Category Archives: Virtual Assistant

Should a Virtual Assistant Have Insurance?

One nitty gritty detail about working as a virtual assistant is insurance. But how do you know which you need when there are so many choices? Errors and omissions insurance? Business owner’s policy insurance?

There are a plethora of options. There’s insurance most people get through their companies, like health insurance. There’s insurance common for people who work from home, like business interruption insurance. And there’s insurance for every scenario and disaster under the sun.

With so many options out there, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. (Or even talked into insurance you really don’t need!) But, you can be fine with minimal insurance (unless you’re running your own company). Below are the basic insurance options most likely to benefit virtual assistants.

Business Personal Property Insurance

You can’t work as a virtual assistant without your tools. Your computer, phone, and desk are some of the invaluable resources you use to get things done. But, what happens if these are stolen or damaged in a natural disaster?

Unfortunately, most home insurance policies do not cover your home business office. It’s worth a check of course (hey, maybe you’ll luck out), but odds are you’ll need to buy this separately. You can add coverage of business related property as a rider to your home insurance policy.

In most cases, this is a worthwhile investment. You can skip this one if your equipment isn’t worth much or the odds of theft or natural disaster are low.

Business Interruption Insurance

This insurance protects you if your business premises and equipment are temporarily unusable (like after a fire). You’ll get compensated for your loss of income and your operating expenses. Sometimes, the insurance covers expenses for temporarily re-locating to a new location.

This insurance is added to a property insurance policy or is included in a package policy.

You’re fine skipping this option if it’d be easy for you to work from somewhere else or get replacement equipment (like temporarily borrowing someone else’s computer). But for those who would be stuck if anything happened to their office or equipment, you’ll want to be sure to make this investment.

Disability Insurance

Accidents happen. A car wreck, illness, or other outstanding circumstance can hit you out of nowhere, and leave you unable to work.

That’s where disability insurance comes into play. Disability insurance helps you when you can’t work due to illness, injury, or accident. Hopefully, of course, those scenarios never happen! But if they do, you’ll get income replacement checks so you’re not temporarily out of a source of income.

Disability insurance is especially important for virtual assistants. You can’t rely on vacation days or sick leave to buy you time while you heal like you could in a traditional job.

If you’re in the early stages of being a virtual assistant (and making minimal income), then you can hold off investing for a bit. But, you’ll want to buy disability insurance once you start relying on your virtual assistant income. It’s one crucial step toward preparing for the unexpected in your work life.

You’ve got a few choices in choosing a disability insurance provider. If you’re married, you may be able to buy a policy through your spouse’s carrier. Also, you can get insurance from an individual provider or the Freelancers Union.

Health Insurance

Your health should be a priority in your life. Being able to afford treatment, doctor’s visits, and medications is a crucial part of that. Even if you’re a young and healthy person, these costs out of pocket add up fast. Since you’re not able to get health insurance through an employer, you’ll need to get this one on your own.

Fortunately, you have several options. If you’re married, check out your spouse’s policy. You can join the Freelancer Unions’ National Benefits Platform. You can go through a faith based health care sharing service. Check out your state’s health insurance marketplace. Look into an individual private insurance company.

When choosing a plan, keep in mind what medical services you need and what prescriptions you need covered.

At the end of the day, the insurance you need depends on where you’re at. Brand new virtual assistants can wait longer. Once you start taking in more clients and income, consider getting coverage. Insurance is a tedious topic, but it is important to know what your best options are. It’s just one of the many pieces to get into place during your virtual assistant career journey!

Maintaining Your Sanity While Working From Home

Working from home as a virtual assistant is a massive blessing. But sometimes, bad habits can sneak up and make it a curse. Suddenly, we’re frazzled workaholics with a glaze over our eyes. Suddenly, it’s 3pm and we haven’t left our bed or showered. Suddenly, we’re never fully present with our families and are always glancing at our emails.

