Eat Your Career

APRIL 17, 2012

One of the most common complaints I hear has to do with something that is so fundamentally a part of the modern workplace, it’s almost impossible to avoid. Yes, I’m talking about the dreaded interruption. We all have to deal with it, though admittedly, some have it worse than others. A client of mine recently shared her very frustrating situation. You see, due to the office layout, her desk was out in the open, right by the front door, making her a sitting duck.

Management 212

Management Cubicle Negotiating Phones 212

Office Organization Success

APRIL 30, 2012

Being consistent in your business is one of the critical factors for ensuring long-term growth, and one of the ways to ensure consistency is to create systems. Everything you do in your business, from responding to emails to working with clients, needs to be systemized and documented, so that it’s very easy to create a repeatable process in your business.

Email 206

Email 2012 Phones Management 206

Eco-Office Gals

APRIL 20, 2012

I recently had the opportunity to try out the Zerowater system. Zerowater is a water filtration pitcher, with a twist. It comes with a tester for your water – called s TDS (Total Dissolved Solids) tester. The TDS meter helps put a number on what your taste buds already tell you about what’s in water. The higher the reading on the water, the more things dissolved in water.

2012 206

2012 AT&T UPS 206

Job Advice Blog

APRIL 22, 2012

A recent article of mine covered most people’s lack of efficacy in practicing their elevator pitches at job search networking meetings. I wanted to follow up on that and prove my tenets, so I brainstormed with a group of trusted associates—all of whom are in transition—and we came up with some “best practices.” Following are [.].

Networking 193

Networking UPS Interviewing Skills 193

Speaker: Joe Sharpe and James Carlson

Payroll optimization can be one of the most time-consuming and complex factors of small business management. Yet, organizations that crack the code on streamlining employee compensation often discover innovative avenues for growth. With the right strategies in place, outsourcing and streamlining payroll processes can result in substantial time and resource savings.

Payroll

The Small Business Blog

APRIL 18, 2012

Continuing on from yesterday, we are busting myths about bootstrapping and sharing tips from the professionals. Here are the rest of our 10 business owners sharing information on how they bootstrap their business, how to get free stuff and what the challenges are (these are in no particular order): 6.

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Stephanie LH Calahan

APRIL 13, 2012

OK, you may be thinking that I've lost my mind in telling you that paper holds emotion.  Maybe I have!  However, I also know that when I'm working with my clients, letting go is extremely hard for most.  So why is it so hard?  There is emotion to it! As you are looking to simplify and move your business to the next level, be prepared to face a sense of loss as you let go of certain possessions.

Gifts 176

Gifts Legal Expenses Filing 176

Productivity Bits

APRIL 27, 2012

I recently came across the 501 etymology and I thought of borrowing the concept over to productivity; thus, The 501 Productivity. The phrase “ 5:01 developer ” was coined to describe a “developer who bolts out the door at 1 minute past 5pm.” We’ve worked with these people – when the clock strikes at the 5:00 PM mark, they’re gone for the day.

Goals 169

Goals Facebook AT&T Learning 169

Small Business Labs

APRIL 13, 2012

Lot's of recent news about the continued growth of the contingent workforce, which is the term the corporate world uses for what we call the independent workforce - freelancers, contractors, independent consultants, temps, etc. Recent articles on this topic from the corporate point of view include: 1.  Aberdeen Research reports that  26% of the average company’s workforce is contingent.  This is up from the 24% they found in last year's study.  Both studies focuse

Temping 166

Temping 2020 2012 Management 166

Job Advice Blog

APRIL 29, 2012

Think what the interview is all about. Sorry, but it’s not about you. It’s about the interviewer’s perception regarding your fit into the organization’s culture combined with your ability to perform the job very well. No interviewer is looking for Mr. Average. So, what does the word perception include here? Primarily two issues: the image [.].

Interviewing 180

Interviewing Skills Management 180

The Small Business Blog

APRIL 30, 2012

Top 5 Tips posts from the SME Blog are always full of hints and tips for small, home & micro business owners. 1. If you found the tax deadline to be very stressful, it is likely that you are doing something wrong throughout the year.

