expedient, efficient and provide quality work. We do this every day, for ourselves and our clients.

I can only rely on myself for the best results: Unfortunately, this does not represent a growth mentality. Your virtual assistant is an established business owner who understands delegating and accountability. Our goal is 100% satisfaction – our business and reputation depends on it. Every task or project is meticulously managed, double checked and triple checked to ensure you are happy with the output. We encourage your feedback and suggestions for our mutual success. As you know, we are only human and errors to do happen, but they are rectified.

I don’t know what to delegate: Examine your core competencies, what are you best at or what represents your fundamental business acumen.   These are your high payoff activities that only you can do. Anything that is low value or does not generate revenue can be successfully delegated. A simple exercise would be to track all of your daily tasks and projects for one week. Note the time spent, any interruptions, what was accomplished, which items generated revenue and how many things on your To Do list still remain. Upon review, you will be able to more clearly define what you should do, delegate or dump.

Remote business operations can’t possible work: Oh but they do. For many of the day to day business tasks, a virtual assistant is your savvy, technological partner to help drive your organizational success. VAs must be able to utilize a variety of cloud based tools, computer software and applications to communicate and manage each and every task that is delegated. We are constantly reading and educating ourselves on a daily basis. We must remain current and ready to tackle any business objective. If we don’t have the skillset, someone on our team or within our industry is will to help.  Virtual Assistants are your vested partner.

“CEOs and founders need to focus on personally working on tasks that have the biggest impact on growth–delegate everything else. There’s only so much time in the day, so keeping your focus is key.” Ilya Pozin

A greater fear to consider is how much are you holding on to that is stopping you from focusing on the core of your business? What isn’t getting done? How many hours do you put in on a weekly basis?

In a recent article Harvard Business Review article: “The Skills Most Entrepreneurs Lack” by Bill Bonnstetter, he discussed a study which showed that entrepreneurs are lacking in self-management and planning and organization.

“Entrepreneurial-minded people are not proficient in managing themselves and their time. Often they need assistance managing everyday tasks and should hire or delegate them to someone who has mastered this skill. Similar to self-management, if entrepreneurs spent time planning and organizing every task or meeting, they would never get anything else done. Once again, hiring someone to keep their calendar, organize meetings and events, keep the office de-cluttered, and help keep them on schedule can put them at an advantage.”

Think long and hard about the value of your time and your daily To Do list. What should you begin delegating today?

The post 5 Mental Roadblocks to Partnering with a Virtual Assistant appeared first on AceConcierge.

Business ownership can be a 24/7 job and necessitates forward thinking and as Michael Port says, “thinking big.” Just because you opened your doors and provide a product or service, your job doesn’t end here. Build it and they will come is not enough.  There is no room for stagnation or complacency if you intend to experience the full benefits of your company, aspiring greater revenues, satisfied customers, WOM marketing, new products/services and success. Embrace your business, your skills and your team on your journey as an entrepreneur.

Small Business Success Tips

1. Have a passion for your business, service and product
2. Solve an issue or problem, don’t just sell a widget
3. Create blueprints to outline your goals, vision and action steps
4. Set up systems for components of your business: i.e. marketing, sales channels, customer support, project management, social media and use them consistently. There is too much time and money lost searching for information or testing new tools and systems.  Find one and use it
5. Provide the service you expect from your own vendors
6. Understand that response time to inquiries is very important. Don’t keep the prospect or customer waiting because your competitor is on your heels
7. Stay connected and be available
8. Never stop learning or reading for ways to help your business, network, customers or prospects
9. Learn from failures and push forward, making new inroads
10. Underpromise and overdeliver
11. Be open to change and new directions based upon the market and your customers
12. Know the difference between working ON your business, rather than IN it
13. Why are you making yourself busy? All of the back end, low payoff, admin activities do not represent your core genius or generate income. It is important to allow delegation to become a strength, in order to grow and expand a business
14. Social media and online marketing are here to stay – create a strong presence, understand the medium, know where your customers are
15. Authenticity wins. If you aren’t true to yourself and your prospects, it is easily visible or soon to be discovered. Be real or don’t play at all
16. Maintainable and consistent growth results from doing more of what produces progression and less of what seizes your time in the name of growth
17. You must define the most profitable use of your working hours
18. Focus your valuable time on the high payoff activities
19. Limit distractions and stay centered on the task – you will be much more productive.
20. Create collaborative teams within your company and industry
21. Realize that every online action you take lasts a lifetime as your digital footprint.  Your personal online brand represents you AND your company. Be cognizant of your posts and comments as your reputation may be determining your social impact
22. Giving is better than receiving.  Stop singing Me, Me, Me. Share the rich and relevant content of others in your network, industry, trusted circles, family, friends….. you know who. Reach out and ask how you can help. If you find a pertinent article to someone you know, email it. Go the extra mile
23. Learn effective time management skills while you can’t manage time per say, you can manage yourself in terms of your priorities and scheduling. Never be late and don’t miss deadlines
24. Maintain an organized office and life with productivity tools that work for you; whether it is a pen and paper, an online PM system or a spreadsheet, keep track of what you are doing, the milestones, results, action steps and To Do list
25. Have some fun. Laugh a little and most of all, revel in your success as a business owner

