Achieving Goals – Page 2 – Virtual Assistant Success Strategies

Wil Hart on November 5, 2012

FREE VA Success Strategy Calls

I have something very special and exciting for YOU! One of my favorite past times is to sit in a nice coffee shop, enjoy a nice brew and have good conversation with good friends. So, we have decided to do more of that in a virtual sort-of-way.

Over the past 7 years, Sydni and I have been working with entrepreneurs to help them build lucrative businesses. In the process we have started 4 different companies. One of them being EAtoVA.

You might be asking, “Wil, I thought you said that you had something for me?” And you are correct.

We are taking ALL of the knowledge that we’ve used to build our businesses and share it with you EVERY week. That’s exciting for a few specific reasons:

We will get to know you by talking on the phone regularly.
For 10 minutes I will share with you business-building strategies.
For 20 minutes you will be able to ask questions and we can brainstorm business solutions for you.
NO selling, NO pitches, NO tricks. We are having a friendly conversation and getting to learn more about one another.
These calls will be FREE, forever! Isn’t that cool? I really look forward to getting on the phone with you.

CLICK HERE to accept the invitation

Every Tuesday, we’ll discuss a specific topic. Check out the line up for November:

Nov 06: How to develop a success mindset.
Nov 13: Skill sets prospective clients are looking for.
Nov 20: What technologies are successful VAs using?
Nov 27: Fixing holes in your business foundation.

These are just 4 of the MANY topics that you and I will be discussing. Don’t worry, if you cannot join us live, I will post the recordings here on the blog! We are going to have an awesome time each week!

CLICK HERE to accept the invitation

Wil Hart on May 22, 2012

5 Keys To Becoming A Successful Virtual Assistant

In 2009, there were 27.5 million businesses in the United States, according to Office of Advocacy estimates (per a report published in January 2011). What does that mean for you?

A) That number has only increased since 2009.
B) EVERY single one of those businesses needs some type of administrative support to function and be profitable.
C) There is more opportunity for you to be successful than ever before.

Since you have expressed an interest in becoming a Successful Virtual Assistant, I want to share with you all the tips, short cuts and resources that were not available to me when I first got started. I had to figure out on my own most of the things that I learned. I hope that you will utilize the tools that I give you so as to make your journey a LOT less stressful than mine turned out.

Fortunately, I kept track of every step I took, every mistake I made and everything that worked along the way. I didn’t have a real reason for doing so at the time, but I’m SO glad I did because now I can share them with you. When I look back I see that there are 5 critical keys you need to start and build a successful Virtual Assistance company:

1. Mindset: You may not realize it now, but to be successful as an entrepreneur, you have to THINK like an entrepreneur. As employees, we are conditioned to do what others tell us. Someone else typically decides our schedule, how much we get paid, who we work with and what projects we work on. When you become self-employed, YOU call all the shots. This is probably one of the things that is most attractive to you about the opportunity to be a Virtual Assistant. However, you must understand that you will have to go through some growing pains to make-over your mindset. You cannot operate your business they way you function as an employee. It simply won’t work. If you avoid working through this transition it could be the ONE thing that can make or break your business.

2. Infrastructure: What makes up the infrastructure of your company? Here are a few things to consider: 1) Insurances – health, life, disability, dental etc. 2) Technology – computers, phones, an online presence etc. 3) Operations – you must have operational systems in place such as accounting, tax filing, setting up new customers, processes for working with customers, etc. 4) Structure – will you set up an LLC or a Sole Proprietorship? 5) Finances – it takes money to make money. Considering these important matters and making well-informed decisions about which situations will work best for you, will enable you to start and manage a successful company.

3. Marketing: Marketing your services and getting clients boils down to one thing, ‘Offering solutions to people who are already looking for them.’ You don’t have to “hawk your wares”, you don’t have to convince people to hire you and you don’t have to take any opportunity that comes along. Marketing at it’s best is simple, focused and consistent. Those who do not market their company tend to find themselves out of business very soon. The best thing that you can do for your business is to know how to generate leads and enroll new clients. You do not want to wait to figure this out. You can develop a marketing plan even before you have made your first dollar, taking advantage of the resources, relationships and opportunities already within your reach.

4. Transition: Having a PLAN around your transition from Executive Assistant to Virtual Assistant will help you to make the leap from employee to entrepreneur smoothly. Please do not quit your job and then ‘hope for the best’. That is NOT a plan that leads to success. You want to make sure that you have not only your infrastructure in tact, but also a step by step plan that has dates attached to keep you focused. This plan gives you time and space to make the transition. In your mind you may think you can “wave a wand” and make the changes you need to make overnight. But that is an unrealistic view. Mapping out a realistic plan will help you to make steady progress, avoid unnecessary stress and minimize wasted time and wasted money.

