Improve productivity

How to inculcate, the productivity culture in small businesses?

Culture has been a buzzword in the corporate world for sometime now. A company’s culture is defined as a set of values and beliefs that companies develop over time. In other words, culture is the personality of the organization from the perspective of the employee and includes the company’s mission, expectations and work atmosphere. In fact, growth in the business can be directly attributed to the company’s productive culture. To be productive it requires active participation of both employer and employee on a regular basis for working effectively on set targets. This article here tries to identify actions that will culminate in a productive culture in a small business: Trusting employees – It is important that employees are trusted by the management in carrying out the tasks set forth. The employees should not merely be puppets at the hands of the management but should rather have the liberty of taking productive measures into consideration as per their abilities to execute tasks. The company should trust the employee after giving general guidelines to perform a specific task as per their own discretion. This will make the employees to be feeling genuinely part of the company and improve productivity levels. Having realistic targets – To improve productivity in the business, it is necessary that the organization sets realistic targets and goals. Any organization that is overly ambitious and sets forth ambitious goals is surely setting up its employees for failure as the results from over ambitious goals is bound to be counter productive. It is important that the organization keeps its goals and objectives clear to keep the productivity and the employee morale high. Keep projects at manageable scale, is to break them into smaller steps, this will help show clear progress and keep employees motivated as they advance towards the final results. Simply assigning a project for 2 months can be overwhelming, by breaking it up keeps the productivity levels high to complete the project.   Following Up on Targets – For a small business, it is not enough to set the goals and lay back and think the employees will take care of the rest. As a business, it becomes essential that employers follow up on the targets and deadlines. With follow up, employees will become aware of the loopholes and the tools required to improvise on efficiency. Keeping track of the goals being pursued will help measure individual performance of the employee and the measures taken to improve in-efficient performance. Proper follow-up will help measure individual productivity. Acknowledging Performances – To keep a tab on productivity, it is essential that good performances are noted and rewarded. This will keep the motivation of the performing employees high and make him eager to perform better the next time around. It is important to ensure the bad performer is made aware of his/ her performance and made known about the inadequacies in performance on a one-to-one basis without harming the employee’s dignity in the organization. Studies have shown that employees are most productive when their interests including incentive based pay are aligned. Training for employees – Every employer needs to keep track of the latest developments in his domain and also arrange for training sessions regarding the same. The training will help the employee to stay abreast with the latest workflow procedures and adopt them on requirement. Training is meant for employees for gaining knowledge regarding their profession and for improving productivity. Studies have shown that employees are motivated by a sense of responsibility when it comes to their work and maintaining high productivity levels. Training should be imparted into employees as an incentive, this way more people will be attuned to receiving training with serious motivation at organizations. By maintaining high motivation levels, employees are able to improve business productivity. Training employees on new skills can give them a new sense of purpose. It lets them know that the organization is willing and able to evolve. When employees are trained on new methods it is a win-win situation.     Enhanced communication between employer and employee – It is important that employees are given the privilege to report matters directly to the management. By being able to report directly to the management, the employee will be convinced about his voice being heard in the company. This will ensure new vigor and vitality in his/her work performance in the company. Two and fro communication between employee and employer is essential because if adequate information is not conveyed, it can lead to delay and at times non-completion of the task at hand. So clear communication between employer and employee is essential for keeping productivity scales high. Flexible working hours – By following relaxed working hours option, it will become easy on the employee to perform well, without getting constrained to limited working hours. The 9 to 5 schedule is under attack with the availability of internet connectivity and laptops, which makes it easier for employees to complete their tasks beyond the working hours. Efficient managers ensure the best use of resources with flexible work patterns address workplace pressures by optimizing the available labor.   Flexible working hours can lead to increased job satisfaction, improved staff morale, engagement and motivation leading to good productivity. Management’s responsibility – It is the responsibility of the management to ask the right questions to when the productivity levels are not high. There is a need to put in efforts to avoid micro-management; it hinders the sense of accomplishment on the part of the employee. It can feel great from a manager’s point of view of holding the reigns tightly, however, it is always advisable to believe in your team and allow them to make judgment calls for the projects they own. Management can help employees prioritize their work. An employee should not be overwhelmed by the long to-do lists but should be concentrating on one task at a time. The management should communicate the top team priorities, so everyone knows where to focus their energy. Conclusion – Although