What is your secret weapon for success?

Image credit: blog.johnspence.com

The post Small Business Growth | 25 Tips for Success appeared first on AceConcierge.

Image credit: actioncoach.com

As a virtual assistant I try to help educate my clients and prospects on the high value of delegating some of your daily business operations to better leverage your time and your skills. It is a low cost, high payoff activity to maximize your business growth. As entrepreneurs, the amount of hats we must wear can be overwhelming and very time consuming. It is almost impossible to do it all and perform at 100% of our capabilities. We can become worn out, lose track of time, have higher stress levels, become distracted, less focused, inhibit our productivity, have a decreased work life balance, miss deadlines, become backlogged or not complete our To Do lists. These things are not acceptable and will not foster growth and forward movement.

“It’s important to be working on tasks that have the biggest impact on the growth of your business–everything else should be delegated.”  Iyla Pozin

I have learned the fine art of delegation as well. I certainly can’t preach the value of outsourcing to my clients if I am not doing it as well. Once I began delegating more of my daily business operations and back end admin tasks,  there was a sigh of relief. The “aaahhh” feeling that I knew my team was helping me to be more effective and productive. I am a control freak; however, hand picking my personal virtual assistants gave me the confidence I needed to be able to send them tasks and projects.

Delegating has given me more time to work ON my business rather than IN it.  I continually refine and revisit what I will outsource, as there is always room for improvement but if I am going to make suggestions to you, I too must follow the same premise. I have also discovered that the more I read, research, and learn about new tools for you, the more I apply them to my own business. I am grateful that you have chosen Ace as your virtual assistant. It is because of YOU that I too have been able to flourish and become even more productive, which I didn’t think was possible being so OCD about time management and productivity.

“If you are ever going to grow your business beyond what you can contain in the grasp of your outstretched arms, you’ll have to let go of a great deal of what you do to fill each day.” John Jantsch.

What will you delegate today?

The post Virtual Assistants Love Delegation appeared first on AceConcierge.

My personal network is comprised of amazing women, dedicated virtual assistants, who are so willing to help one another, answer questions, provide assistance, referrals or even brainstorm. There aren’t too many industries with such a tight group of people who don’t fear competition or sharing of information.  The client/virtual assistant relationship is based upon many different factors for each individual partnership and there must be a resonance along with the skill set to make them a cohesive productive team.  Speaking from experience, my clients and I all work well together – communication, feedback and accountability are  key components for success.  Being in business since 2002, I have been very fortunate to engage with some amazing entrepreneurs. I think I learn as much from them, as they do from me. I hope so anyway.

Choosing to delegate is not always an easy step because you feel you are giving up control, but when you partner with an established virtual entrepreneur, you are choosing someone who is in business for themselves and know what it takes to succeed.  The 365/24/7 mentality of a driven business owner will have a greater impact on your success, than an offshore call center who has one off task managers.  Give careful consideration to your long term needs, your goals and what you expect from your delegatee. Established virtual assistants go above and beyond the request. We are always “on” in terms of your business. A task manager does that one task and nothing more.  You may be asking about price and cost effectiveness. Just remember the old adage, “You get what you pay for.” Value, effort, dedication and commitment are priceless.

Tips to help you find a virtual assistant

Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn are just three of the online platforms to help you find the perfect virtual assistant for you and your company. Due diligence is very important and shouldn’t be a shortcut to save time because in the long run, it will cost you.

1. Ask questions about their business, history, why and when they got started
2. Review their website/blogs
3. Ask for references
4. Request writing and portfolio samples
5. Follow and engage with them
6. Watch their writing style and  shared content
7. Are their emails professionally written?
8. What software and tools do they use, both online and off?
9. Do they respond to your email inquiries in a timely manner?’
10. How do you perceive their online brand image?
11. What are their greatest proficiencies?
12. What are their hours and availability?
13. Do they have off hours to meet your needs?
14. Schedule a call or two
15. Did you feel a connection on the call?
16. Were they engaging?
17. Were all of your questions answered to your satisfaction?
18. Did you get a feeling of authenticity?
19. What are their strengths/weaknesses?

