by Ace Concierge | Virtual Assistant | Jul 29, 2014 | Content Marketing, Social Media, Time Management
Turning on your computer or your phone is similar to opening the floodgates of hell for information overload. With daily bombardments of blog posts, news and websites, it is no wonder our brains haven’t exploded from over consumption. You can spend exhaustive hours reading, processing and filtering information every single day while just sitting at your desk or local coffee shop. It is an abyss or a dark hole that sucks you in and tightens the grasp on your brain. Fingers of words encapsulating your every thought, every move to retain your attention and drive you to take some kind of action.
The seduction and lure of content is the possessive lover of our society. The soft caress of the enticing paragraphs tickling your mind to keep you reading, distracting you as the hours tick by unnoticed. Until the end of the day when you wipe the sweat off of your brow, wondering where the hours went.
“Information overload” is one of the biggest irritations in modern life. There are e-mails to answer, virtual friends to pester, YouTube videos to watch and, back in the physical world, meetings to attend, papers to shuffle and spouses to appease. A survey by Reuters once found that two-thirds of managers believe that the data deluge has made their jobs less satisfying or hurt their personal relationships. One-third think that it has damaged their health.” The Economist
This may seem a little melodramatic, but think about the time you actually spend consuming all of this intel. It is the nature of the beast in your digital environment, trying to garner the newest, the latest, the greatest, the biggest, or the best, for your business, yourself, your clients and your community but heck, what a job in and of itself.
How would we conduct our businesses or gain knowledge and insight into social media without the research and reading? We need it. We do it. But at what cost?
With each article or piece of content, you must consider what to do with it next: like, comment, share, purchase, join, blog about it, bookmark it, or even search more about the topic. When you share it, you will think about where you will repost it and not just your own social channels but what about places like bizsugar.com or inbound.org? The possibilities are numerous.
Researching and reading isn’t just a simple process in your online world. There is more action to be taken which helps to build your engagement and community. It’s strategy and tactics. Sure you enjoy reading the content and probably learning something new, but it is what you do after that which counts even more.
You have a business to operate and make successful yet you must operate online as well. How much time can you invest or do you invest in maintaining your presence, building your reputation, connecting, networking, sharing, reading, commenting and engaging?
You know the drill. It is an extensive, arduous process that takes you away from truly focusing on your core business. While all of this is a “requirement” for your business, you need to develop some systems and processes enabling you to balance your time and efforts to be more productive and efficient.
Tips for Romancing the Data Overload:
- Make a list of the blogs, platforms, thought leaders and news aggregators you like to visit on a daily basis. Keep track of any daily content alerts you receive – more data to be consumed. You hopefully have created targeted lists or groups on each of your social media channels so you can easily locate those thought leaders and colleagues whose content and engagement you value most.
- Create a schedule of when you will interact, search, curate and share content. Allot yourself a specific amount of time so you don’t get sucked into a worm hole of reading and distractions. Use a timer if you must.
- Stay focused and resist the temptation to jump around from one platform to the next. Multi-tasking your reading and activities is not only a time waster but harmful to your health. Bookmark posts or use a “read later” tool like readability.com if something really sparks your interest. Add it to your swipe file if you feel it is a great idea generator for a later blog post.
- Unsubscribe from content that is no longer of interest or just clutters your inbox
- Set clear boundaries on your time – tune out and stop crunching the content
- Understand that it is physically impossible to read and digest every byte of data that is pushed your way. You are constantly inundated with new content every nanosecond. Can you really process it all? No and you don’t have to.
Staying current is important for your knowledgebase and success of your business, but if you are buried in the content surplus every day, then who will run your business? Your clients?
Managing your social media, online reputation, digital space, community and marketing is a full-time job, BUT so is running your business. Your laundry list is a mile long to effectively manage each of them and it is pretty much a catch 22 to be able to marry the entities together without being a drain on your effort. Don’t let your data overload seduce you away from your company, your life or your goals. Learn to filter what you need and when. Execute an effective plan with time restraints and a set strategy.
It’s time management. It’s teamwork. It’s about creating a balance.
The systems and processes you design for your business and social media workflow are key toward scaling your company as well as creating the optimum online community.
by Ace Concierge | Virtual Assistant | Jul 23, 2014 | Business Values
What does a Senior Director of a Jacksonville Florida real estate agency have in common with Ace Concierge? Not a hell of a lot except copyright infringement of an old blog post of mine. I was doing some research to repurpose a post and there it was; with the exact same title and contents. While I have read that copying and/or mimicking are forms of flattery, I personally find that stealing another’s content is very unethical, lazy and unprofessional. There is no moral compass.
