Posts made in August, 2009

Blawger Survivor Finale

Posted by Laurie on Aug 28, 2009 in blogging | 1 comment

This is officially my last post as part of the Blawger Survivor challenge and I am so excited to have been able to get a post in every single weekday the last three weeks. Sure, half of them came in a mere hour or less before the day’s deadline, but evenings are my quiet work time, so that just was convenient!

A big congrats to the other blawgers who completed the entire challenge:

• Connecticut Employment Law Blog
• Employment Law Blog
• Jeff Krause’s Practice Management Blog
• Leadership, Women, Lawyers
• No Reins Girl
• Taxgirl
• The Connected Lawyer
• The Nutmeg Lawyer

The challenge I think really did get me in the habit of blogging daily and I hope I can stick with it into the fall. Setting aside specific time probably is the solution, although in all honesty I just fit it in wherever worked (as mentioned, usually last thing before shutting down my computer at night!)

Oh, before I go, a huge thank you to one of my biggest supporters during this challenge – and writer of a fabulous “blawg”, Lynne of the Practical Paralegalism blog – thanks Lynne!!!

Time Blocking Tip

Posted by Laurie on Aug 27, 2009 in Time Saving Tips, work life balance | Comments Off

I love summer, but I have to tell you how glad I am that the school vacation part of it is almost over! Besides, fall colors are so pretty, it’s a great season to look forward to. This summer, my multi-tasking abilities were definitely put to the test and my biggest tip for getting everything done: time blocking.

photo credit: wwarby

That’s because while I say I “multi-task”, there are times when too many things going on at once just means you do everything poorly. So I may multi-task when I get a sandwich for the 7 year old, while starting dishes and listening to a story from the 4 year old, I don’t think multi-tasking while actually doing client work is effective.

There are multiple ways to use time-blocking in your work, whether your are a virtual assistant, a lawyer or even a student. I like the suggestions over at Croll Organizing, because it is similar to how I manage my day.  Meredith of Yellow Highlighter VA has a good method as well.

I personally spend time on my email first thing in the am, then I pick a project and spend dedicated time on it. Then I take a Twitter break, then another work project, etc. Of course I also block in time for fun with the kids – today we walked to the park!

I like to use the timer on my stove for measuring time blocks, the kids then know when the buzzer sounds that it is the end of work time for that block and they can have my attention. Doesn’t help much with the toddler yet – but at least the older two get it!

Working from Home With Kids

Posted by Laurie on Aug 26, 2009 in clients, Family, work life balance | Comments Off

I readily admit that one of the driving factors behind my having started my virtual legal assistant business is to be more available to my children. And especially in this first year of business, I’m growing slowly enough not to have needed much in the way of childcare, and yet I can still meet my clients’ needs. I love how the internet can help me do this!!

As I get busier and busier though, I am faced with the types of concerns that plague work from home parents everywhere. How do I manage things like phone calls when I have a toddler underfoot? I’m lucky in that my older two kids will be in school shortly and that gives me 2 days a week where it’s only the toddler at home with me. I’ve even, finally, begun the process of finding some childcare for him, but full-time care isn’t really in my plans right now and that means there are going to be times when I must either find a way to keep him busy while on the phone with a client or during an interview, or risk looking very unprofessional.

Thankfully the same beautiful internet that offers me so many opportunities and so much information doesn’t come up short with suggestions for how to work around this problem. There’s the list of 94 ways to keep kids busy over at Sparkplugging, 15 activities from the At Home Mom Blog, 10 independent play activities from About.com and a great general advice article on working from home with kids from Jonathan Lane at Canada.com.

Of course if I could ever just find that mute button that actually works on kids, that would be the ideal solution….in my dreams anyway!

Masterminds and Mentors

Posted by Laurie on Aug 25, 2009 in Entrepreneurial, Inspiration, virtual legal assistance | 2 comments

I’ve been thinking about becoming part of a Mastermind group or mentor/mentee relationship for some time now, and last night (when I should have been sleeping!) I read a great post from the Build a Solo Practice Blog over at Solo Practice University about why solo practitioners need a mastermind group. Whether you are a lawyer, a virtual assistant or any other kind of business owner, there are good options available for you. For example, if you are a virtual assistant there is a colleague I really respect, Alyssa Gregory, who has just started an intriguing looking program at VAHub, called the VAHub Club. Definitely worth looking into, especially if you are a new or aspiring VA!

I’ve personally looked at a variety of options for a mastermind group, ideally with other virtual legal assistants. There are some paid options, but my personal preference is for a small group with no fee, where everyone in the group would be treated as equals, although some members are likely to be more experienced than others.  I think a better group dynamic will be achieved without paying a fee. But I could be wrong and some people may not take it seriously without paying. Any thoughts from my wonderful readers on this topic?

I am definitely going to include this in my development plan – to help grow Halo Secretarial into my vision of what a virtual legal assistant business can be, a mastermind group surely can only help! Now, to figure out exactly how to get started…

Fitness Advice for Business

Posted by Laurie on Aug 24, 2009 in Inspiration | Comments Off

I’m starting a bit of a personal mission right now, to improve my health, and a couple of the books I’m reading  that are intended to give me advice on being a healthier person, actually have some great advice that is applicable whether you are concentrating on self-improvement, weight loss or growing your business. I love that ideas for one part of my life can really help me in other areas.

For example, one of the big pieces of advice was about positive affirmations. I know affirmations can be powerful. I’ve read about it before, but have not ever gone really far in implementing what I’ve read. Silly, huh? I work hard on growing my business, I believe in myself, but I need to go one step further. I’m adding some great affirmation blogs to my reader right now, and I’m going to have the right affirmations for me, and for Halo Secretarial, set by the end of this week.

This is going to be great!