5. Building Your Business: When you work for someone else, that company does all of the heavy lifting for you as an employee. The company is responsible for building the business so that you will have a place to work each day. Now, YOU are responsible for whether you win or lose. Success or failure is 100% in YOUR hands! You, therefore, have to perform all of the needed tasks to REMAIN in business. This includes constantly upgrading your skill set, setting up systems, marketing consistently and more.

If you would like help with each of these 5 Keys, I invite you to join me for a FREE training call on Thursday, May 31st, entitled “How to Use the Skills You Already Have to Add An Additional $500 – $5,000 to Your Monthly Income…Working From Home”. Click HERE to get the dial-in details!

Wil Hart on May 21, 2012

Do You Want to Become a Successful VA?

You have been searching for some time haven’t you? There are many questions about the Virtual Assistance industry that you have been trying to answer. Can I really make a living from being Virtual Assistant? Will I be able to pay my bills? How will I find clients? What tools do I need in order to work from home?

Since 2008, we have been answering these questions for our EAtoVA.com community. I’m here to assure you that If I can do it, you can do it too! (Become a member of the EAtoVA family and see how I conquered the journey of going from Executive Assistant to Virtual Assistant. Simply enter your name and email address in the boxes at the top of this page to get INSTANT access to my FREE special report “The Liberated Executive Assistant – How to Break Free From The Corporate Grind and Become Your Own Boss!“)

I know it is your goal to become a successful Virtual Assistant. That is how you found our website and introduced yourself to us. I really want to serve you first by inspiring you to set and accomplish this goal. Additionally, over the next several weeks, I am going to personally walk you through the process creating and succeeding in your very own business.

Just to keep you in the loop of what is happening here at EAtoVA.com, I want to know that I am creating a new club for people like you who want to have full support in your journey of starting your own business. Within the next couple of weeks, you will be the first to receive this exclusive information. Here is what I need you to do in order to get that information.

Click here to sign up for notification about my new club. The word will not go out to everyone. That is why I need you to raise your hand and say, “Yes Sydni, I want more info about the club”. Take a moment to sign up and you’ll be among the first to know when I unveil this new training center. And be sure to tell your friends, family members and colleagues about this exciting opportunity!

Wil Hart on March 5, 2012

How To Accomplish Goals Faster

Accomplishing your goals is the driving force of your Virtual Assistance business. Goals are what keeps you in the game, keeps you focused and enables you to be successful. Therefore, I know that you are interested in accomplishing your goals much faster than you have in the past. Would you like that? Of course! But, first there are two words which you must become familiar with and utilize more often in the future.

Those two words are Commitment and Fulfillment. Why are these words so important? For starters, take a look at the definition of both. Commitment is the state or quality of being dedicated to a cause or activity. Fulfillment is defined as the achievement of something desired, promised, or predicted.

Now, we can get down to the nitty gritty of this matter and why it is imperative that YOU make commitments and fulfill them in order to reach the level of success that you want for your business. Are you still with me? Ok, let’s go!

First, I need you think think about this question. Have you ever set a goal but never felt the satisfaction of accomplishing it? For example, if you had a goal of enrolling 3 new clients between January 1, 2012 and March 2, 2012; have you met that goal? If you did not attain the goal, what caused you to fall short?

This is a prime example of NOT being committed to a goal. There is a huge chasm between setting a goal and being committed to one. When you are committed to a goal, you see it differently. It is so important to you that you can taste it and will not be satisfied until you have succeeded. Commitments carry a much stronger sense of accountability and worth. Just look at the difference between two couples who claim to be in love. Couple #1 enjoys a very happy marriage. Couple #2 has been dating for 12 years but have no significant attachment. Couple #1 has decided that their love is so strong that they will carry out the legal procedures to strengthen their. That is a true commitment.

Are your business goals so important to you that it feels like you are married to them and that you will devote all the time that is needed to reach their completion? Commitment is the emotional attachment to that which is important to you, but more is needed.

Fulfillment is how you will make your goal come to fruition. This is the take action phase of realizing what you are striving to achieve. All that you need to do is outline what is needed in order to accomplish your objective and then DO IT! As you work towards your aspirations, it will be impossible to forget about them or let the goal become dormant on your ‘to-do’ list. When you are committed to goals that are worthwhile, you become consumed by them because they are so important to you.

Now let’s take the goal of enrolling 3 new clients by May 30th. You are committed and working to fulfill that ambition. Chunk down the work that it takes to reach those new clients. You actually have a full month to acquire each client. What do you have to do on a weekly and daily basis in order to register your first client? The commitment and fulfillment activity will guide you through each step of the the goal accomplishing process. You will find that because you are driven to attain your goals, the speed at which you reach them will be astounding.