What attributes helped you choose your virtual assistant?

The post The Virtual Assistant Industry | A Network of Professionals appeared first on AceConcierge.

Image credit: timetrade.com

If you have never partnered with a virtual assistant, you may be wondering how can someone who potentially lives across the country actually help you manage your business on a remote basis. It seems so foreign not to have someone in the next office but we are just a call, text or click away from your fingertips. I have been in business since 2002 and thanks to technology, I am fortunate enough to have both USA based clients as well as international.

Virtual assistants use several different platforms to streamline our client projects and communications, keeping us focused, timely and productive. It is no longer necessary to rely upon an in-house team when you can save money and time by working virtually.  There are literally hundreds of tasks and projects that you can effectively delegate to a virtual assistant. The possibilities are only limited by your requests.  Click “25 Tasks You can Outsource to a Virtual Assistant to Grow Your Business – Today!” by Chris Ducker.

As a busy executive your early morning may begin with a cup of coffee and your laptop (just don’t mix the two).  Email, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, blog posts, Pinterest, calendaring, appointment reminders, content curation and a review of your To Do list are just a small part of your daily routine. How much time do you spend on these every single morning? Are these activities the best use of your time? Are they high payoff activities?

As facets of your marketing, branding and a little fun time, they all require attention, but do they need to be managed by you?  Probably not.

What can you do?

Calendaring Case Study:

Enter the busy entrepreneur whose days are full with back to back meetings, presentations, phone calls, business development, networking and correspondence. Triaging emails, calendaring and setting up and confirming calls was not only consuming too many hours, but it wasn’t the best use of his time as it took him away from his core genius.

Our Ace Solution:

1. Create a Google account, enabling us to manage his calendar, appointments and reminders
2. We also created accounts for conference calling and screen sharing programs for presentations and calls
3. The client now forwards email threads with any needed appointment details, alerts the client/prospect that Ace will be managing the appointment scheduling and conference details
4. Ace initiates the follow up and schedules the meeting using one of the three tools
5. Depending on the application, the appointment will be added to the GCalendar or it will self-populate via the conference platform
6. GCal reminders are set up to be delivered via email and or pop-ups for my client
7. Email reminders can also be sent to the other attendee(s) if the conference software does not offer the service

It is so much easier and more efficient to simply click “forward” than to manage all of this yourself. It takes time and effort to set up the platforms and manage each step while you are trying to work ON your business.

How much time do you lose during the day working on calendaring and similar low payoff activities?  Consider delegating your calendar, appointment scheduling and reminders to a virtual assistant. You will have generated more time in your day to focus on what is important, rather than on what needs to be done.

“It’s just plain smart to leverage your time with talented workers on your team, than try and do it all yourself.” Chris Ducker

The post Managing Your Calendar with a Virtual Assistant appeared first on AceConcierge.

Living in the digital world of online connectivity and technology, we have been able to broaden our reach, create deeper relationships and have many avenues to share our voice. With this explosion of technology and new forms of media expression, we have become accustomed to communicating in 140 characters on Twitter, sending a quick IM or using much abbreviated texting that sometimes leaves the message open for interpretation, or worse, needing a few dictionaries or phoning a friend to decipher the code message.­

While texting may be an efficient means to deliver a quick message, allow multi-tasking, and is less of an intrusion when there really isn’t time for a phone call, it can leave you scratching your head, wondering what the sender is saying.  This type of tech shorthand is expedient but studies have shown it has negatively changed our levels of personal communications, interactions and writing skills for some. Educators from the Janus project “worry that heavy use of electronic communications such as email, social networking, texting, instant messaging and networked video games has diminished kids’ and adults’ social skills.” Texting is an instant convenient form of communication but has the possibility to weaken our social and written skills, if we allow it to happen.

Debra Vargulish, is a training administrator at the Latrobe-based global tooling company and college recruiter for Kennametal Inc reported that the students she meets are often inarticulate and shy, “They seem to be way better at using technology than older people. It’s actually the content that is missing.  A lot of them don’t know what to say at all, and that’s not good.”  Influence on Texting on Communication Skills.

The potential impact of texting:

1. Reduce the in-depth conversations
2. Dumb down spelling and grammar
3. Distract people from being fully present

According to a Wall Street Journal article, people are becoming lazier about their grammar and spelling due to texting, instant messaging and social media.