How to inculcate, the productivity culture in small businesses? Read More »

Culture has been a buzzword in the corporate world for sometime now. A company’s culture is defined as a set of values and beliefs that companies develop over time. In other words, culture is the personality of the organization from the perspective of the employee and includes the company’s mission, expectations and work atmosphere. In fact, growth in the business can be directly attributed to the company’s productive culture. To be productive it requires active participation of both employer and employee on a regular basis for working effectively on set targets. This article here tries to identify actions that will culminate in a productive culture in a small business: Trusting employees – It is important that employees are trusted by the management in carrying out the tasks set forth. The employees should not merely be puppets at the hands of the management but should rather have the liberty of taking productive measures into consideration as per their abilities to execute tasks. The company should trust the employee after giving general guidelines to perform a specific task as per their own discretion. This will make the employees to be feeling genuinely part of the company and improve productivity levels. Having realistic targets – To improve productivity in the business, it is necessary that the organization sets realistic targets and goals. Any organization that is overly ambitious and sets forth ambitious goals is surely setting up its employees for failure as the results from over ambitious goals is bound to be counter productive. It is important that the organization keeps its goals and objectives clear to keep the productivity and the employee morale high. Keep projects at manageable scale, is to break them into smaller steps, this will help show clear progress and keep employees motivated as they advance towards the final results. Simply assigning a project for 2 months can be overwhelming, by breaking it up keeps the productivity levels high to complete the project.   Following Up on Targets – For a small business, it is not enough to set the goals and lay back and think the employees will take care of the rest. As a business, it becomes essential that employers follow up on the targets and deadlines. With follow up, employees will become aware of the loopholes and the tools required to improvise on efficiency. Keeping track of the goals being pursued will help measure individual performance of the employee and the measures taken to improve in-efficient performance. Proper follow-up will help measure individual productivity. Acknowledging Performances – To keep a tab on productivity, it is essential that good performances are noted and rewarded. This will keep the motivation of the performing employees high and make him eager to perform better the next time around. It is important to ensure the bad performer is made aware of his/ her performance and made known about the inadequacies in performance on a one-to-one basis without harming the employee’s dignity in the organization. Studies have shown that employees are most productive when their interests including incentive based pay are aligned. Training for employees – Every employer needs to keep track of the latest developments in his domain and also arrange for training sessions regarding the same. The training will help the employee to stay abreast with the latest workflow procedures and adopt them on requirement. Training is meant for employees for gaining knowledge regarding their profession and for improving productivity. Studies have shown that employees are motivated by a sense of responsibility when it comes to their work and maintaining high productivity levels. Training should be imparted into employees as an incentive, this way more people will be attuned to receiving training with serious motivation at organizations. By maintaining high motivation levels, employees are able to improve business productivity. Training employees on new skills can give them a new sense of purpose. It lets them know that the organization is willing and able to evolve. When employees are trained on new methods it is a win-win situation.     Enhanced communication between employer and employee – It is important that employees are given the privilege to report matters directly to the management. By being able to report directly to the management, the employee will be convinced about his voice being heard in the company. This will ensure new vigor and vitality in his/her work performance in the company. Two and fro communication between employee and employer is essential because if adequate information is not conveyed, it can lead to delay and at times non-completion of the task at hand. So clear communication between employer and employee is essential for keeping productivity scales high. Flexible working hours – By following relaxed working hours option, it will become easy on the employee to perform well, without getting constrained to limited working hours. The 9 to 5 schedule is under attack with the availability of internet connectivity and laptops, which makes it easier for employees to complete their tasks beyond the working hours. Efficient managers ensure the best use of resources with flexible work patterns address workplace pressures by optimizing the available labor.   