Friday, October 19, 2007
Wisconsin Virtual Assistant Learning with Laughter
Today's lesson: You can't overcommunicate with a client when you are Virtual. Keep it consistant and continuous.
When we provide virtual support through our Virtual Assistant businesses, there is a certain amount of disconnection we can feel. We need to remember all of our survival skills learned in Corporate America. Ask yourself the following: What would I have done in this situation at my corporate job? Those skills still apply. Some examples: Why did we send emails to the person in the cube next to us instead of yelling over the lovely burlap wall or better yet, getting up with finally a reason to walk around? We sent emails for the paper trail, didn't we? We need to remember these same tactics while on our own. Here's a better one, our client calls us and asks us to follow up on something. What would we have done in Corporate? We would have sent our client an email detailing what he/she wanted wouldn't we? We should continue those practices. If your practice is such that you are getting constant redirection, etc. your mode of communication needs to change, but still that communication needs to take place. A progress report at the end of the week highlighting the sticky points during the week would be a good idea.
So here's my experience. My first job out of college (this job provides such great material) and my Boss' Boss, "Napolean" for obvious reasons was so freaked out about losing our contract with Navy Sea Systems Command, he would flap the pink message pads in our face yelling "We're all going to get pink slips!" It just wasn't a good day unless I got yelled at by this guy. One day, he stormed my office flapping the "pink slips" and my Issues Log I do for my client yelling about how I didn't take my job seriously and my joking will get us all fired. Hmmm I never played games with my work, only on irritating demeaning bosses. I asked what was wrong truly confused and he kept ranting about how our unprofessionalism would get us all fired (while he is screaming in my office). Trying to calm down this 50 year old man (I was 22) was not easy. Gee, what did I do wrong? It must have been really bad. My Issues Log impacted about 40 hulls of a Navy Surface Combatant! It got distributed all the way up to Admiral level! On my Issues Log I documented the Date, Name of the Issue, Issue Description, Status and Point of Contact for each issue. If I was assigned an issue, my initials "GSK" for Gretchen S. Koehler were listed as Point of Contact and so on. Well, here's what he said: "I can't believe you all think this is a big joke. How can you do this, we will all get fired! What are you thinking? Look here, GSK - General Store Keeper, you think this is a big joke! What is the matter with you?" Um yeah. I let him rant uncontrollably for as long as I could stand it and then I enlightened him.
The Lesson: If we would have had consistant communication, this would have never boiled over like that.
Take care!
Gretchen Koehler-Swaney
Prairie Business Partners LLC
http://www.prairiebusinesspartners.com/
When we provide virtual support through our Virtual Assistant businesses, there is a certain amount of disconnection we can feel. We need to remember all of our survival skills learned in Corporate America. Ask yourself the following: What would I have done in this situation at my corporate job? Those skills still apply. Some examples: Why did we send emails to the person in the cube next to us instead of yelling over the lovely burlap wall or better yet, getting up with finally a reason to walk around? We sent emails for the paper trail, didn't we? We need to remember these same tactics while on our own. Here's a better one, our client calls us and asks us to follow up on something. What would we have done in Corporate? We would have sent our client an email detailing what he/she wanted wouldn't we? We should continue those practices. If your practice is such that you are getting constant redirection, etc. your mode of communication needs to change, but still that communication needs to take place. A progress report at the end of the week highlighting the sticky points during the week would be a good idea.
So here's my experience. My first job out of college (this job provides such great material) and my Boss' Boss, "Napolean" for obvious reasons was so freaked out about losing our contract with Navy Sea Systems Command, he would flap the pink message pads in our face yelling "We're all going to get pink slips!" It just wasn't a good day unless I got yelled at by this guy. One day, he stormed my office flapping the "pink slips" and my Issues Log I do for my client yelling about how I didn't take my job seriously and my joking will get us all fired. Hmmm I never played games with my work, only on irritating demeaning bosses. I asked what was wrong truly confused and he kept ranting about how our unprofessionalism would get us all fired (while he is screaming in my office). Trying to calm down this 50 year old man (I was 22) was not easy. Gee, what did I do wrong? It must have been really bad. My Issues Log impacted about 40 hulls of a Navy Surface Combatant! It got distributed all the way up to Admiral level! On my Issues Log I documented the Date, Name of the Issue, Issue Description, Status and Point of Contact for each issue. If I was assigned an issue, my initials "GSK" for Gretchen S. Koehler were listed as Point of Contact and so on. Well, here's what he said: "I can't believe you all think this is a big joke. How can you do this, we will all get fired! What are you thinking? Look here, GSK - General Store Keeper, you think this is a big joke! What is the matter with you?" Um yeah. I let him rant uncontrollably for as long as I could stand it and then I enlightened him.
The Lesson: If we would have had consistant communication, this would have never boiled over like that.
Take care!
Gretchen Koehler-Swaney
Prairie Business Partners LLC
http://www.prairiebusinesspartners.com/
Wisconsin Virtual Assistant Learning with Laughter
For my next lesson: Don't let the technology options overwhelm you. Take time to think about how you would meet a client's needs before speaking if necessary.