The work from home life can be whatever you make it (that’s part of the appeal, right?) But sometimes we make it into an exhausting and draining experience- when it doesn’t need to be!

Maintaining your work-life balance while working from home takes some proactivity. Ironically, we need to set boundaries to enjoy the freedom of this lifestyle. Below are some action steps you can take to proactively make your life as a virtual assistant working from home as stellar as it should be.

Create a Regular Schedule

You’re probably thinking, Jessica that’s exactly why I don’t want to work a 9-5! I want to set my own hours and be a free soul working when I please.

And that’s great. In theory.

What actually happens when we fail to structure our day isn’t the balanced relaxed utopia we imagine. It’s a day where work sticks its tentacles where it doesn’t belong. We don’t disconnect from work, and it dominates our thoughts during dinner, during playtime with your kids, during your resting time. Before you know it, you’ve slid into workaholic habits never being able to turn off your work brain.

Creating a regular schedule isn’t about setting rigid 9-5 work hours. It’s about being intentional about separating your work time from your life time. It ensures you stay productive while working…and then leave it at work when you’re finished. When there’s no set lines between work and life, usually work takes over.

You don’t need to set 9-5 regular hours. Maybe you work in the mornings and late evenings when you’re most productive, and schedule a workout or social lunch during your afternoon energy lull. You can plan your day so it works best for you. And each day does not need to be the same. Maybe on Playdate Tuesdays you work from 8 to 10, then 12 to 6. That’s fine! The important thing is clear boundaries of your time.

And please, please, please schedule a cut off time for work! Whether it’s 5 or 8, you must have a designated “no more thinking about work” time. It’s amazing how quickly you will get drained when you lack an end working time for the day.

Designate a Work Area

Just like you need boundaries with your time, you need boundaries with your space. Find a place in your house that’s just for work. Ideally, it will be a separate room. But, if you don’t have the space for a full office, that’s okay. Maybe you can set a desk in your bedroom or the living room. What’s important is you have somewhere to go with minimal distractions.

When you’re setting up your work area, treat it like a real office. Fill it with supplies. Use a desktop calendar. Hang up photos of your family and decorate it. If it feels like a sterile box, you won’t want to work there. Showcase your personality to make it more inviting.

Designate a No Work Area

There are places in your home you shouldn’t work, like the dining room where the family gathers for dinner. Make sure there are clear areas where no work (or thoughts of work) are allowed so you can be fully present during family and relaxation time.

Take Regular Breaks

Sometimes, we get so into our flow we don’t realize we’ve been working for hours straight. The best way to fight stress and burnout is proactively, so it’s important to avoid this work grind. Schedule breaks into your day. Maybe it’s 10 minutes every hour with a half hour lunch break. Maybe it’s the Pomodoro method, where you work for 25 minutes and take a five-minute break. Play around with different strategies and find what works best for you.

Leave Your House

When you work from home, there’s a weird resistance about leaving. Maybe it’s the effort of gussying up to go out in public. Maybe it’s the drive time that could be spent working or resting. Maybe it’s Newton’s third law: an awesome virtual assistant at home will stay comfortably at home unless acted upon by an outside force.

Make sure you don’t become a hermit! You can meet up with your traditional office worker friends for lunch. Grab a happy hour with friends. Enroll in a weekly yoga class. Do something to make sure you leave your house at least three times a week.

Establish Boundaries with Your Family

This isn’t about becoming one of those scary “don’t you dare interrupt me while I’m working” work witches.

It’s about protecting the time you work and protecting the time you’re with family to make sure you’re fully present in each one.

Talk with your family members about what your work from home arrangement needs to look like. Go over when it is, and isn’t, appropriate to interrupt you at work. Go over when it is, and isn’t, appropriate for you to leave family time to go work. Make sure every family member feels heard, and is comfortable and clear with the conclusion you agree to.

Dress Like You’re Going to Work

But Jessica, isn’t one of the best parts of being a virtual assistant being able to work in PJs and sweats? Comfort for the win!