In today’s high tech world, it isn’t all that difficult to search and locate those who have violated copyright laws. This certainly isn’t the first time I have found my words stolen and I’m sure it won’t be the last. It is extremely frustrating and quite disheartening that people can’t create their own content or at least ask for permission and give credit. I have even had client testimonials copied word for word. What does it say about their morals?
While there is a bit of gray area and some of the laws are open to interpretation, it still stands that pirating content crosses the boundaries of professional behavior. If the offender can do this without thought or care, what other practices are instituted within their business? It is humorous when they post their values and mission statements about ethics yet they have stolen content or they have copyrighted their own site. What irony.
I have written various cease and desist letters, included the DMCA as well as the TOS from website hosts regarding their policies on copyright infringement and fortunately all of the content has been successfully removed.
The Copyright Act provides two primary remedies: (1) it allows the owner of the copyrighted material to stop the infringement and (2) obtain damages and attorney fees from the infringer. Both types of relief are available even if the copyrighted material has not been registered with the United States Copyright Office before the infringement occurs. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act provides additional rights. Specifically, it allows the copyright holder to require the Internet service provider (ISP) hosting the infringer’s website to delete the plagiarized contents. If the ISP does not comply, it can be sued for “contributory infringement.” 2. In case the offending webmaster does not take the prospect of the above action seriously then you should also clearly state you intend to file a notice of Digital Millenium Copyright Act (DCMA) infringement with search engines such as Google and Yahoo. This action can potentially ruin a web business as the search engines take a dim view of plagiarism and can remove an offending site from their search results should an infringement claim be justified.
What can you do to locate and reclaim your content from these dishonest offenders?
- Use copyscape to find your plagiarized content
- Locate the website owner on whois
- Send a cease and desist letter. It is advisable to include screenshots of your material
- Trace your content history with Internet Archive Wayback Machine
Under Title 17, United States Code, Section 512(c)(3)(A), the Notification of Claimed Infringement must include ALL of the following:
- Physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the copyright owner.
- Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed or a representative list if multiple works are involved.
- Identification of the material that is claimed to be infringing that should be removed or access to disabled and information reasonably sufficient to enable the online service provider to locate the material (usually a URL to the relevant page with description of items on that page claimed to be infringing).
- Information reasonably sufficient to allow the online service provider to contact the complaining party (address, phone number, e-mail address).
- Statement that the complaining party has “a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent or the law.”
- Statement that the information in the notice is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, that the complaining party is authorized to act on behalf of the copyright owner.
Finding your content on someone’s website is quite unnerving. The gall they have to pirate your hard work and dedication to writing breaks the rules and crosses the confines of professionalism,integrity and character. People do it everyday, without a second thought, leaving their principles to be questioned. It may just represent a blog post but they didn’t write it, nor do they own it. A simple inquiry for permission to repost or repurpose is not a time suck but a professional courtesy. A sign of respect and value.
Plagiarism isn’t going away anytime soon but you do have options to recover your content as your own. Only you can decide if it is worth your time and energy to pursue.
What measures do you take to recover or protect your content?
by Ace Concierge | Virtual Assistant | Jul 16, 2014 | Organization, Small Business, Time Management
We have all heard that time and again, but it holds true. If you live and work in disorganization, your mindset and output will reflect your surroundings. Sure, we have some disorder or “organized piles” of stuff, but when there is overload, it overflows.
Clutter influences the way you work and the way you live. It impacts your brain. Learn to effectively manage versus just restyling the mountains of possessions, papers, contracts, or whatever lurks in your office or home. Streamline your physical and digital environment for success and focus.
“A recent survey says a disorganized workspace can lead to decreased productivity and unprofessional behavior.” Inc Magazine.
When you create a more structured environment you become more efficient and effective. You are no longer scrambling to locate important papers, files, emails or even your keys. Your time management increases as does your personal and professional productivity. Your setting is not just about physical space but mental as well. If you reside in chaos or mayhem, it does transmit into your work habits and daily living.
Your surrounding clutter competes for your attention, distracting your focus and thought process. I personally must have a clean and organized environment or I will only be thinking of what may be in the sink or if laundry needs folding. Everything has a place and it must be there when I work. Sure, a little OCD but I run my business the same way.