Flexible working hours can lead to increased job satisfaction, improved staff morale, engagement and motivation leading to good productivity. Management’s responsibility – It is the responsibility of the management to ask the right questions to when the productivity levels are not high. There is a need to put in efforts to avoid micro-management; it hinders the sense of accomplishment on the part of the employee. It can feel great from a manager’s point of view of holding the reigns tightly, however, it is always advisable to believe in your team and allow them to make judgment calls for the projects they own. Management can help employees prioritize their work. An employee should not be overwhelmed by the long to-do lists but should be concentrating on one task at a time. The management should communicate the top team priorities, so everyone knows where to focus their energy. Conclusion – Although

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Executive Virtual Assistant – A time management solution for C-level Executives

As a C-level executive are you juggling between your administrative tasks and high-level works with a short deadline?  According to Inc. Magazine article, effective leaders focus on high-level business strategies and problem solving that demand their expertise and attention, whereas less effective leaders spend their time more evenly across a number of roles including low-level administrative jobs, micro managing etc., It is found that on an average, managers spend more than 25% of their time doing administrative tasks which could be a downturn in daily productivity and business growth.  To be a high performing leader it is necessary to differentiate the important and unimportant jobs at hand. As a first step to manage time effectively, identify the important tasks, important and outsourceable task and finally unimportant tasks.  As a C-suite employee, most of your daily works are likely to fall under “Important & Outsourceable” category, now refine that into a list of items. In today’s scenario outsourcing has become a new normal not only for business but also for C-suite employees. The new age Executive Virtual Assistants (EVA) is both virtual and on-demand. Virtual assistants nowadays are more skilled and affordable. They work from a remote location and help with your daily errands and you can pay on hourly basis or time spent. This article explores how EVA’s can be of help to C-level executives like you and here is a list of such important tasks which you can think of outsourcing. Email & Calendar Management Tasks Keeping the calendar up to date can be one of the most mundane tasks you are handling and surprisingly it takes a great deal of time.  You would be receiving a lot of mails on a daily basis, which eats a chunk of your time. This stream of mails can be assigned to an Executive Virtual Assistant, who takes care of it to give you much needed time to work on other important matters at hand. Hence your EVA will fix appointments for you, schedule them in your calendars and help you plan your day effectively. Online Research As a C-suite employee, online research is essential for number of things right from updating yourself about the latest happenings in the industry, data curation for your upcoming blog or even to prepare your next TED talk. Here is where your virtual assistant becomes a support tool.  Your remote executive assistant can help you in doing research for business works that would give you an extra time to focus on other pressing needs.   Proof-reading documents Proofreading is an essential managerial job and as C-level person we would come across a lot of works like proposals, blogs updating, documents writing etc., which involves extensive proofreading.  Your EVA will help you in handling the proofreading task and can ensure your written materials are accurate, relevant and ready to use. Secretarial Tasks Earlier, it was common for every C-level executive to have a personal secretary at hand to take care of the regular administrative tasks. But presently, in this age of cost cutting and saving on administrative tasks, it has become uncommon to have a personal secretary. But, help is at hand, with Executive Virtual Assistant (EVA), you can outsource all your administrative errands like attending phone calls and free up your time to focus on much important things. Data Curation There is always a pile of data that needs to be converted into something meaningful. You can leave all the data curation to your Executive Virtual Assistant. Social Media Management Your virtual assistant can be an extension of you on social media.  As a C- suite executive you tend to spend all your time at the office, busy with meeting, conferences and deals and you would hardly have time to manage your social media accounts. Here comes your assistant for your rescue! Your EVA can accommodate all your social media tasks, which include but not limited to; creating posts and promoting Facebook fan pages/ groups, managing and increasing your twitter following etc., Personal Tasks Being a high performing leader gives you less space for your personal life and it becomes more than a challenge to balance your work and life. We often face scenarios that does not justify our personal schedule and feel desperate for family time. Do not worry; your EVA can make some difference here! They can help in various errands like family trips, work out routines, arranging for plumbers, booking hotels and many more. Basically, your EVA can take care of your personal routines as well. If you think outsourcing the above errands will help manage your time, Think GetFriday, and we can make your life better.  Try out our services and manage your time effectively with an Executive Virtual Assistant.