Some people (very few mind you) can work in grunge clothes without it affecting their work. Good for them!

But most of us experience a little phenomenon called “when we wear lounge around clothes, we tend to work in a lazier mindset”

Dressing for work helps shift your brain from relaxed mode into work mode. You can still rock a comfortable outfit, but try a step above the old ripped PJs.

Of course, if you’re work isn’t affected by what you wear then wear those PJs with pride!

When a VA Needs a VA

So, here’s a conundrum: when should you hire someone to do your job? At first glance, that may seem ridiculous, right? Why would you hire someone when you can do it?

But, in some cases, that’s exactly what you should do! Hiring yourself a virtual assistant can actually be the best business move.

You can probably rattle off several benefits to using a virtual assistant. You know, the list you use when you’re trying to land a client. But have you ever stopped to realize those benefits of using a virtual assistant apply to you too?

There are two great situations when a virtual assistant should hire a virtual assistant.

Situation One: When you want to keep a client, but can’t meet all their needs

So, you just found a great client. Congrats! But, something about the gig is beyond your ability. You don’t have to sigh sadly and say goodbye. You can use a virtual assistant to fill in the gaps.

Maybe you lack the right equipment for a project. A small portion of the work involves using Quickbooks. The occasional editing project requires Photoshop. It won’t be enough hours for you to justify buying whatever software, but it still needs to be done. Hire a virtual assistant with the right equipment to handle those tasks for you. It’s a win-win. The client gets every need taken care of. You don’t have to dump money on something you’ll hardly use. You pay it forward supporting your fellow virtual assistant in giving them a small gig (hello karma!).

Maybe you lack the expertise for a task. The client needs you to write blogs (your forte!) but also needs help coding a site (your worst nightmare!). Part of the gig requires creating social media posts, which you know nothing about. The client wants you to occasionally call their customers, and speaking on the phone terrifies you. Pass off the task to a better suited virtual assistant. Again, it’s a win-win! The task gets handled by someone more qualified, making the client happy. You can avoid tasks you’re uncomfortable with. And you support your fellow virtual assistant (more karma!)

Maybe you just lack the time. It’s a busy season right now, and you can’t keep up. You don’t have to drop a client, and you certainly don’t have to run yourself ragged or drown trying to keep up. You can hire a virtual assistant to take on some of the load. A virtual assistant can be hired for a short-term project or two, or become a permanent member of your team. Whatever better fits your need, you’ll benefit from the helping hand.

Situation Two: When you want help managing or growing your business

Maybe your need is internal. You need help maintaining the status quo, or you’re ready to take things to the next level. A virtual assistant can be a great help with business building tasks.

You can pass off little tasks that need to be done, but don’t need to be done by you. Things like data entry, scheduling, or addressing envelopes are great tasks to delegate. Do a time audit for a week to see the biggest time sucks. You may be surprised at how much time you spend with these little tasks that can be handled by someone else. Pass off anything that someone else can do 80% as well or better. For help finding specific tasks to delegate, use our delegator worksheet.

You can also pass off tasks that need to be done, but shouldn’t be done by you. Tasks that you lack the knowledge or experience for, like social media or SEO marketing, are well-suited for a specialized virtual assistant. Hiring a team member can help make sure these important business building tasks get done, and get done well.

You can also bring in a virtual assistant just for a fresh perspective. Maybe you’re working on an idea project and you need brainstorming help. Maybe you’re stuck and need an outside view. Maybe you’re hoping to change your approach, and could use fresh eyes to shake things up. Whatever the reason, a virtual assistant can offer a new perspective.

Before You Outsource to a Virtual Assistant

If you’re ready to hire a virtual assistant, make sure to do these three things first. It’ll make the hiring process a better experience for you both (why couldn’t everyone be a dream client like you?)

