Conferences are “downtime” for me. I go to learn and I always walk away with creative juices churning.

Leave enough time post-conference to formulate a plan to implement the brilliant ideas generated.

There are so many awesome events to choose from; here are a few I plan to attend:

TEDxDetroit: Wednesday, September 29th

You may be wondering who Ted is… Ted Turner? Ted Nugent? Ted Kennedy? Ted D. Bear? You’ll be surprised to discover TED doesn’t refer to a person at all. It’s an acronym for Technology, Entertainment and Design. Some of the best and brightest Detroit has to offer will be applying for an entry ticket. Register for TEDx Detroit here.

Apparently I’ve fooled the organizers into believing I belong in that group! shhh….. my ticket is not in my hand yet.

To find a TEDx event in your area, visit the main TEDx site. Search #TEDxDetroit on Twitter

Michigan Virtual Assistants Annual Conference: Saturday, October 2nd

The “MIVA’s” (Michigan Virtual Assistants” are an exceptional group of small business owners. Although the organization is centered around Detroit, there are VA’s who have attended from Ohio, Ontario and other locations as well. I found two of my current team members at last year’s conference so it was a fantastic investment for me. I attend because I enjoy the social aspect of the environment so I stay for two nights as well. Register for the MIVA conference here.

WordCamp Detroit: Saturday & Sunday, October 9th & 10th

WordCamp covers everything related to WordPress. Since nearly 100% of the sites CyberCletch is designing now are content management systems built on the WordPress platform, any tidbits I pick up will be gratefully recieved. I’m also attending to network with potential future team members whose skills & work ethic may be beneficial to our growing clientele. Register for WordCamp Detroit here.

To find a WordCamp in your area, visit the main WordCamp site. Search #WCDet on Twitter

Detroit 140 Character Conference: Wednesday, October 20th

Are you a character? You’ll fit right in here! Initially, I had a hard time grasping what the 140 Character Conference was from information on the web sites until I found this video. Watch it to understand why Jeff Pulver is passionate about this conference and it’s format.

We are in an era of continuous change and are exploring the “State of NOW.” I’m looking forward to attending to see how others are adapting to these changes and because I’ll be meeting (face to face) many people I’ve friended online.

I’m also honored to be joining David Murray‘s panel along with friends Todd List and Dan Walker to talk about the “State of the new entrepreneur and how they are helping reshaping Detroit.”

Register for Detroit 140 Character Conference here.

To find a 140 Character Conference in your area, visit the main 140 Character Conference site. Search #140conf on Twitter.

Put the dates in your calendar. Hope to see you there!

Photo Credit

This message may not self-destruct, but I’m well on my way! The hours I am working between my professional and personal obligations are overwhelming at times. As a result, I knew I needed to get laser focused, which is where Dan of River’s End Consulting and his assistance with my mission statement comes in.

Creating a Personal Mission Statement is like getting orders from the Chief. It is the basis for which everything spins off. If an activity isn’t in synch with my personal mission statement, I’ll let go of it. If a business activity compromises my personal mission statement, I will not do it.

I’ve always been solid with my values and integrity but I must admit, seeing my beliefs in writing increased my confidence. There were a couple of points I had unintentionally wavered on in the past, but this written statement will provide me with a reminder to never adapt to less than I expect again.

I live my life with integrity because it is a source of personal joy and inner peace.

I tell the truth regardless of the impact to myself because I understand the value of a long-term relationship.

I intentionally choose to build relationships with people who have similar intentions and value mutually beneficial discourse.

I expect truth.

I continually assess my thought process and seek avenues of growth through my community and exploration.

I live my life with freedom of choice.

Chief: There’s no telling where they’ll be able to infiltrate next. May be even the Pentagon.
Maxwell Smart: You’re right, Chief. But even if they do get a man into the Pentagon, that’s not saying he’ll be able to get out. I remember one of our own agents was lost in there for three days.
Chief: Three days? Max, no agent could be that confused.
Maxwell Smart: Well, let me see. I went in on a Friday…

Thoughts or feedback?