The best way to accomplish your goals faster is to become so committed that you won’t allow anything to deter you from your objective. Focusing on fulfilling your commitments will lead you to the success that you desire. What is the first goal to which you will apply these principles? Let me know by commenting below.

Wil Hart on December 2, 2011

Are You Moving Full Speed Ahead?

speed to profits There’s a lot we can learn from consumer spending habits this time of year. Did you notice how many emails you received about “Black Friday” and “Cyber Monday” offers? Retailers are stocking their shelves, running special deals; truly they are doing all that they can to attract more customers to buy their goods. Yes, retailers are moving full speed ahead in order to increase their business.

Many other types of businesses, however, do not maintain the ‘retail mentality.’ Especially serviced based businesses like Virtual Assistance. They may tend to think, “oh well, this is a slow time of year. We will pick back up in January.”

Please tell me that you are doing all that you can to develop the ‘retail mentality’. You should be “stocking your shelves” and “doing all that you can to attract more customers.”

How can you, though, move full speed ahead and ramp up business so that you hit the ground running come January 1st?

Here are 4 action steps for boosting your business NOW instead of later.

Create Your Money Map for 2012: If you want a clear path on how to create more success, more profits and more freedom in your business, I invite you to join me for a two-part LIVE webinar course on how to create a marketing masterpiece. Click here to get access to your best year ever. Even if you choose not to join our profit-boosting program, please make sure that you make plans for how you will conduct your marketing program.

Set SPECIFIC Goals: How well did you do with accomplishing your goals for 2011? I certainly hope that you reached them all. If you have, that is a sign of good planning. And you should set new goals for yourself, stretching a bit beyond what’s possible. If you didn’t quite achieve all that you set out to, use where you are now as a starting point for what you can achieve in 2012.
Strategize: Setting goals is one thing. Charting the course to accomplishing them is quite another. Can you imagine saying that you wanted to lose 45 pounds, but then choosing not to exercise or change your eating habits? That wouldn’t make sense. The same principle applies to your business. If you don’t set goals and outline how to accomplish them, you won’t find the success you’re looking for.
Implement: THIS is the MOST important step. Take an honest look at your business. Are things going the way that you would like? If not, are you doing everything within your power to make good things happen? If not, you can choose to change that. Starting…NOW! Commit to taking the necessary action. It doesn’t have to be perfect. You just have to be consistent.

It is my greatest hope that you succeed in developing a successful virtual assistant business. Don’t slow down right now! This is the time to go all out and boost your business. I would be happy to help you do that. Be sure to develop and maintain the ‘retail mentality’ through the end of the year so that you will have a strong start in 2012.

Wil Hart on November 18, 2011

Enroll A New Client Within DAYS

If you entered a contest that challenged you to enroll one new client next week, how would you go about doing so? Imagine that the stakes are VERY HIGH. The prize, $100,000 if you could just get one new client to work with you in your business. Would $100,000 be enough to get you excited about prospecting for clients?

I hope that you are excited because this is a reality. If you work feverishly to get in front of your ideal clients, you can truly operate a $100,000 business! But, don’t allow the money to be a barrier for you. Think about why you started your business in the first place. What made you excited about being an entrepreneur? That is the very energy and zeal that you need to employ when you are marketing your solutions to the people who are already looking for you.

I want to share with you the strategies that we have used to build two successful businesses. First, I want to offer a disclaimer. If you do not perform the work that needs to be done, you will not get new clients and thus build your business. Fair enough? Good! Let’s get started:

I tapped into my warm market: That tactic is how I got my business off the ground. I simply told my friends, co-workers and associates that I was starting a Virtual Assistance company. It was fascinating to them that I was going to do the same work that I had been doing for more than a decade using the freedom of running my own company. I sent a letter to everyone that I knew and set coffee dates with others. I did whatever I could to get the word out about my new business. This was my first ever marketing campaign and my company was born. Continue Reading>>

Wil Hart on October 28, 2011

How to Position Yourself as a Partner, NOT an Employee

partner vs employee You have decided to start your own business as a Virtual Assistant. Awesome! 🙂 So, you set up shop, started marketing your solutions and enroll your first few clients. Excellent!

As you start working with clients, you may find that some of them think that a Virtual Assistant is tantamount to “employee”. How did they come to feel that way? How do you feel about being an employee even though you are a business owner? What do you need to do in order to correct such thinking?