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As a C-level executive are you juggling between your administrative tasks and high-level works with a short deadline?  According to Inc. Magazine article, effective leaders focus on high-level business strategies and problem solving that demand their expertise and attention, whereas less effective leaders spend their time more evenly across a number of roles including low-level administrative jobs, micro managing etc., It is found that on an average, managers spend more than 25% of their time doing administrative tasks which could be a downturn in daily productivity and business growth.  To be a high performing leader it is necessary to differentiate the important and unimportant jobs at hand. As a first step to manage time effectively, identify the important tasks, important and outsourceable task and finally unimportant tasks.  As a C-suite employee, most of your daily works are likely to fall under “Important & Outsourceable” category, now refine that into a list of items. In today’s scenario outsourcing has become a new normal not only for business but also for C-suite employees. The new age Executive Virtual Assistants (EVA) is both virtual and on-demand. Virtual assistants nowadays are more skilled and affordable. They work from a remote location and help with your daily errands and you can pay on hourly basis or time spent. This article explores how EVA’s can be of help to C-level executives like you and here is a list of such important tasks which you can think of outsourcing. Email & Calendar Management Tasks Keeping the calendar up to date can be one of the most mundane tasks you are handling and surprisingly it takes a great deal of time.  You would be receiving a lot of mails on a daily basis, which eats a chunk of your time. This stream of mails can be assigned to an Executive Virtual Assistant, who takes care of it to give you much needed time to work on other important matters at hand. Hence your EVA will fix appointments for you, schedule them in your calendars and help you plan your day effectively. Online Research As a C-suite employee, online research is essential for number of things right from updating yourself about the latest happenings in the industry, data curation for your upcoming blog or even to prepare your next TED talk. Here is where your virtual assistant becomes a support tool.  Your remote executive assistant can help you in doing research for business works that would give you an extra time to focus on other pressing needs.   Proof-reading documents Proofreading is an essential managerial job and as C-level person we would come across a lot of works like proposals, blogs updating, documents writing etc., which involves extensive proofreading.  Your EVA will help you in handling the proofreading task and can ensure your written materials are accurate, relevant and ready to use. Secretarial Tasks Earlier, it was common for every C-level executive to have a personal secretary at hand to take care of the regular administrative tasks. But presently, in this age of cost cutting and saving on administrative tasks, it has become uncommon to have a personal secretary. But, help is at hand, with Executive Virtual Assistant (EVA), you can outsource all your administrative errands like attending phone calls and free up your time to focus on much important things. Data Curation There is always a pile of data that needs to be converted into something meaningful. You can leave all the data curation to your Executive Virtual Assistant. Social Media Management Your virtual assistant can be an extension of you on social media.  As a C- suite executive you tend to spend all your time at the office, busy with meeting, conferences and deals and you would hardly have time to manage your social media accounts. Here comes your assistant for your rescue! Your EVA can accommodate all your social media tasks, which include but not limited to; creating posts and promoting Facebook fan pages/ groups, managing and increasing your twitter following etc., Personal Tasks Being a high performing leader gives you less space for your personal life and it becomes more than a challenge to balance your work and life. We often face scenarios that does not justify our personal schedule and feel desperate for family time. Do not worry; your EVA can make some difference here! They can help in various errands like family trips, work out routines, arranging for plumbers, booking hotels and many more. Basically, your EVA can take care of your personal routines as well. If you think outsourcing the above errands will help manage your time, Think GetFriday, and we can make your life better.  Try out our services and manage your time effectively with an Executive Virtual Assistant.