And so begins my first session with Dan Walker of River’s End Consulting.

Our initial focus is to understand how my business supports my personal goals and to determine whether it functions to give me personal satisfaction.

Simultaneously, we are laying my foundation by evaluating what is most important to me through the creation of a personal, and eventually business, mission statement that reflects who I am and what values I choose to live by. Dan explains this exercise will help maintain focus on my priorities when faced with decisions in the future.

The process creates time to evaluate, which naturally slows down my internal knowledge and allows me to question existing fundamentals. There isn’t anything I enjoy more than analyzing thoughts and behaviors, as demonstrated by my graduate education.

Dan says something to me that resonates deeply, “You enjoy solving problems, don’t you?” My initial reaction is to say, “No, I don’t like drama.” Then I add a disclaimer, “It depends on the situation.”

Days later I realize how accurate he is. I’ve never considered myself a “salesperson” and yet I have had great sales success in the past. Then it hits me. My sales success came, not because I was trying to sell something to make a buck, but rather because I truly believed that particular product or service would solve a problem for my client. I do get excited by evaluating situations in order to find ways to enhance personal lives and solve business problems.

Kudos to Dan, it’s not often people are able to quickly see what I haven’t already analyzed.

Between sessions, my homework is to continue to hash out the wording of my personal mission statement.

Has anyone created a personal mission statement they’d like to share?

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I’ve gone from being a part time solopreneur to a full time multi-virtual assistant company over the past year. I had a team before, but downsized the business when my family relocated from Ohio to Michigan. Instead of utilizing employees in an office setting, as I have in the past, I am now subcontracting other business owners with the specialized knowledge my clients need. Each has their area of expertise and all work virtually.

Finding the right people at a budget conscious price is a challenge.
The most important skill any partner can have is reliability, and quite honestly, it seems to be in short supply in all small business arenas. In this industry, you must be deadline oriented. Particularly with Realtors as clients because CyberCletch offers a 24 hour turnaround on posting new listings on multiple online platforms. Agreeing to a deadline is the same as “making a promise.” My word is important, if you fail to meet a deadline you set as my subcontractor, you are hurting my and my client’s reputation, and that is unacceptable.

If you’ve ever grown a business you’ve probably felt that terror.
You know the one, where you’re standing at the edge between just covering your expenses and needing to invest money in people, products or technology in order to grow. You have to give away your earnings to eventually increase them. It’s also referred to as “investing in your company.”

As a virtual assistant, I had built my business and was earning a particular amount every month. When I began to bring on team members, that money now goes to them and I get a portion off the top. What many people fail to realize is now the business owner is earning less than the team members, and is doing more work. In order to return to a comfortable income, the owner has to either work alongside the team as an hourly assistant or bring in enough business to cover the invested time. If an owner is working as an hourly assistant, there is little time available to spend on marketing and growth.

I am too busy overseeing details, covering time off, training, answering questions, responding to emails, and project managing, to effectively create the structure needed for team members, existing business, and to quickly and efficiently bring in new business. If I am taxed time-wise now, how can I realistically bring in another account and provide the high quality service I’ve built my company’s reputation on?

I tried passing project management duties to others on the team but it wasn’t successful for several reasons. As a result, I’ve determined I must be the project manager. Due to the time demands from my business and private life, I am less focused and yet working harder than ever.

I know something has to change.
I’ve been slowly adjusting by streamlining some services such as using FreshBooks for invoicing and time tracking and coordinating the team with tasks on Central Desktop. I’ve taken advice from the Systems Chick and have begun to create processes. But time is running out. I need to move much more quickly or my personal life will sink by the end of 2011′s first quarter.

Enter River’s End Consulting.
I met Dan Walker through Motor City Connect and I assist him monthly at the Commerce Motor City Connect Networking breakfasts. I bought and read his book entitled, “The Customer’s Way“.

