Since the very beginning we have been involved with Talking News Islington charity. It has been set up by a group of volunteers who wanted to provide a valuable service to the blind and partially-sighted in London Boroughs of Islington and Camden. There are Talking News in many parts of the UK, produced similarly by volunteers. The News are recorded and posted to anyone registered to receive it on a CD or tape, the users listen to the news and send back to the charity. The service is free and relies on donations and funding. continue

How do you rate your time management skills? Do you feel you get a lot done every day? Do you plan your day to the last detail or just “go with the flow” and deal with whatever landed on your desk/in your inbox? Whichever category you are in, it’s important that you take time to analyse what’s working for you and make adjustments where necessary.

I’m someone who’s fond of written to-do lists. I’ve got my hardcover diary where I scribble every day my lists and feel great emotional empowerment once all items on my to-do list have been ticked off. I add my meetings there too, any trivial household tasks like getting the shopping or doing the school run. In this way I know exactly how much time I’ve got between “fixed” commitments and can schedule and organise the rest of the tasks in between those.

Here are some tips from the born organisers (aka “virtual PAs”) for organising your day:

1. Write it down.
Make a list and write everything down – on paper, on computer, in Excel, on iPhone or Blackberry. It doesn’t matter where but it’s got to be written! You may be shocked, surprised and overwhelmed looking at your list of ‘to do’s’. But don’t despair – as they will all get done, if you follow the steps below. Also, don’t forget to schedule lunch in your diary, especially if you find yourself often working through your lunch break!

Another tip I’ve picked up from Nigel Botterill (UK top entrepreneur) – “this day isn’t over until tomorrow is planned”. Don’t stop the work until you’ve done the list. In this way you won’t waste time in the morning and you will be more likely to stick to your list/plan rather than changing everything because of an email that landed in the Inbox overnight. continue

3-in-1 that work as One!

Over the past year we have been searching high and low for a super-efficient business system we can use in TJConsulting and offer to our clients. And finally, after trying and testing, reading 100s of reviews – it’s here.

It consists of 3 parts, but don’t despair – they all work as One, efficient, online, affordable solution. And they are…. Xero, Capsule and MailChimp.

Xero is the accounting system of the 21st century. If you are not an accountant and dread “reconciliation” or “P&L” – this is the system for you. It’s very simple to use, you can access it from anywhere with an Internet connection and it’s secure.

Capsule is an online Contact Relationship Management (CRM) tool that will integrate with Xero – so you only have to enter your data once. You can track leads and conversion, manage information, analyse sales and productivity, and (yet again) it’s very simple to use!

MailChimp is used to send your newsletters, mailshots and autoresponders. Without being repetitive – it’s simple, clean, straightforward. It can send regular newsletters and schedule a series of messages. MailChimp can integrate with a large number of social media networks, Eventbrite (for event bookings) and is a top-rated social media tool (according to mashable.com).

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I’ve been sending out a lot recently the link to our online survey (what you STILL haven’t received it?! here it is again: http://tjconsultinguk.wufoo.com/forms/online-marketing-survey-tjconsulting-va/). I do love @DesignerDepot links and tweets – some have great design ideas and tips. “VA, delegation, call [answering], time [management], admin, emails [management], [virtual] working” – are all good words illustrating what we do and how we add value to our clients. What are you talking about on Twitter? Connect with me and let’s stay in touch. continue

A recent survey by Monster.co.uk asked just under 3000 people “Is overtime considered the norm in your workplace?”

56% find themselves regularly working extra hours for no extra cash. Only 25% are paid for extra work. Only 12% reported that overtime was the exception and 7% said that they were encouraged by managers to leave on time.

Pressures from the recession and the fear to lose the job when the unemployment rate is so high caused many people to work extra hours in the fear of being “replaced”. However, if you don’t have time for extra work – explain why you can’t do it or at least can’t do it within the proposed timescale. Be confident, sincere and calm about it. If you start sounding apologetic your colleagues could assume that with persistence or by ignoring your objections they get you to agree.

At the busiest periods in your business why not use a virtual assistant to help with the additional workload! You don’t need to “hire and fire” a VA all the time, compared with a temporary employee, spending time on training and hand over. A virtual assistant can be a great asset for any business which you can bring on board as and when required, for as many hours per day or per week as you see fit. A VA can help with general administrative duties and well as to cover the skills gap in the business – like updating the website, creating promotional materials, online marketing or book-keeping. If one of your executive assistants if on holiday or off sick, you don’t need to worry about sufficiency of cover provided by other PAs. Using a VA can provide all the support your executives need on a day to day basis.

Contact us now on 020 8144 4594 to find out more and for a free consultation.