How to Increase Office Productivity

It is everyone’s dream to work to their optimum capacity, but there are only 24hrs in a day and in those hours, we have to maximize our efficiency. There is always a plan at the beginning of the day to maximize our productivity at work. But it just becomes a hollow plan by the end of the day. While it may not be everybody’s cup of tea to find out ways to work smarter, here is a list of strategies that will help improve productivity at work. While it may not happen that your working habits undergo a drastic change overnight, it is possible that gradual changes can add up to big changes in productivity. It is best to start with one-tip and follow it up before you can adopt next tip to your schedule. Being accountable to someone at work or announcing your targets to others helps keep you stay on track in the course of your activities and in the long run. It is best to keep in mind that we are humans and have a tendency for slip-ups. Hence, it is with this attitude you should approach productivity improvement tips. Whenever, there is a slip-up it is best to forgive yourself than to brood about it overtime which only adds up to unproductive time. You have to understand that multi-tasking is an over-used term. Studies have very clearly indicated that our brains are not equipped to multi-task and focusing on one task alone will help us accomplish much more than trying to multi-task and accomplish more. It is also seem that while multi-tasking, the brain loses its ability to be creative. The brain is like a muscle the more work we give it, the stronger the muscle is likely to become. By focusing on one single task helps you make those connections stronger. Before you leave work each day, it is best to write down, 5-6 things that you want to accomplish the following day and in a separate page write down personal errands that you would like to accomplish. Keeping the list shorter helps it keep realistic. Have a strategy while you begin each day and stick to it as far as possible. There is a theory and it states that our primal mind craves distraction especially when you are in the course of accomplishing your listed tasks. It so happens that we would turn our attention towards some easy unlisted task such as liking a picture on Facebook or spending more time jotting down the list can also be part of ‘structured procrastination’. So give yourself five-minutes or less to complete writing the list and stick to your list in hand as far as possible without getting distracted. Piles of paper lying on your desk are a sign of unfinished tasks and unorganized work. Since you are lagging behind, the remedy is to delegate the tasks. By delegating you will be able to realize your productivity goals sooner than later. If in case you are not very proficient at something, it is best to ask someone about how to use something more efficiently. This simple request can ensure you are improving your productivity. Another distractor at the work place is e-mail. It is prudent that you embrace e-mail as an ally rather than making it your nemesis. You can manage your email better by dividing your email into two groups – first group requiring quick responses and those needing some degree of thought. You can acknowledge the receipt of the mail for the latter, but can answer the mail after some days. And make it a point to follow through. Another tactic could be to turn off your email notifications for some time, if there is a need to focus on a specific task for 20-30 minutes without distractions. The next thing to do is to learn e-mail management from someone, who is more proficient at it. Learn about different labels, folder, filters, archives and unsubscribe lists etc will help you spend less time on emails. Taking regular breaks at work may sound counter-productive but research has shown that your consistent level of performance can be maintained while taking short breaks during long tasks. And, taking no breaks decreases your level of performance. Giving yourself a deadline helps in accomplishing the tasks quicker and lets you focus better on the task. For open ended tasks, try giving yourself a deadline and then stick to it. You may be surprised just how focused and productive you can be while watching the clock. Any task that needs less than two minutes to accomplish must be accomplished quickly without a second thought in the mind. Completing the task right-away actually takes less time than having to get back at it later. It is much common among entrepreneurs to get hung on attempting to perfect a task – the reality is nothing is ever perfect. Instead of wasting time chasing a mirage, it is realistic to complete the task to the best of your ability and move on. It is better to complete the task right away, since most times you can come back and improve on the task later. Being pro-active and not reactive helps in accomplishing more than the other way around. By responding to emails and calls for the day, you will be able to put out the fires, but that is all you will be able to do during the day. It means you get dictated by the calls and emails at all times. Instead set aside time to respond to emails, but don’t let them determine what your day is going to look like These are some of the pointers towards increasing your productivity. It is not practical to adopt each one of the points into your life. Instead find a preference for some and you could incorporate these into your life. To improve your productivity further, you could hire a Virtual Assistant (VA) from GetFriday and assign your administrative tasks to your