Stress 177

Stress 177

Speaker: Tim Buteyn, President of ThinkingKap Learning Solutions

Join this brand new webinar with Tim Buteyn to learn how you can master the art of remote onboarding! By the end of this session, you'll understand how to: Craft a Tailored Onboarding Checklist 📝 Develop a comprehensive, customized checklist that ensures every new hire has a smooth transition into your company, no matter where they are in the world.

Equipment

Stephanie LH Calahan

APRIL 11, 2012

I was talking with a small business owner earlier this week and sharing a bit about what I do.  He instantly told me that he could use our services, but did not have time to put anything new in place.  He shared that he feels overwhelmed performing daily tasks and he does not have time to engage his prospects or maintain a strong connection with his current customers or even assign tasks to his staff.

Stress 173

Stress AT&T UPS 173

Virtual Moxie

APRIL 9, 2012

A new one here at VMoxie… a Pick Anastacia’s Brain question from a client! Henry wrote: I’m so confused. I don’t really know whether to work with one of those VA companies in India, a VA in the US who has her own business and works alone, or a woman I met at a conference who has a team working under her. I’m a consultant, and I need general admin help, help with my social media, some design help (I need a new logo), and help with my web copy and SEO-and that’s just to start.

Elance 170

Elance Social Media 170

Step It Up VA Coaching

APRIL 12, 2012

by Donna Toothaker. When it comes right down to it, our most valuable business resource is our time. If you’re like me, you have created systems and outsourced certain tasks so you can make the most of the time you have doing the most important things (like building and marketing your business). This has allowed you to ultimately work less for more, and spend more time with your loved ones, and doing things you love.

Phones 165

Phones UPS 165

Productivity Bits

APRIL 20, 2012

Preemptive Multitasking is a term in computing used to describe the operating system’s behavior of permitting “preemption of tasks” in distributing the computer processor resources. To make the idea clearer, we’ll let Mr. Wikipedia define the concept to us: “ Preemptive multitasking involves the use of an interrupt mechanism which suspends the currently executing process and invokes a scheduler to determine which process should execute next.

AT&T 164

AT&T UPS 164

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Management

Job Advice Blog

APRIL 16, 2012

I frequent job search networking groups where people stand up and recite what’s called the elevator pitch. Ideally, people are supposed to be able to concisely sum up unique professional aspects about themselves in a way that intrigues and excites listeners so that the listeners will want to connect later—for mutual benefit—with the one giving [.].

Networking 173

Networking UPS Interviewing Skills 173

The Small Business Blog

APRIL 23, 2012

Top 5 Tips posts from the SME Blog are always full of hints and tips for small, home & micro business owners. 1. Make sure that you set achievable goals for your team to give them something to work together for. 2.

Collaborate 172

Collaborate Goals Skills 172

Office Dynamics

APRIL 4, 2012

Welcome to the Who Took My Pen. Again? Annual Blog-a-thon for Administrative Professionals. If you are just tuning in, here's the scoop! We are holding the 4th Annual Blog-a-thon for the Administrative Profession. We hold this blog-a-thon each April and the goal is to make assistants aware of the resources available to them and build a community of administrative assistant and executive assistants who want to learn and grow and flourish in their career of choice!

Skills 164

Skills Administrative Professionals Learning Goals 164

Office Organization Success

APRIL 16, 2012

I recently held a virtual workshop where I talked about the three biggest mistakes I see many business owners making in their business, which leaves them feeling overwhelmed, frustrated, and basically stuck. One of those mistakes I shared was having the right systems in place, but in the wrong order. Let me explain a bit more…. Over the 10 years I have been in business, I have become aware that there is a very specific order in which to build your business, and if you do any of this out of order

Management 161

Management Facebook UPS 161

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Sharing your authentic self in a virtual interview can be an unwanted challenge. How do you break through the digital barrier when conducting a virtual interview and share your exceptional self? Think in unconventional ways to elevate the virtual interviewing experience.

Interviewing

Virtual Moxie

APRIL 2, 2012

Kelly wrote in to Pick Anastacia’s Brain to ask: Your Moxie tip about making explicit agreements really grated on me! It’s not that I think you’re wrong, Anastacia, in fact, I know you’re right! But it grates on me because it feels so confining. I like things to be easy, and organic, and for things to just come together almost as if God himself is orchestrating them.