This thinking promotes dis-ease. If you are uncomfortable because of feeling this way, rest assured that there is a cure. The cure however, must be targeted toward the root cause – YOU! Your clients will view your business the way that you view it. If you have not stepped away from the employee mentality, it will show up in every aspect of your business. And that mindset will permeate your client relationships and thus, how they treat you.

YOU – The Entrepreneur

YOU are a fabulous Assistant! You know it and I know it. When you were in the corporate world, you likely did not receive the full credit that you deserved. The compensation that the company thought suited you well was a pittance to say the least. You added value in the corporate world and you most certainly add value to your clients today.

When you start working with a new client, you should set the tone so that you both are clear on how you will work together. Expectations must be set as defined by you and the boundaries you have established for your company. (Of course, your client will have their own set of expectations. Making sure your work styles and expectations fit is part of the interview process.) There are many aspects to consider but five key areas to outline are :

Your hours of operation
Payment terms
Expected deliverables
How the two of you will communicate
Expected turnaround times

In most situations, if a client relationship begins to crumble it is because there was a lack of clarity, miscommunication or mistake made in one of these areas.

If you set clear boundaries and expectations at the VERY beginning of your client relationships, you will avoid feelings of stress and frustration in your business. Also important to remember is that once clear boundaries are established you MUST honor them. If you don’t, your clients won’t either, which will ultimately undermine your relationship with them.

By implementing the simple tips shared in this article, you will be respected as a business owner and thus acknowledged as a true partner with your clients. “Be” the entrepreneur that you desire. After all, that is why you started your own company.

This is the cure for the dis-ease of being viewed and treated like an employee. You are wonderful. You are strong. You are the entrepreneur with whom others want to partner. Don’t ever let anyone (including yourself!) tell you differently.

Wil Hart on October 13, 2011

Getting Clients When Working Full-Time

We received this question on the LinkedIn group recently:

When a VA is working full-time and starting her business at the same time, what is the best way to follow-up and/or get leads (clients)? Also, how do you convince future clients that you can still do the work, just at a different time in the day?

Excellent question and if you are facing a similar challenge, here’s is the first part of my answer: Continue Reading>>

Wil Hart on October 6, 2011

CURE FEAR!

Has anyone ever told you, “fear is only in your mind“? That is not true. Especially when you are a Virtual Assistant who is trying to build a successful business but haven’t quite reached your goals.

Fear comes when you are working hard and still thirsting for new clients and income. Fear comes when you are looking at your bills and trying to make your income meet those needs.

Fear is a real feeling. BUT, there is a cure for fear. Sometimes, this feeling is all in the mind, but when it is a reality it needs to be dealt with. For instance, having a fear of flying because you think that the plane will crash is all in your mind. There is more chance of you dying in a car crash than in a plane crash. That is an example of F.E.A.R (False Evidence Appearing Real).

What I’m am talking about is the real fear from real matters that you have experienced before, like NOT having enough income to satisfy creditors and vendors.

The Cure? ACTION!

When you take action, you overcome and annihilate fear.

If however, you prefer to fertilize fear simply procrastinate, hesitate and practice indecision. Your fears as a business owner will grow.

To cure fear do not hide from it. Acknowledge your fear with a laser beam focus and start looking for answer to defeat it. As you learn of possible answers and resolutions, get your feet moving and take massive action. Watch the fear dissipate and retreat into it’s dark room. So, if you are worried about wear your next client will come from, look for the marketing strategies that will get you clients the quickest.

Fear is success enemy number one. Action will dominate fear 100% of the time!

Act now.

Wil Hart on September 25, 2011

Goal Setting

Goals are the vehicle by which we measure the achievements of our lives. At this moment, we live with one of the following feelings:

1. Satisfaction of achievement

2. Lack of fulfillment

Are there more feelings that you have at this time? Of course! But, when you think the life that you desire and the life that you experience, the evidence proves whether or not you have accomplished your goals. Even if you have not set one goal in your life, there is a negative affect that floating along poses on your mind.

Where do you want to be in the important aspects of your business by the end of this year? How will you feel when you accomplish your goals? How will the accomplishment of your goals change your business and your life? To be sure, your goals must be S.M.A.R.T!

Specific – goals that are specific leave not room for ambiguity. You know exactly what will result from reaching this goal.

Measurable- clearly outline the steps that need to be taken. Include start and end dates. Also, include important milestones.

Achieveble – unreachable goals will put you in a state of inertia. You will lack the motivation and desire to accomplish them.

Realistic – means that you can outline the steps with real milestones and see the end in site.

Time sensitive – attach a date to any goal and it automatically fills you with a zest for life and getting things done!

There isn’t much more that needs to be said about goal setting other than this: know what you want, map out the step and get results!

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