No More “New Year’s Resolutions” A New Twist on Time Management

No More “New Year’s Resolutions”
A New Twist on Time Management
by Cindy Hyde

Sigh. Resolutions come and go. Sometimes guilt, disappointment, and even shame come because we did not keep our ‘resolution’ to ourselves. I say NO MORE resolutions!

This year I resolve [decide, make my mind up, determine] to not make any resolutions! 

Focus

This year we can choose to focus on our life vision. Or at the least, we can focus on the vision for this year. If we take the main areas of our life: Spirituality, Relationships (both friends & family), Career, Education, Finances, Community Service, Recreation, and Health (mental, physical, and emotional) and look at them as individual components we will have many long-term and short-term goals that may or may not connect to our overall vision. Each of these areas of our life should be looked at as a whole picture. We should look at the vision at the end of the year instead of where we are right now. We can project ourselves into the future and decide what it is that is important to us.

Instead of piecing our lives together with individual goals, we can look at the vision and begin to work backward. Goals are part of a vision, but they are individual parts or steps that get us closer to the vision. If we took stock of the ‘important to me’, and focus on them instead of making resolutions, how much longer do you think we would stick with a plan?

Vision drives us. 

Without vision, we are lost and floundering through life without direction. Why is it that we are goal-oriented and not vision-oriented? If you have a vision, you will have goals, in fact, you are going to have to meet several goals for your vision to become a reality. However, the vision is not a goal. Vision defines every aspect of who we are, uses every gift we have, requires all the talents we develop, and utilizes all the skills we have learned. Vision carries us through the tough times, knowing there is more to life than what we have right now.

Charge.

Take a few minutes before the end of the year to focus on what it is you personally want out of life or what you want to do with your life. Look at what burns in your heart. Examine the desires you have always had but never had the nerve to do anything with them.

Whatever your vision is WRITE IT DOWN. Write the vision and make it plain as the Scriptures instruct. Write it down. Make it clear to yourself. Think about it every day of your life. Work with your vision until it becomes part of you. See yourself doing the vision, being the vision, working with the vision. If you take just 10 minutes a day to focus on your vision, thinking about how it will be, what it will sound like, what it feels like, looks like, and smells like, involving your senses in the imagination the stronger your vision will become. The stronger the vision becomes the more of a reality it becomes.

Enlarge your territory.

You can realize your vision. I am living my vision right now. I had a vision of helping people. Of bringing hope and healing to wounded souls. I am doing just that. Each year my vision expands with more details. Again, I find myself in need of more vision for this next year. I ask myself, what do I want to do? What do I see myself doing? What can I do to help others? No matter how much of your vision has become a reality, there is always room for growth. Expand it and move the tent stakes as the Scripture says. Pray and ask the Lord to enlarge your territory. He will.

Write it out.

Take the vision for this New Year and write it out. Work your vision backward. If you want to lose weight, what is your goal for the end of the year? Write your plan for each quarter, making each of the short-term goals clear and easily accomplished and only use one sheet of paper for the whole year. You will find that your vision finds you and makes a way for you. The Lord will begin to send people across your path to help make the vision a reality. After all, He is the one who gives you the vision in the first place!

One vision + 10 minutes/day = Reality.

Do it!

Pray. Write. Meditate.

What is a Virtual Assistant and Why You Need One

What is a Virtual Assistant and Why You Need One

In today’s digital world, everything is just a click away. Many people are choosing to work remotely. A Virtual Assistant (VA) is an asset to small business owners, entrepreneurs, startup teams, nonprofits, and executives. Virtual Assistants connect with and provide services to all types of clients online instead of working in an office.  

A ‘stay-at-home mom’ can earn a good salary while still taking care of her family. A college student can work remotely and pay their way through college. A retired person can work from home and earn extra income. These are just a few examples of those who choose the “virtual assistant” lifestyle. 

What is a Virtual Assistant?

A virtual assistant is an independent contractor who provides basic and advanced administrative services. Some VAs offer high-end business services like social media management, Pinterest or Instagram management, blog services and management, online business management (OBM), graphic and web designing, and much more to their clients. The types of services offered are unlimited.

Virtual Assistants pay their own self-employment taxes, set their own rates, choose which projects they want to work on, when and where to work, and usually have multiple clients at a time. They work with business owners on specific projects or on a long-term basis.

Virtual Assistants come from a wide range of backgrounds, with their own skill sets, expertise, and experience. The opportunity to hire VAs for businesses is changing the way companies across the world are run. They no longer need to only hire full-time employees. Instead, they can outsource tasks to help save time and money.

A VA partners with a business owner to deliver a service or take over specific tasks for them. They handle a variety of tasks to support their client and the job that a VA performs will be different based on each business owner’s needs.

Hiring Remote Workers is the New Trend for Small Business Owners

You can hire a virtual assistant to help a business expand so you can take it to the next level.

A VA usually works from their home office, but they also work while traveling, while they are on vacation, from a coffee shop, in the park, at the beach, or from anywhere in the world.

They can access all the client’s necessary documents, files, contacts or calendars remotely.

Running a business can be an exhausting job that requires so much of your time.

Hiring a Virtual Assistant to help with the day-to-day operation of your business frees you up to invent more products, offer more services, and give you more time to pursue the enjoyable things in life that often get neglected. Like family and vacations, or to work on that dream of being a drag racer that you’ve had since you were a child.

You might consider hiring a virtual assistant if you need an expert in a certain area that you don’t have experience in. Rather than take the time to learn another skill, you can find someone who already has that knowledge. This will save you time, energy, and money.

By hiring a virtual assistant, you can delegate out tasks that have been taking up your valuable time. By getting your time back you will avoid burnout and the overwhelm you might face as you continue to grow your business.

10 Reasons Why you Need a Virtual Assistant

1. Saves you time.
2. Allows you to focus on your primary business.
3. Get the specialized help you need.
4. Save thousands of dollars per employee.
5. Lower the cost of doing business.
6. Less office space required.
7. Don’t have to hire a full-time employee.
8. Don’t have to pay payroll or payroll taxes.
9. Don’t have to pay for employee benefits.
10. Only pay for the number of hours you need.
    

More Reasons to Hire a Virtual Assistant

The many benefits of hiring an independent contractor outweigh the disadvantages. We will discuss those in another blog post.

Virtual Assistants don’t have the stress of commuting to work so they are fresh and ready to work at their peak performance time. Giving your project their undivided attention.

Hiring VAs means businesses have a lower employee turnover rate. No more dealing with deadbeat employees who don’t show up to work on time, no more employee conflicts to diffuse, no more employees calling in sick.

You don’t have to endure personality conflicts with your employees. 

You don’t have to cope with bad attitudes that decrease productivity.

Small businesses have access to global talent. You are not limited to the skills and talents of just one employee. In fact, you have the option to contract with more than one VA who offers the expertise you require to expand your business.

If the employer is looking to conduct business globally, it helps to have an employee who lives in another country to connect for various reasons.

There is ground for creativity, hiring all from the same background can be a downfall in some work environments.

Hiring a remote or international worker enriches the work culture.

Employing Virtual Assistants from different time-zones allows your office to operate for extended hours, keeping phones, email, or other forms of customer support available for longer

Like I said, working with a VA is far more beneficial and helpful than the alternative.

So, what are you waiting for, join the Virtual Assistant trend today!