“When your environment is cluttered, the chaos restricts your ability to focus. The clutter also limits your brain’s ability to process information. Clutter makes you distracted and unable to process information as well as you do in an uncluttered, organized, and serene environment.” Princeton University
According to the National Association of Professional Organizations, paper clutter is the No. 1 hindrance for most businesses. Some studies conclude that the average person wastes 4.3 hours per week searching for papers, which adds stress and frustration to the workplace while reducing concentration and creative thinking. Clutter creates chaos, untidiness and ineffectiveness in every aspect your life and has the great potential significantly influence your personal productivity.
When personal productivity declines, every aspect of your life will be impacted.
Fired up and ready to reclaim your productivity?
- Set aside time weekly to manage and organize information
- Clean out your inbox
- Use cloud storage
- Put things in their proper place when you are finished – don’t merely move away. Put it away
- Always organize your desk at the end of the day
- Establish routines for clearing the mind overload
- If you must file, then do it. Don’t let items sit on your desk, counter or inbox. It is disrupting
- Don’t keep things that aren’t necessary or vital to your existence. Aunt Betty’s tattered hair ribbon won’t garner money on on the open market. Loving memories last longer
- “More” doesn’t mean more – it translates into jumble and disorder which means distractions. Clear off counter tops and desk space so you can function.
- Donate to charity
- When you bring in one new item, throw out two
- Work on one room at a time until it “feels” good
- If you haven’t used or viewed it in 6 months, do you really need it?
- Know that your value is not your stuff. It does not define you
- Create deadlines to ensure you stick to your toss it and organize program
- Once you have cleaned and decluttered a room or space, maintain it
Decluttering and clearing out the chaos, both physically and spiritually will help you gain clarity toward a more productive life. Make the time to invest in yourself.
by Ace Concierge | Virtual Assistant | Jul 9, 2014 | Delegation, Small Business, Social Media, Virtual Assistant
Do you feel as though your day flies by without a minute to spare? Maybe you even missed lunch, got home late, or forgot to pick up something at the store? Gosh, I am sure you know the feeling. You are constantly on the go and doing something BUT is that “something” productive and getting you closer to your goals? Simply being busy isn’t results oriented.
Being productive means getting things done. As in you’ve actually accomplished something, not just filled out a fake status report marked “complete.” Learn how the work you do makes it to the finish line and how it adds to the bottom line of your company. Craig Golightly
At the end of the day have you reviewed your long laundry list and found that you still have a lot of washing to do? Well, you are not alone. Your entrepreneurial spirit is driving you to do it all and be it all, no matter what the cost. No matter what the activity.
You should seriously consider the busyness and the low payoff tasks versus the real core drivers of your business that produce the income. The tasks and projects that ONLY you can and should do.
If you are entrenched with 10, 20+ hours a week on social media management, curating content, writing, editing, proofing and scheduling blog posts, calendar management, writing newsletters, creating documents and templates or acting as the project manager, then WHO is operating your business?
Value your time!
Honor your skills!
As I mentioned in: “Leveraging Time and Your Core Genius,” when you are able to maximize your potential by focusing on your core genius, you become more productive and effective. While there are many daily business tasks that require attention, it doesn’t necessarily have to be on your time. Delegating the lower return projects and tasks gives you back your time to build your business, develop strategy, nurture relationships, foster loyalty, seek partnerships, and focus on your bottom line.
I received an email from an exceptionally valued long-time client who shared her To Do list with me. She stated: “These are just a few of the things I need to grow my business – and I am failing at doing them, but when I do, it totally pulls me away from the work I NEED to do that is billable.”
Her statement firmly relates back to leveraging time and focusing on what you do best to build and cultivate your company.
The following are some of the tasks and projects that she must faithfully devote her time doing in order to continue to expand her business. What an expansive undertaking! Remember: Time is money! Invest wisely.
Are all of these her core genius? Certainly not, however; they are must do activities for business development and progress.
- Keep my Social Media up to date for all these areas:
- Links, research, updates
- Linking to all other things I do – I.E.: when I write a blog post, making sure it is pushed out to every single place.
- Doing key word searches in Google to make sure key wording is in every article for the most relevant search terms.
- Document management systems – keep all my documents on the shared drive (in the cloud) up to date and in order by first cleaning up the mess I have going now… – including but not limited to:
- Client files
- Website files
- Corporate files
- Marketing materials
- Research documents etc.
- Source potential clients in my geographical location who are in start-up to med-sized businesses, active in Social media and who may or may not need idea sessions to get their business further along
- Requesting a meeting for me
- Setting it up
- Reviewing and updating my calendar so I keep better track because I always fail to put things in calendars
- Meet with me via Skype once a week to see what needs to be done and doing it
- Use my contract template documents for me and update them for each new client as it takes me days to get to these.