This lesson may require a little explanation before my example. Sometimes potential clients ask us how we would accomplish a specific task. The knee jerk reaction is to blurt out how we think it would be done. Suggestion: Take the potential client's name and number and tell him/her you will get back to him/her on this. Then, take some time and think about it. Is it feasible at all? Is it feasible with your current setup? What would you have to buy? Do some research and have a great answer in a day or two.
Now for the example. My first job, I worked as a US Navy equipment logistics analyst for a US Navy ship in Arlington, VA. This was in 1989, I'm dating myself for a reason. I had created a database in Filemaker and was presenting it to my Navy client. While he was reviewing it, he received a call from a ship that was at sea. They needed a number of an equipment that just happened to be on my listing. He gave the number to the sailor to order his part and then promised to send out the entire listing to the ship for them to use. The only thing is that the ships only had PC's not Mac's. At that time Filemaker was only available for the Mac. The PC had only DBaseIV. My client promised the sailor that I would have the database translated into DBase IV and back to him in 1 week. He then hung up with the sailor and looked at me.
"Well," he said "Can you do that?"
Again, the lesson is: Take your time identifying the technology options before you promise the world.
Take care everyone!
Gretchen Koehler-Swaney
Prairie Business Partners LLC
http://www.prairiebusinesspartners.com/
This lesson may require a little explanation before my example. Sometimes potential clients ask us how we would accomplish a specific task. The knee jerk reaction is to blurt out how we think it would be done. Suggestion: Take the potential client's name and number and tell him/her you will get back to him/her on this. Then, take some time and think about it. Is it feasible at all? Is it feasible with your current setup? What would you have to buy? Do some research and have a great answer in a day or two.
Now for the example. My first job, I worked as a US Navy equipment logistics analyst for a US Navy ship in Arlington, VA. This was in 1989, I'm dating myself for a reason. I had created a database in Filemaker and was presenting it to my Navy client. While he was reviewing it, he received a call from a ship that was at sea. They needed a number of an equipment that just happened to be on my listing. He gave the number to the sailor to order his part and then promised to send out the entire listing to the ship for them to use. The only thing is that the ships only had PC's not Mac's. At that time Filemaker was only available for the Mac. The PC had only DBaseIV. My client promised the sailor that I would have the database translated into DBase IV and back to him in 1 week. He then hung up with the sailor and looked at me.
"Well," he said "Can you do that?"
Again, the lesson is: Take your time identifying the technology options before you promise the world.
Take care everyone!
Gretchen Koehler-Swaney
Prairie Business Partners LLC
http://www.prairiebusinesspartners.com/
Wisconsin Virtual Assistant Virtual Humor
I have decided to bring a little brevity to the Virtual Assistant world. One Virtual Assistant suggested one time that I put all of my stories into a book for folks to read and learn with humor.
Rule number one: Get a contract signed up front.
Isn't that one obvious? Not to some of us especially when we are first starting out. However, after getting paid in grape jelly, the point was hitting home. I wondered how I could pay my mortgage with this grape jelly? Maybe I could slather some on my pay stub and mail it in. How much grape jelly slathering would I have to do to cover the amount of my mortgage? I had another client (because some of us take a while for the basics to sink in) that paid me in pasta. Could I barter with Toyota on my car payment for pasta and pesto? Gee, it was pretty good sauce, would I have to send in the entire container for the payment?
Just a little brevity for a Friday. Take care everyone and remember get a contract signed up front!
Very best regards,
Gretchen Koehler-Swaney
Prairie Business Partners LLC
www.prairiebusinesspartners.com
Rule number one: Get a contract signed up front.
Isn't that one obvious? Not to some of us especially when we are first starting out. However, after getting paid in grape jelly, the point was hitting home. I wondered how I could pay my mortgage with this grape jelly? Maybe I could slather some on my pay stub and mail it in. How much grape jelly slathering would I have to do to cover the amount of my mortgage? I had another client (because some of us take a while for the basics to sink in) that paid me in pasta. Could I barter with Toyota on my car payment for pasta and pesto? Gee, it was pretty good sauce, would I have to send in the entire container for the payment?
Just a little brevity for a Friday. Take care everyone and remember get a contract signed up front!
Very best regards,
Gretchen Koehler-Swaney
Prairie Business Partners LLC
www.prairiebusinesspartners.com
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Wisconsin Virtual Assistants
When you think of Virtual Assistants or Online Admins, or Virtual Secretaries, you often think of an administrative professional that has had 20+ years as an Admin in Corporate America. This is often the case, but it is not completely the case.
In fact, Virtual Assistants have a variety of different backgrounds from Real Estate to Medical Transcriptionists to Business Analysts and Project Managers.
Finding out some background on your Virtual Assistant may surprise you.
Let us wow you!
Gretchen Koehler-Swaney
Prairie Business Partners LLC
www.prairiebusinesspartners.com
In fact, Virtual Assistants have a variety of different backgrounds from Real Estate to Medical Transcriptionists to Business Analysts and Project Managers.
Finding out some background on your Virtual Assistant may surprise you.
Let us wow you!
Gretchen Koehler-Swaney
Prairie Business Partners LLC
www.prairiebusinesspartners.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
