The Working Blog
Working Tips, Working Chronicles, Working Confidence
Choosing to take your work-life to a remote setting is a major decision. The good news is that in today’s tech savvy internet driven society, this option is a real living reality. Many freelancers, contractors and traditional 9 to 5 workers need and desire more flexibility, a way to be in control of their earnings and more ways to gain new working experience from clients and companies with an active and strong online presence.
Here are some reminders covering the basics on what to anticipate prior to (and during) the launch of working remotely. Income may be like a rollercoaster, at first. You might be starting out with unstable income in the beginning. It's O.K. to take on a couple of clients in the beginning at a discount rate for a trial period, to build your confidence and to help you adjust and decide which services you prefer to offer. If I could give my best advice here, I would say pricing yourself competitively though, is better. The sooner you are making a competitive income going remote, the lighter the financial hurdle will be. In the meantime, create a budget, know what your living expense needs are, live within or below your means until you are in a steadier income flow. It may take some time to tailor your services or find the right role online. If you have skills in a wide variety of an administrative capacity, it may be easy to fall into the category of doing it all in a role because that’s what you are used to doing when you were in an office. However, in a remote space, there’s plenty of room to focus on some core skill sets and strengths. I suggest choosing the services or roles that you are the most confident in and find enjoyment doing and take some free or low cost online classes to enhance these skills and build others. Promoting yourself as soon as possible is your new priority. As soon as you are able, get a website, webpage and/or social media site up that promotes your services or skills. You can refer and share your services or promote your skills online. I’d strongly encourage a LinkedIn profile if nothing else at first. This way, you can start attracting companies or clients. Share the news with close friends and family and follow-up as soon as you can with any leads. There may be some lonely days ahead but find groups online or within your community to engage with. Not all roles will have teams. Sometimes you may be working one on one with one client. It's good to have a few other remote workers to be able to chat with and share resources, just like a team. Tap into those resources online, join an online remote community or create your own! Here are additional helpful ideas and tips for transitioning to remote work. 15 Remote Work Tips I Wish I'd Known About Sooner (buzzfeed.com) Remote Working Tips - Work from Home for Beginners - Hivevine.com (theremotehive.com) 5 tips for working from home to maintain productivity | FreeWill 9 Low-Cost Ways to Promote Your Business Online | Indeed.com How to start a website from A to Z: A 5-step guide - GoDaddy Blog How To Write Your Remote Job Resume | Indeed.com Solopreneur Institute | Slack Community
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Figuring out if a role is right for you isn't always easy. If you are just starting out as freelance professional or simply looking for a career change, these tips could save you time or shed light on what IS or ISN'T a good collaboration or project.
Signs of a GOOD collaboration or project. There is something in it for you. Even if you are applying for a role, there should be something about the role that makes it worth your time too. Your personal well-being as also a factor. The best collaborations talk through all the things you may need to be successful at your role in the project, be it time, space, money and also a good fit for your personality as well. You have access to the best possible resources. Not all projects will have top notch processes or tools, but they should at least have an open door to allow you to maximize available resources they have. You feel comfortable with the environment and team to let them know when things aren't working well for you. Good potential collaborators want to talk through anything that may be hinderances in the process and are open to good honest feedback and ways to kick off right. You are able to talk through moments of inactivity with a project. It's not uncommon to have some deadlines that need adjustments. It's a good idea to talk through what might be needed to keep all involved accountable to their roles prior to the start of a project. If you are already in the middle of a project, here are some tips on how to get the project back on track. Signs of a NOT so good collaboration or project. You're not given adequate time to make decisions. If you are being rushed to join a project or make fast decisions within a project that you have not been given time to investigate and offer you best, this may not be a good fit. You're left trying to figure out how to make time, space or monetary gains from your work within the project, and it wasn't your pitch! Or you are invested, and you have not seen a return or gain on your efforts. You feel something OFF about it. If you are already involved in a project, you feel dread anytime you think about working on it. You don't sense a genuine priority from the other collaborators. You may even end being the only person working on the project, or asking genuine questions, or making suggestions to "an empty room" about how to move forward. You receive cut remarks and slights in the name of "constructive criticism". There is no place for this kind of behavior in any collaboration or project ever. If you begin to experience this and you have made it known that this is not O.K. for you, cut ties immediately. You may want to make a list of questions to ask prior to getting involved with a new role, collaboration or project. This list will help you get started. If you are considering a virtual assistant or already have one, I have listed one of the most common inconsistency that can shake and rattle the bonds between you and your online help and how you can take action to rebuild the connection and get your projects back on track!
The Issue: Leaving important project questions unanswered. Not responding and long gaps between communication when a project is in an active phase can quickly slow a project down. When a virtual assistant is left too long without your input on questions that will help move a project forward, or you have placed your attention too long somewhere else, a virtual assistant may see this as a sign that this project is no longer actively a priority and they will divert their attention to other projects on in their workload that are moving forward. The Repair: Catch up on all the project notes already available to you before adding additional requests. Many projects are managed through online support/project platforms that allow you to comment and make several updates all in the same place. Set aside time to review any and every note. If there are action items that need your attention personally before things can move forward, tackle those items so that when you approach a virtual assistant about updates, you are prepared for the conversation. The Issue: Waiting too long to recommit yourself to your project's process. There may be instances where a virtual assistant will seek to renegotiate or propose a new working arrangement with you, if they see that adjustments need to be made so that they can move forward working with you in the best possible way. When this happens, it is best to review and promptly respond to this new idea or arrangement. What's most important is that you personally show your commitment to your own project's success. You may conclude that you are no longer in need of services or need to resume at another time. Bonus Tip: If you have plans to be away for a duration of time during an active phase of a project, take time to let your virtual assistant know when you plan to be away, confirm the focus of the project during your away time and when you plan to respond to questions they may have about your project. It's likely that a virtual assistant may have to honor arrangements with other projects that may be a little further along. Either way, you can still have a positive acquaintanceship with a virtual assistant, even if the project or tasks have come to an end! |
AuthorNherie is a creative freelancer who enjoys creativity, teaching & writing about best administrative or business practices and virtual assisting. Archives
January 2022
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