Be ruthless about a task’s necessity. Stop and really evaluate whether the task even needs to be done. You’d be surprised how many things we do on autopilot, things that we should eliminate. As Timothy Ferris, author of The 4 Hour Workweek says, “never automate something that can be eliminated, and never delegate something that can be automated or streamlined.” You shouldn’t waste time outsourcing tasks that aren’t imperative. Make sure it’s necessary and cannot be automated before you delegate it.
Make the process efficient. Look at the steps used for the task. Can you remove any unnecessary steps? Can you make any steps more efficient? Can you batch tasks for better productivity? When you make the process more efficient, it takes less time and costs you less money.
Put all the needed information in one place. Give your virtual assistant a guidebook with everything they’ll need. Include passwords, step-by-step instructions, and an example if possible. Cut down on the amount of time you’ll need to explain the project. Make things as clear as possible for the virtual assistant to reduce the time spent asking questions. Plus, if the project is ever repeated, you’ll have a guide ready to go.

If you’re ready to hire a virtual assistant, consider Alpine Small Business Solutions! Our expert staff can help you with any project, so give us a call or shoot us an email today.

How to Delete Facebook Apps

Today’s tutorial request comes in from Daniel. Daniel was curious how to remove apps from his Facebook settings. He was worried that they were obtaining too much personal information.

“Wrapping Up the Year” Checklist for Small Business

A quick glance at the calendar can send a shock of stress to the small business owner…how can it be the end of the year already? With so much screaming for your attention, it can feel overwhelming. Don’t worry, with a little organization you CAN get it all done. Follow our checklist to ensure everything is wrapped up nicely by the end of the year.

Team Member Management

Conduct end of the year team member reviews. Provide constructive feedback to your team members. Praise their successes. Encourage reflection on their struggles and setbacks. Ask if they are happy with the direction of their role, and if there’s anything you can help them with. Talk with them about their life apart from work. Do everything you can to support them and ensure they feel valued, both as your valued team member and as an individual.
Team member appreciation. Even a small gesture can make a big impact. Show your awesome team member(s) how much you value them. Give a holiday bonus, a thoughtful gift, a memorable holiday party.

Client Relations

Write a thank-you note to all your clients. A handwritten card or letter helps your business stand out in a world of mass emails. Express how much you value your clients, and how you look forward to working with them next year.
Assess every client’s worth to your organization. Evaluate whether it’s beneficial for your business to move forward with every client relationship. Weigh a difficult client’s benefits against the time, emotional exhaustion, and stress required to deal with him or her. Sometimes it’s not worth the income. When the costs are too high, it’s better for you and the client to part ways.
Review financial records. Meet with your accountant to ensure your books are complete and up to date. Preliminary work now can save a huge amount of time come tax season (or in the event you get audited).
Conduct a profit and loss report. Put in writing the financial state of your business. It’ll be a good analysis of this year’s progress and serve as a benchmark when you make financial goals for next year.
Collect outstanding bills. Go through accounts and see which clients still owe money. If possible, get the payment before the year ends.
Review payroll. Make sure all accounts are covered and there are no outstanding payments. It’s easy to forget about bills such as transportation reimbursement, so double check to be sure everything’s taken care of.

Business Management

Backup all data. Save all your documents and contact information in the cloud or on an external hard drive. It’s tedious, but incredibly important.
Write an end of the year memo. This memo for your wonderful team members is two-fold. First, celebrate the past year. Highlight accomplishments and successes of the organization as a whole, and spotlight individuals who went above and beyond. Mention notable changes, like welcoming new staff members or new clients. It’ll be a good refresher for you and your team. Second, build up enthusiasm for the year to come. Talk about goals and the vision for the upcoming year to provide a concrete direction for the business.
Prioritize projects. Determine which projects need to be finished before the year’s ends. Tie up the loose ends for projects nearly completed, projects where it would be difficult to pause for the holidays, or projects for impatient clients. Set aside projects that can be easily started again after the holidays, or ones that benefit from a fresh perspective after the new year.