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It is everyone’s dream to work to their optimum capacity, but there are only 24hrs in a day and in those hours, we have to maximize our efficiency. There is always a plan at the beginning of the day to maximize our productivity at work. But it just becomes a hollow plan by the end of the day. While it may not be everybody’s cup of tea to find out ways to work smarter, here is a list of strategies that will help improve productivity at work. While it may not happen that your working habits undergo a drastic change overnight, it is possible that gradual changes can add up to big changes in productivity. It is best to start with one-tip and follow it up before you can adopt next tip to your schedule. Being accountable to someone at work or announcing your targets to others helps keep you stay on track in the course of your activities and in the long run. It is best to keep in mind that we are humans and have a tendency for slip-ups. Hence, it is with this attitude you should approach productivity improvement tips. Whenever, there is a slip-up it is best to forgive yourself than to brood about it overtime which only adds up to unproductive time. You have to understand that multi-tasking is an over-used term. Studies have very clearly indicated that our brains are not equipped to multi-task and focusing on one task alone will help us accomplish much more than trying to multi-task and accomplish more. It is also seem that while multi-tasking, the brain loses its ability to be creative. The brain is like a muscle the more work we give it, the stronger the muscle is likely to become. By focusing on one single task helps you make those connections stronger. Before you leave work each day, it is best to write down, 5-6 things that you want to accomplish the following day and in a separate page write down personal errands that you would like to accomplish. Keeping the list shorter helps it keep realistic. Have a strategy while you begin each day and stick to it as far as possible. There is a theory and it states that our primal mind craves distraction especially when you are in the course of accomplishing your listed tasks. It so happens that we would turn our attention towards some easy unlisted task such as liking a picture on Facebook or spending more time jotting down the list can also be part of ‘structured procrastination’. So give yourself five-minutes or less to complete writing the list and stick to your list in hand as far as possible without getting distracted. Piles of paper lying on your desk are a sign of unfinished tasks and unorganized work. Since you are lagging behind, the remedy is to delegate the tasks. By delegating you will be able to realize your productivity goals sooner than later. If in case you are not very proficient at something, it is best to ask someone about how to use something more efficiently. This simple request can ensure you are improving your productivity. Another distractor at the work place is e-mail. It is prudent that you embrace e-mail as an ally rather than making it your nemesis. You can manage your email better by dividing your email into two groups – first group requiring quick responses and those needing some degree of thought. You can acknowledge the receipt of the mail for the latter, but can answer the mail after some days. And make it a point to follow through. Another tactic could be to turn off your email notifications for some time, if there is a need to focus on a specific task for 20-30 minutes without distractions. The next thing to do is to learn e-mail management from someone, who is more proficient at it. Learn about different labels, folder, filters, archives and unsubscribe lists etc will help you spend less time on emails. Taking regular breaks at work may sound counter-productive but research has shown that your consistent level of performance can be maintained while taking short breaks during long tasks. And, taking no breaks decreases your level of performance. Giving yourself a deadline helps in accomplishing the tasks quicker and lets you focus better on the task. For open ended tasks, try giving yourself a deadline and then stick to it. You may be surprised just how focused and productive you can be while watching the clock. Any task that needs less than two minutes to accomplish must be accomplished quickly without a second thought in the mind. Completing the task right-away actually takes less time than having to get back at it later. It is much common among entrepreneurs to get hung on attempting to perfect a task – the reality is nothing is ever perfect. Instead of wasting time chasing a mirage, it is realistic to complete the task to the best of your ability and move on. It is better to complete the task right away, since most times you can come back and improve on the task later. Being pro-active and not reactive helps in accomplishing more than the other way around. By responding to emails and calls for the day, you will be able to put out the fires, but that is all you will be able to do during the day. It means you get dictated by the calls and emails at all times. Instead set aside time to respond to emails, but don’t let them determine what your day is going to look like These are some of the pointers towards increasing your productivity. It is not practical to adopt each one of the points into your life. Instead find a preference for some and you could incorporate these into your life. To improve your productivity further, you could hire a Virtual Assistant (VA) from GetFriday and assign your administrative tasks to your