Even still, I am skeptical. It seems there are so many pomp and circumstance people who fail to back up their hard sell with the actual goods or service they promise. Over the table, I tell Dan this. I tell him I want to blog about the experience and be truthful. He interjects to say, he’s fine with me blogging about the sessions. If the experience is negative, he wants me to write about that too; he’ll use any criticism as a personal learning experience. I’m impressed by his transparency.

I decide to cut him a check right there and we begin our first session.

Note: These are affiliate links for FreshBooks, Central Desktop, Systems Chick and The Customer’s Way.

All that has changed this year.

Not only do I have to watch my expenses, I need to be sure I earn a base amount every month in order to survive. It’s been a challenge to say the least. It’s not that the business isn’t there, contrary to what the economy is doing, my business is in a major growth phase. I’ve planted grass seeds and the shoots are zooming towards the sunlight. My problem is that someone has placed a GIANT METAL CLOCK on precisely the place my grass is growing.

My issue is not lack of business, it’s lack of time. The very problem I assist my clients with!

I need more time to put policies and procedures in place for product offerings, my clients and the Virtual Assistants working with me. Instead I find my day is filled with project management, talking with existing clients, potential clients and covering vacations. There isn’t any time left for developing my own business structure. Simultaneously, I understand that in order to take my business to the next step within a short term (a 33% profit increase within the next 9 months), it’s paramount I put that structure in place now.

I thought I’d invite you along on my journey, perhaps we can both learn through this process.

Today, I am meeting with a consultant to discuss his services and how he can help me find the focus I need. I’ll be honest, I’m a skeptic when it comes to consultants and coaches, simply because I am already a driven, goal oriented person. I do what I set out to do. Since I am analytical, I am able to evaluate and educate myself. Time is the reason I am willing to speak with this person. If he can save me time with his input, advice and direction, allowing me to focus on making more money, he will be well worth the investment.

On the other hand, if he’s not, I’ll be disappointed and will need to make up more money over the next 9 months!

Today I decide whether to risk what I can’t really afford in order to make a longer term gain.
Sound familiar?

Photo Credit

Business can get crazy and we begin to fall behind. It’s at that time we need to set aside a few minutes to take stock. Is there anything that can be temporarily put on the back burner? Perhaps long enough to come up with a solution? How necessary is that task? Evaluate the importance of an item against how busy you are in any given moment.

If you determine the task is absolutely necessary to the success of your business but you are having difficulty finding the time to complete it, perhaps you ought to consider some assistance. If you take the time to check your course of action with each hand you’re dealt, moving your business forward is less of a gamble and more of an investment – with far better odds.

Whether your meeting location is across the conference table, over the phone or on the web, here are some quick tips to make your meetings more effective:

1. Plan, plan, plan! Book the meeting and jot down your agenda ideas. Keep the document on your desktop so you can add to the points of discussion/consideration between scheduling and the meeting day. Planning includes determining whether a meeting is required in the first place; consider whether the same results can be achieved via email.
2. Send an agenda out to all participants 24 hours to a week ahead of time. Request their feedback in advance or ask them to be prepared to present their input during the meeting. Give/ask for a time frame to complete their presentation.
3. Create the schedule and final agenda prior to the start of the meeting.
4. Stick to the agenda and to the task at hand. There’s nothing more frustrating than late start because social time between participants delays it.
5. Keep attendees on task throughout meeting so the pace is maintained by ensuring all are actively participating.
6. Finish with an effective follow up plan. Be clear on who is responsible for what. Document decisions and email a summary to each attendee with necessary deadlines.

Following these 6 meeting recommendations will create more effective meetings while freeing time for you and your attendees to accomplish other important tasks.

]]> http://www.cybercletch.com/2010/02/tuesdays-time-saving-tip-6-recommendations-for-more-effective-meetings/feed/ 0 http://www.cybercletch.com/2010/01/tuesdays-time-saving-tips-think-delegation-before-youre-buried/ http://www.cybercletch.com/2010/01/tuesdays-time-saving-tips-think-delegation-before-youre-buried/#comments Tue, 26 Jan 2010 13:40:17 +0000 Pat http://www.cybercletch.com/?p=206 As an entrepreneur and business owner, you started out loving what you do. The job is exciting, you’re passionate about your work. Why else would you work so hard for such long periods of time?