Self-Care

Really relax and rest. Entrepreneurs can be the worst at self-care! But burning yourself out is terrible for your health (and productivity!) Be sure to set aside time during the scramble to take care of yourself with massages, a night of Netflix, whatever you need to fully unwind and recharge.
Enjoy the holidays unplugged from work. By this point, you’ve done everything you need to do. Now enjoy your holidays!

If you need assistance accomplishing your end of the year administrative tasks, Alpine Small Business Solutions is here for you! We can handle short-term (or long-term) projects, freeing up your time to focus on other projects. Give us a call or shoot us an email today.

5 Reasons Why You Should be on the Google+ Social media Platform to Grow Your Online Business

Yes, I know…it is the next big thing…AGAIN! We have heard it several times that Google+ is going to be huge, yet you don’t use it or really even know what it is. So why do you want to be on it now?

Usually, you want to use social media outlets your target audience is active on. Not always. Insert Google+, the failed social media platform created by Google to compete with Facebook and Twitter. It comes and it goes without you ever really noticing. So why would I push you to be active on a failed platform? Sure, Google+ lacks the prevalence into popular culture that Facebook and Twitter can rightly brag about. But it offers unique benefits to marketers for growing your business, enough to justify the minimal time it takes to grow a thriving Google+ presence.

But first, what really is Google+?

While Google+ is a unique social media platform, it can be helpful to think of it in terms of other more familiar platforms. It offers an easy way to curate and organization information (like Pinterest), the option to follow anyone without needing them to follow you back (like Twitter), and the ability to create a personal profile and a business page (like Facebook). Unlike other social media platforms that are relationship driven (connect with people you know), Google+ is more interest driven (connect with people who share similar ideas/interests). What really sets Google+ apart, though, is that it’s created by Google. And Google rewards users who consume their social media platform, resulting in the biggest benefit of Google+ being its SEO benefits.

Google+ SEO benefits

Google+ improves your SEO through a few ways. First, posts that are high in shares and +1 (the Google+ version of “likes” and “favorites”) rank higher in search results. So when you publish content high in shares and +1, that content is seen more by individuals and increases the chances they check out your website, become a customer, etc.

Second, through the use of Google+ Circles (similar to friending someone or liking a page on Facebook). If an individual is logged into Google and they added you to their Google+ Circle, your content is more likely to show up in their search results.

Third, your Google+ posts are immediately indexed into search results, translating into SEO benefits quicker than if you were to post the same content on another platform.

When your content shows up higher in search results, more people can discover your content. More eyes on your content means more visits to your website, more conversions into customers, etc. SEO is a crucial aspect of business building, and Google+ is a great way to strengthen your SEO.

While SEO is the biggest benefit to Google+, it is definitely not the only benefit.

Audience Segmentation

Google+ offers a feature called “Google+ Circles” which allows you to organize contacts into specialized groups. Each time you publish content, you get the option to only share with relevant group(s). This allows you to provide solid content specialized for individual users, providing them high benefit without oversaturating their feeds.

Target Audience Finding

Another great Google+ feature is “communities.” These are similar to Facebook groups. They are created by individuals and members within communities share and engage with content. Communities are categorized into different topics, such as football or photography. Posts are organized into sub-topics (for example, in a freelance writers’ group there are topics of marketing, writing tips, and writing tools) to help users sort through the high quantity of information.

Say you are a healthy food blogger. You can join communities such as healthy recipes or vegetarian eating. Individuals in these groups are targeted audiences who may want to consume your content and use your services. You can post regularly quality content (such as recipes) in hopes of directing members of the community to your blog. It’s applying the content marketing strategy (provide quality free content to be seen as an expert in your industry and increase the likelihood consumers will use your business when they need to buy a product/service) to a highly targeted audience. As a result, your content marketing efforts are more efficient.

Improving Your Knowledge

Communities aren’t just for you to share information-you can use them to gain knowledge too! First, you can improve the relevance and quality your content. See what types of content other similar businesses post to gain new ideas for blog posts. Find out what topics individuals respond to, and tailor your content to fit that. Second, you can join communities related to content marketing, social media, and the like to stay up-to-date with the latest marketing trends and tools.