Young students have turned in papers using text shorthand and emoticons.

The US Job Bank reports that many employers have expressed complaints and dissatisfaction with received employment applications that are written in text language. They noted that many applicants have a propensity to speak more informally and use abbreviated text messaging as though they are writing to a close friend.

There is now an online dictionary to explain the most used terminology.

You have just a few seconds to make a valued impression and if you aren’t clear, use proper spelling and grammar, this may present you in an unintended manner.

“Good grammar is credibility, especially on the internet. In blog posts, on Facebook statuses, in e-mails, and on company websites, your words are all you have. They are a projection of you in your physical absence. And, for better or worse, people judge you if you can’t tell the difference between their, there, and they’re.” Kyle Wiens.

While texting, shorthand “lingo” or social media communications may not directly impact you, it has influenced our communications and written word. Know when it is appropriate, who is your audience, become familiar with the common grammar mistakes, use spell-check but don’t depend on it 100%, proofread your documents, blog posts and emails two or three times and add in the email “To” field after you have taken the time to reread your message.

Your communications are a representation of you and your company. Make sure they are free of errors.

• 10 Grammar Mistakes that Can Keep Your Content from Spreading http://buff.ly/PLOTUM
• Warning: Common Grammar Mistakes You Should Never Make http://buff.ly/LE3FhJ
• 11 Most Common Grammar Gaffes On Social Media – http://buff.ly/QaLWiO

_{Image credit: Might Red Pen}

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Have you ever watched popcorn pop?

It appears to be doing nothing and suddenly a loud burst and a hard kernel turns white and fluffy and jumps into the air! Then others begin to follow and the bursts become more frequent. Then the popping gets faster and louder and suddenly you have gone from a handful of kernals to a bowl of popcorn!

My brain works la lot like a popcorn popper. I can be in meetings, in the middle of conversations, reading, watching television or sound asleep and suddenly it as if someone has turned up the heat and the ideas start popping. …Fun but hard to follow – sometimes even for me!

Many times in my life I’ve sat in meetings and had so much popcorn flying around in my brain that it was hard to sort out and articulate it in a way that others could follow. (It can also be hard to listen to others with all of the popcorn flying around!)

Over-time I learned that in order for those kernels to mean anything to anyone else, I need to create bite-sized popcorn balls before I shared them.

• For me that means pulling those kernels from my brain and writing them down.
• Then thinking through what is there and sometimes just letting it sit for awhile.
• It means researching and reading, and listening, thinking and then “balling” the perfect kernels.
• Doing all of that takes time.
• But it helps me turn mountains of data and stories into something meaningful.
• In that process I learn and grow and am better equipped to help others.

As a small business owner I’ve learned that spending my time in that space is one of the most important things I can do. And as a result I’ve decided to hire a Virtual Assistant so that I can stay focused on listening, learning, sorting and “balling”!

Shortly after I made that decision, I read this article about Einstein. Wow! What a powerful way to reinforce that decision!

So tell me: In your position what should you spend more time on?

Guest post via:
Chery Gegelman, President
Giana Consulting LLC
Chery helps individuals and organizations seek truth, connect dots, solve problems and amplify their potential. She is a co-author of the Lead Change book “The Character-Based Leader.”

The post The Popcorn in My Brain | Why I Need a Virtual Assistant appeared first on AceConcierge.

Thanks to continual time management, scheduling and beginning the work day at 6 AM, all vital projects had been managed. Organizational and productivity skills are a life saver. This daily preparation and task management saved me many headaches and hair pulling while my laptop was in a prone position for getting juiced back up.

After doing some initial research, Friday evening was my night to choose a laptop and I wasn’t coming home empty handed.  What I wasn’t aware of was that EVERY computer comes with Windows 8. I had only heard nightmares and a variety of complaints – I was up for the challenge with the learning curve: up until 3:30 AM that is!! I woke at 6, hit snooze until 7 AM and have been here almost all day/night configuring, transferring files, working, screaming, swearing and finding my place with Windows 8 and a new laptop.

Windows 8 Shortcuts | APPS

I was delighted to find SHORTCUTS  amongst their APPS, making my life just a little easier. While I continue to hit a few roadblocks OR maybe five, I am jumping the hurdles.  I have read them, practiced them and of course forgotten many and I would like to share the FREE PDF I made of Windows 8 Shortcuts to help us all. Something else that has eased the transition a bit were the tips from the previous post on Keyboard Shortcuts. They have come in handy, especially with developing a comfort level with a new keyboard and touchscreen.