Six Ways To Use Your Newly-Gained Time Post Outsourcing

So, you decided to take the big step and hired a Virtual Assistant to help you get through life’s challenges. Outsourcing was never your top choice, but you had to, owing to the increasing work pressures, the costs of keeping an in-house assistant and the growing responsibilities you had to shoulder at home. Now you’re glad you hired a VA, but what next? What does one do with the free time and how does one transition into the new life with the newly-gained time, effortlessly? Consider why you chose to outsource in the first place. Either you believed that a professional would do a better job than you would at a particular job, the costs of outsourcing were a lot cheaper than if you were to hire an in-house assistant or also because you realized that your children and wife were beginning to forget what you looked like. With outsourcing, you finally got those laborious tasks out of the way and earned yourself a minimum of 2-4 hours for yourself everyday. There’s so much you can do! If you are unsure of how you can use this time productively, take a look at a few of these suggestions- 1) Read A Book Keep yourself abreast with all the reading that you’ve missed out on all these years. Download an e-book if you’re running out of time or walk to the local bookstore to pick out a book you like. If you are a bookworm, there is no better way to spend your time productively than by reading. Reading can help you de-stress and can transport your mind into another world altogether, whilst also helping you sharpen your mind. 2) Prioritize Your ‘Bucket-List’ Activities 2-4 hours is a lot of time to tick at least one of the activities off your bucket-list everyday. Always wanted to sign up for a dance class? Go paragliding or volunteer at a local NGO? With the time you’ve earned from the outsourcing, you could try your hand at the activities that interest you. Finding a hobby or working on one, can help you put your job and/or life in perspective and can help you develop a new set of skills. It will also give you the chance to expand your networking opportunities and is a breath of fresh air when you feel like you’re on the verge of a total burnout. 3) Build A Better Business Ever heard of the adage, ‘Do what you do best and outsource the rest’? Now that you have outsourced all the back-end work to your Virtual Assistant, you will find more time to focus on the core competencies of your business and set better goals. If you have had to manage all the aspects of the business yourself, you will know that your life was nothing short of a nightmare! With outsourcing however, you will find that you have more time to strategize, de-clutter your mind, reorganize your business and govern its primary activities to help it grow and sustain. 4) A Healthy You, Is A Happy You Exercise well, eat healthy and meditate in your spare time. Rather than sitting at home and lazing around, go for a light jog or a long walk. Doing things that keep you feeling fit, physically or mentally can help you lose the stress you’ve been carrying around on your shoulders and will also give you the time to gather your thoughts. Furthermore, exercising regularly can help you discipline your mind, get your endorphins flowing and make you look and feel better. Need more reasons? 5) Spend Time With The Ones You Love If you live with friends or family, spending your free time with them makes absolute sense. Make some time for your children and spouse. Attend your girl’s ballet performance or your son’s big game. Imagine the joy on their faces when they find that both their parents are in attendance. If you’ve missed out on those dinners with your friends or your partner in the last couple of months, make it a point to catch up with them during your free time and show them that you care and you are not anti-social. There is nothing more relaxing than to surround yourself with the people you love and who love you during your free time. 6) Invest Some Time In Personal Care Once you find that you’ve got a flow going with outsourcing and your VA is handling all the work for you, don’t burden yourself with more work during your free time. Instead, invest this time for some personal care. Whether it is something as small as filing your nails, getting some sleep or hitting the spa, ensure that you make time for your personal needs everyday to shed those layers of stress. Though making money is important to make ends meet in today’s time and age, spending time for yourself can make you look and feel like a million bucks. Life after outsourcing can be rewarding if you choose to make it so. The time you’ve earned is precious and limited. Make use of it productively and you’ll automatically find success and will be able to strike the perfect work-life balance in the process.