Using Google+

Google+ offers many rich benefits to marketers who take advantage of it. If you’re really strapped for time, you can connect your Google+ account to Hootsuite and share every Facebook post to Google+ as well. If you’ve got more time, however, the recommended strategy is to treat Google+ as its own social media platform. The style of posts that resonate most with your audience on Google+ will be different than the posts that resonate with your audience on Facebook, Twitter, etc. You can take content you’ve already made (such as blog posts or newsletter copy) and share on Google+.

Ready to take advantage of Google+ but aren’t sure where to start? Alpine Small Business Solutions is here for you! We’d love to help you with Google+, or any aspect of small business building. Simply give us a call or shoot us an email today!

Facebook Removes the 20% Text Rule

To the joy of marketers everywhere, Facebook finally altered the 20% text rule! This recent change will provide more flexibility and freedom to marketers, while likely impacting the ad experience for Facebook users. Below we break down some common questions about this recent change.

What was the rule before the change?

Previously, Facebook rejected ad requests where more than 20% of the image contained text. This caused frustration among marketers whose ads were rejected for containing just barely too much text, and for brands whose logo was text. Some arguably creative and effective ads were also rejected due to containing too much text.

Why did this rule exist if it caused so much frustration?

Facebook, as it repeatedly claims, is all about the user experience. Part of the user experience is the appearance and feel of the timeline. The line of thinking from Facebook went something like this… if ads appeared on timelines containing massive amounts of text, the timelines would appear cluttered and users would be less satisfied with the look of their timelines. Preventing advertisers from using too much text also helped push advertisers to make more creative ads that focused on “showing” rather than “telling,” since you rely on words to “tell.”

So with this change, can I now use as much text as I want on ads?

Marketers are now given the option to use photos in their ads that contain more than 20% text. No longer will beautiful ads be rejected for containing just a little bit too much text-marketers rejoice! The new change means Facebook will not stop advertisers from using an image simply because of an abundance of text (other restrictions, such as inappropriate images, still apply). However, Facebook still is pursuing the user experience as the priority. While it removed the “stick” form of motivation (punishing users for ads with too much text by preventing those ads from being published), it simultaneously implemented a “carrot” approach of motivation (providing an incentive to still use ads with minimal text). So even though it may not be a requirement, they still are going to make sure marketers keep limiting text at the top of their minds.

So, why would I still want to use ads with minimal text?

First, ads with too much text are not visually appealing. They make the photo appear cluttered and busy, two things you want to avoid because viewers will likely skip over it. Of course, there are exceptions where the cluttered and busy look is used to make a creative point, but generally speaking it’s a good idea to limit text from a graphic design standpoint.

Second, using too much text will negatively affect the amount of people who see your ad. Facebook has said that, given the same budget, ads with more text will reach a lower number of individuals than ads with less text. Hence the carrot again. They will motivate you to do what they like by giving you more views. Facebook won’t stop you from using too much text, but it makes it clear it is in the best interest of the marketer to continue using minimal text.

How will I know if my ad still uses too much text?

Images uploaded for ads will be placed into one of four categories. The one marketers should aim for is “image text: OK” because it will see no negative impact on reach. These photos contain no or minimal text. The next category “image text: low” sees a slightly limited ad reach. The third category “image text: medium” may see limited ad reach. The fourth category “image text: high” may not even reach the intended audience at all. When advertisers upload a photo in the grid tool, Facebook will let the user know which category the photo falls into.

Organize Yourself to Holiday Cheer Part 2 of 3

Now you are really feeling the crunch. You have your schedule planned but now you must execute it to every detail to make sure your holiday time off goes as planned. Well, here are a few tips on how to keep this time of the year organized and stress free.