What tips or tricks can you share about Windows 8?

The post Windows 8 Shortcuts appeared first on AceConcierge.

Save time and enhance productivity with keyboard shortcuts

If you are like most entrepreneurs or solo-business owners you are always looking for ways to save time and learning a few keyboard shortcuts could be one of your time management tools.  Reducing the amount of keystrokes and mouse clicks can add up to enhance your productivity and the are also easier than using your mouse especially when you are at the computer for extended hours. You may be surprised at how much time you lose because you are not using keyboard shortcuts.  There are shortcuts for almost every action or application, even in GMail you can shave time. As a Virtual Assistant who lives on the computer in the digital world, saving time or creating time is essential for my productivity.

“Studies have found that moving your hand back and forth from the mouse to the keyboard is not only time consuming, it interrupts your typing rhythm – making you far less efficient, and leading to frustration (and mistakes!) when you have to constantly readjust hand placement.” Shortcut Library

Think about the multitude of actions it takes to highlight and copy text:

• Interrupt your typing workflow to grab the mouse
• Position your cursor
• Highlight
• Click copy
• Reposition
• Click again

Wouldn’t Ctrl + C and then V be so much simpler? One of my personal favorites is Alt + Tab to move between open windows. Here are just a few of the keyboard shortcuts (from Small Business Trends) we have compiled and there are many. If you would like the full PDF version, please email: info at aceconcierge dot net.

Keyboard Shortcuts | Productivity Enhancers

Alt+F = Opens ‘file’ menu in an open program

Alt+F4 = Closes the open program

Alt+Spacebar = Opens the window menu of an opened program

Alt+Tab = Switches between open programs, from L to R

Alt+Shift+Tab = Will reverse the order of switching programs

Interacting with Text

Select text >> Press Shift+Right Arrow, Left Arrow, Up Arrow, or Down Arrow to highlight text

Ctrl+Shift+Arrow Keys do the same thing but more quickly, since the cursor is moving per new word now instead of per character

Shift+End to select the end of the line

Ctrl+C to copy selected text to the ‘clipboard’

Ctrl+X to cut selected text

Ctrl+V to paste copied text from the ‘clipboard’

Ctrl+Z to undo an action

Ctrl+Y to redo an action

Ctrl+Right Arrow (Move the insertion point to the beginning of the next word)

Ctrl+Left Arrow (Move the insertion point to the beginning of the previous word)

Ctrl+Down Arrow (Move the insertion point to the beginning of the next paragraph)

Ctrl+Up Arrow (Move the insertion point to the beginning of the previous paragraph)

Ctrl+A (Select all)

Ctrl+Delete (Delete the rest of the word, or entire word if cursor is placed at beginning)

Keep in mind that this is just the shortlist of keyboard shortcuts! How many have you mastered?

The post Save Time | Windows Keyboard Shortcuts appeared first on AceConcierge.

Creating your online brand and reputation requires active listening, not just pushing content.  The variety of platforms is exhaustive so choose a few, set up keyword alerts and monitor the content and voice in your stream.  Test drive some of the FREE tools listed below to begin listening and analyzing your social media marketing efforts.

Develop your goals and strategy with a few tips in “Social Media Monitoring: Horton Hears a Whos”

Here is a great infographic about social media monitoring tools. If you scroll to the bottom of the image, you will see many of the ones mentioned in this post.

FREE Social Media Monitoring Tools

Bottlenose  Real-time social intelligence engine searching social media with up to the minute news

Engag.io Monitor and engage in your online conversations on one platform. “Your Inbox for Online Conversations and Relationships.”

FollowerWonk Find, analyze and optimize your Twitter following

Google Alerts  Receive email alerts based upon your keywords

Google Reader Harvest relevant content, RSS feeds, blog posts and websites

Guzzle Topic based news aggregator monitoring hundreds of feeds

Monitter Twitter real time keyword search

Social Mention  Monitors 100 + social media sites bringing you all social media results relevant to your search query (keywords)

Topsy  Search and analyze the social web

Twazzup  Real time Twitter search engine

TweetLevel  Keyword search, analyze and engage: Identify top Twitter influencers, real time keyword and hashtag insight, company buzz

Twtrland Visualizes social footprints; use keywords, hashtags @ name

Twubs Search industry and trending hashtags

Uvrx Social search using keywords, hashtags, names, brands

WhosTalking  Social Media search tool, combining data taken from over 60 of the internet’s most popular social media gateways

Your turn: what are some of your favorite tools or suggestions?

The post Free Social Media Tools | Analyze and Measure appeared first on AceConcierge.