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So, you decided to take the big step and hired a Virtual Assistant to help you get through life’s challenges. Outsourcing was never your top choice, but you had to, owing to the increasing work pressures, the costs of keeping an in-house assistant and the growing responsibilities you had to shoulder at home. Now you’re glad you hired a VA, but what next? What does one do with the free time and how does one transition into the new life with the newly-gained time, effortlessly? Consider why you chose to outsource in the first place. Either you believed that a professional would do a better job than you would at a particular job, the costs of outsourcing were a lot cheaper than if you were to hire an in-house assistant or also because you realized that your children and wife were beginning to forget what you looked like. With outsourcing, you finally got those laborious tasks out of the way and earned yourself a minimum of 2-4 hours for yourself everyday. There’s so much you can do! If you are unsure of how you can use this time productively, take a look at a few of these suggestions- 1) Read A Book Keep yourself abreast with all the reading that you’ve missed out on all these years. Download an e-book if you’re running out of time or walk to the local bookstore to pick out a book you like. If you are a bookworm, there is no better way to spend your time productively than by reading. Reading can help you de-stress and can transport your mind into another world altogether, whilst also helping you sharpen your mind. 2) Prioritize Your ‘Bucket-List’ Activities 2-4 hours is a lot of time to tick at least one of the activities off your bucket-list everyday. Always wanted to sign up for a dance class? Go paragliding or volunteer at a local NGO? With the time you’ve earned from the outsourcing, you could try your hand at the activities that interest you. Finding a hobby or working on one, can help you put your job and/or life in perspective and can help you develop a new set of skills. It will also give you the chance to expand your networking opportunities and is a breath of fresh air when you feel like you’re on the verge of a total burnout. 3) Build A Better Business Ever heard of the adage, ‘Do what you do best and outsource the rest’? Now that you have outsourced all the back-end work to your Virtual Assistant, you will find more time to focus on the core competencies of your business and set better goals. If you have had to manage all the aspects of the business yourself, you will know that your life was nothing short of a nightmare! With outsourcing however, you will find that you have more time to strategize, de-clutter your mind, reorganize your business and govern its primary activities to help it grow and sustain. 4) A Healthy You, Is A Happy You Exercise well, eat healthy and meditate in your spare time. Rather than sitting at home and lazing around, go for a light jog or a long walk. Doing things that keep you feeling fit, physically or mentally can help you lose the stress you’ve been carrying around on your shoulders and will also give you the time to gather your thoughts. Furthermore, exercising regularly can help you discipline your mind, get your endorphins flowing and make you look and feel better. Need more reasons? 5) Spend Time With The Ones You Love If you live with friends or family, spending your free time with them makes absolute sense. Make some time for your children and spouse. Attend your girl’s ballet performance or your son’s big game. Imagine the joy on their faces when they find that both their parents are in attendance. If you’ve missed out on those dinners with your friends or your partner in the last couple of months, make it a point to catch up with them during your free time and show them that you care and you are not anti-social. There is nothing more relaxing than to surround yourself with the people you love and who love you during your free time. 6) Invest Some Time In Personal Care Once you find that you’ve got a flow going with outsourcing and your VA is handling all the work for you, don’t burden yourself with more work during your free time. Instead, invest this time for some personal care. Whether it is something as small as filing your nails, getting some sleep or hitting the spa, ensure that you make time for your personal needs everyday to shed those layers of stress. Though making money is important to make ends meet in today’s time and age, spending time for yourself can make you look and feel like a million bucks. Life after outsourcing can be rewarding if you choose to make it so. The time you’ve earned is precious and limited. Make use of it productively and you’ll automatically find success and will be able to strike the perfect work-life balance in the process.

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