Delegate. If you have too much to do, it just might be your fault. Are you using all your resources? Did you contact your VA and pass off a couple tasks that you don’t necessarily have to do? Sometimes, we are our own worst enemy when it comes to always wanting to take control and do everything ourselves. Remember that your virtual assistant is there to help.

Debrief. If your staff members are experienced, you likely don’t need to leave a step-by-step operating procedure, but make sure if any specific sets of instructions are needed, you leave them where they can be found and write them with plenty of time. Brief the people before you leave because usually in your hustle and bustle to leave, you aren’t leaving the most detailed instructions. Even better yet, plan on bringing your replacements in the meetings a few weeks before so they are in the loop, or have them look over your should the week before so they can ask questions and see what you did to complete your day-to-day tasks. This will help them feel more confident about doing the task while you are away, and it will help you avoid calls while you are supposed to be relaxing.

Leave yourself a note. This may sound a little obvious, but you will also want to make your return to be as smooth as possible. Think of the tasks that you may not have completely finished. You will want to be able to step right in and get back to work. Here are some ideas:

Reminder to turn off your out of office reply
Where you are with any unfinished tasks
Immediate action items
Your to-do list your already created
A list of appointment times to meet with the people to whom you delegated tasks

Declutter and clean. When you leave, make sure your desk is clear, and your office is ready to come back to work. It will give you peace of mind as you walk out there door, and it will give you a nice fresh start to help you from feeling overwhelmed the moment you walk in the door. If you have someone completing daily tasks while you are away, make sure they know where everything is and where it goes.

A few organizing tips:

Have a place for everything
Throw away what you don’t need
Label your folders and drawers
Get your desk back in order before you leave each day
Ask for help

Congratulations! You are ready to head out the door and enjoy your time off. Make sure you take this time of to “reset” and recharge. Part 3 has many tips of how to relax and make this time off the best yet.

Schedule Your Way to Holiday Cheer Part 1 of 3

It is that time of the year where the days are getting shorter and the to-do list keeps getting longer. It can be easy to get overwhelmed with how much you have to do, the time you want to take off, the gifts you needs to get, the school needs a volunteer, you have a holiday concert to go to, and so on with the never ending list of holiday festivities. At Alpine Small Business Solutions, we see it every year with clients trying to frantically clean everything off their desks before the end of the year or their annual leave. We have three main tips for you to keep the panic out of the holiday and make sure you are still on top of it all: Schedule, Organize, and Relax. We have a three-part blog series to help you make it to the end of the year and time off in a breeze when you use your online business manager.

Schedule

Begin early. I know we all don’t like the holidays running together. Halloween is displayed before school supplies are put up, Thanksgiving is sold out before trick or treating began, and Christmas has taken over the entire fall/winter season instead of just staying in December. Yes, it gets tiresome, but you should put this practice to use to make your holiday time go more smoothly. Start early and schedule everything you need to accomplish with plenty of advance. Remember, everyone is likely trying to do the same thing you are, and you don’t want to end up at the bottom of a long pile on someone’s desk.

Leave on time. Don’t stay late at work trying to get something else done; you will always find more things that need done and you are neglecting all your other to-dos.

scheduling help

Make a to-do list that is effective. Remember to focus on today and not every single task that has to be done sometime in the future. If you skip a task on your to-do list, it should get a higher priority the next day, and not everything should be in your “red” category—not everything can be an emergency, or there is no point of color coding.

To-do lists are a great way to keep projects organized not only when leaving for the holidays but also on a daily basis. In fact, I recommend taking 15 minutes at the end of each day to create a to-do list for the following day.

Schedule when you are going complete each to-do
item. A to-do list is a good start, but now it’s time to schedule when you will complete each task. If you have items that you need to delegate, book time to hand off the project. Treat each project as its own appointment. Honor that time and protect it from interruptions as you would time with a client.

A schedule is only good if you plan it and stick to it. You will keep yourself on track for your holiday fun. Next, watch for how to get organized to get out the door to family and fun.