Long term, you can’t maintain that initial start up pace or you’ll eventually face burnout. You’ll become tired and find yourself buried in tiny tasks required to accomplish the big picture. The tasks you’ll no longer enjoy doing.

If you let yourself get to this point, you’ll lose the passion for your business.

Consider delegating BEFORE you’re buried.

As you work on your business, contemplate the steps you’re performing and evaluate the following:

• Do I enjoy doing this?
• Is this task part of my skill set? Will I spend a lot of time learning how to complete this task rather than doing it?
• Is this the best use of my time? Could I be earning more money or would I be happier and more efficient performing a different task?
• If I don’t enjoy this task, how much time do I waste avoiding it?
• What are the steps I perform so I could pass all or a portion of of this task onto someone else?
• What type of skills would someone need to complete this task effectively?

If you evaluate your tasks before you’re desperate for help, you’ll be halfway to actual delegation. Too many of our clients come to us when they are overwhelmed and too busy to slow down to determine HOW they want us to help them.

You may even consider delegating smaller tasks BEFORE you actually require help. This way, when the need to delegate is critical, you’ve already tested and found a reliable assistant who is ready, willing and CAPABLE of delivering the results you expect.

And if you’re already buried? Call me, I’ve got a shovel.

Photo Credit: vernhart / CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
]]> http://www.cybercletch.com/2010/01/tuesdays-time-saving-tips-think-delegation-before-youre-buried/feed/ 2 http://www.cybercletch.com/2009/12/collaboration-not-competition/ http://www.cybercletch.com/2009/12/collaboration-not-competition/#comments Wed, 23 Dec 2009 08:15:08 +0000 Pat http://www.cybercletch.com/?p=167 I recently joined a networking group. I’ve attended a couple of meetings but my schedule won’t allow me to be more active until the end of January. I was very excited about this group because the limited members I know are fantastic people.

The past few days there have been rules flying around via email, “3 missed meeting and you’re out”. I was told I couldn’t promote my virtual assistant business because there are already a few people offering VA-type work. I began to think this group was not for me. I understand rules are important, I realize participation is key to the success of any group but not being able to talk about my business makes me feel like I can’t be myself. I wasn’t even asked what type of VA business I had so they don’t know what kind of work I do. How are they to know if the other VA businesses are similar? That’s like suggesting a divorce lawyer, a tax lawyer and a criminal lawyer all do the same job.

My business philosophy is collaboration not competition.

When I look at another virtual assistant, I consider how we may work together, I keep them in mind should I come across a client who is not a fit for my team but may work well with theirs.

Aside from skill differences, I also believe there has to be a personality, style and work-ethic fit. I only want to work with people who understand the value I bring to the transaction. I only have a limited number of hours in the day, I don’t want ALL the business, I only want the business that best fits my lifestyle. If you’re a potential client and you choose to work with someone else – I’m okay with that! I know I’m good at what I do, I’m very ethical, and I want to see you succeed. If my company is not what you’re looking for, then who am I to stand in your way?

Recently, when trying to follow a twitter account back, I was notified he had blocked me. Blocked ME? I’m not exactly a political or controversial tweeter! I checked my most recent tweet:

“I love when I get to work on SEO for my real estate clients”

He was in the business of search engine optimization. I can only assume he didn’t want me following him and learning all his secrets! What he doesn’t realize is he may have missed an opportunity to acquire more business. My time is limited and if I were to take on more clients needing this service in the future, I’d be looking for someone who is a thorough as I am. It could have been him.

Are you losing clients because you’re intimidated by competition rather than open to collaboration? Understand what makes you unique, offer quality services and you’ll never worry about competition again.

Photo Credit:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/soldiersmediacenter/ / CC BY 2.0
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