- Review and edit all files sent to all clients or outgoing parties
- Do all my research for the topics I write about so they can be backed by data
- All invoicing and receipts for clients
- All sourcing of industry related expert themes
- Managing my LinkedIn polls
- Creating my surveys for clients
- Creating templates for all my follow-up reports for each facilitated session
- Taking all of my current documentation and finding ways of repurposing it
- Taking all of my product development efforts and interviewing vendors
- Responding to and dealing with all incoming email from all websites with initial contact to let them know I am here and I did get their email, and when I will respond
- Setting up of appointments with clients, prospective clients, peers
- Researching all speaker opportunities and sending out my speaker packages and filling out the applications
- Researching all clients who have recently undergone a merger or acquisition and sending the change management brochures out to them
- Develop templates for my processes so I am not reinventing the wheel every time I work with a new client
- Updating my BIO on every single software site I have it listed (and tracking where that is) so I can ensure it is always consistent every time I change it
- Updating the company project software for me at the drop of an email – because I cannot always log in
- Managing the company project software and following up with deadlines of contractors
- Using your network to get them to post my quotes on quote sites so I continue to build credibility
- Sourcing the least expensive book editors to edit my writing of each chapter of the book I never have time to edit.
- Kicking my butt and making sure everything I say I “want to do” becomes an actionable item in the company product software and is due to YOU to review for me – rather than my leaving it in there without a date and just “wishing” it would happen
So, after reading this list, how many of these tasks do you hold on to that keep you working IN your business rather than ON it? We sometimes don’t realize all of the day to day activities that go into growing our companies, as they have become second nature while we are on autopilot.
All of these tasks and projects are NECESSARY but divert your attention from the most important facets of your company which ONLY you can do. These are the low payoff, non-income generators that aren’t the best value of your time.
ACTION ITEM: Record every single task, project or activity for one week, noting which line items are income producers, core genius or something that was a time robber and should have been outsourced.
Come back to me in one week and share your list. Let’s talk strategy and outcomes.
“One of the most critical was the ability to learn how to effectively delegate. It is a skill that every upstart entrepreneur must master if they wish to grow their business. Without delegation your business will be limited by your own time and energy.” Matthew Swyers
by Ace Concierge | Virtual Assistant | Jul 2, 2014 | Productivity, Time Management
The digital ecosphere is chock full of educational posts to help keep you on time, on task and being productive, offering up a variety of viewpoints or suggestions but it is up to YOU to find what works and put it to work. All the tips, tools and sites are of no value unless you actually take action. We all want more out of our days, but simply wishing and reading won’t magically set you on fire.
“ Progress is the activity of today and the assurance of tomorrow. ” Ralph Waldo Emerson
You may already have a few time management or productivity hacks that are your favorites. The ones that keep you motivated and producing or….. you struggle with time and getting things done. The day zips by, the hours keep ticking, yet nothing really seems to be getting done. You want change. You crave the feeling of accomplishment, but you aren’t sure where to start or what to do first.
Set aside your trepidation and bewilderment.
You can instigate change. You CAN make a difference and become more productive, IF you want to. It’s up to you. Once you modify your mindset and gain clarity that you are more than ready, take baby steps, testing out a few tips and systems. You will soon discover what works best for you and your personality.
We all work differently.
No two people absorb or process information in the same manner. Just because Mark wakes at 5 AM to kickstart his day, it doesn’t mean that it is the best time for you. You have your own working hours; the times when you are most productive. Get a handle on it and schedule those hours for some of the more difficult projects.
- Find what works
- Embrace it
- Create a routine
- Stick to it
Ready? Set? Read!!
Time Management & Productivity Round Up
Top 3 Time Management Mistakes Identified By Togglers
Never Feel Overwhelmed Again: The 19 Best Ways to get organize
8 Quick Tips to Master Your Task Management
10 Useful Productivity Hacks for Small Business Owners
61 Productivity Experts Reveal The 3 Best Productivity Tools
How to Be 5 Times More Productive
Productivity Hacks From Startup Execs
7 Effective Time Management Tips To Maximize Your Productivity
Why We Brag About Being Busy (And How to Regain Focus)
25 Productivity Tips Plus One More
8 Tips For Reaching Maximum Productivity
This isn’t an exhaustive list by any means but it can represent a fresh start or a little fine tuning for you. No matter what level you are at, there is always room for growth and progress. By learning to work smarter and not harder or finding more time in your day, you will enhance your productivity, sense of accomplishment and happiness. After all, it is summertime so make the time to enjoy life to the fullest.
Image credit: Michael Kitces