Calendars 160

Calendars UPS Training 160

Productivity Bits

APRIL 12, 2012

A sure way to lighten your workload and instantly boost your productivity is by way of delegation. Or there is another option to that. If you cannot delegate, automate. This is how it usually works. You delegate or automate the least important stuff on your To-Do list to pave way for more space, and thereby time, that you will put back to your main work pool.

Email 163

Email AT&T Networking UPS 163

Job Advice Blog

APRIL 7, 2012

As a career coach, I am at times asked for such advice as whether I believe a person is a good fit for the person’s current profession or some future one. Usually, I refer such a case to my business partner, who is a well-qualified and experienced career counselor who meets with clients several times [.].

Interviewing 160

Interviewing Skills 160

The Small Business Blog

APRIL 4, 2012

It must be Easter soon, or some other major holiday, because I’m thinking (or more dreaming in my case) about travelling and quite possible not coming back. You know what I mean, the sort of ‘ I’m going now and I maybe a while…’ holiday.

UPS 168

UPS Holidays Travel 168

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Policies

Office Dynamics

APRIL 25, 2012

You know the old adage that two brains are better than one? Well, think of this in terms of partnering with your leader. We can definitely do great things individually but when we join forces with our leader we can be extraordinary! This excerpt from Who Took My Pen…Again proves a great point: Support. Partner with Your Leader. Do you partner with your leader?

Forms 159

Forms Goals 159

Eco-Office Gals

APRIL 24, 2012

Do you strive for a green lifestyle? It can sometimes be a struggle to keep with the latest green trends as you live your busy life. However, you might be surprised to learn how changing small facets of your everyday life can add up to big changes for preserving the planet. Making Your House a Green House. Thinking about ways to save the planet can sure keep you up at night.

Attire 159

Attire Gifts Environment Lifestyle 159

Small Business Labs

APRIL 19, 2012

Two good articles from Bloomberg Business Week highlighting a huge issue that is not getting enough attention - the lack of men getting college educations.   The chart below is from Men are Becoming the Undereducated Gender and shows the long-standing college education gap between women and men.       Even more alarming, the gap is forecast to grow with 60% of all college students being women in 2019 (up from 57% in 2011).  Why this is a huge problem is covere

2019 156

2019 2011 Skills UPS 156

Virtual Moxie

APRIL 23, 2012

. Jaime wrote to pick my brain : “Anastacia, yesterday's tip struck home for me. I don't want to struggle, or, as you said, "row against a strong tide." I'm not entirely clear about what that (fit) means. In what way(s) should there be “fit?” Do my clients and I have to be on the same page about everything?”. Great question! No one can ever be on the same page with another human about everything.

Interviewing 152

Interviewing Collaborate Learning UPS 152

Speaker: Tim Buteyn, President of ThinkingKap Learning Solutions

💢 Do you find yourself stuck in never-ending review cycles? Are you wondering if your Subject Matter Expert actually got that last review request? Are you having trouble trying to decipher impractical or conflicting feedback? 💢 If any of these scenarios sounds familiar, you may benefit from a crash course on managing SME relationships!

Collaborate

Eat Your Career

APRIL 4, 2012

On a recent free coaching call , I heard from a loyal blog reader who was feeling distraught. In a nutshell, her situation was this: After interviewing for almost six months, she thought it as a “sure thing” that she’d be offered a new position in her department. Then, as if from nowhere, an external candidate was selected for the role. After all the time and energy she had committed to this, she was left feeling frustrated, demotivated and betrayed.

Promotion 146

Promotion Skills Facebook Google 146

The Small Business Blog

APRIL 2, 2012

With an increasing number of banks either ending their small business lending or placing more and stronger restrictions on access to small business loans, it should come as no surprise that business owners are turning to other sources to find the working capital needed to grow their companies.

Equipment 167

Equipment 167

Office Dynamics

APRIL 17, 2012

“It’s not what you know but who you know that makes the difference.” Have you heard that line before? It’s true in the sense that the person who actively creates a reputable brand for themselves with genuine relationships will see more opportunity simply because there is a broader network of people in the world who know who they are, what they are capable of and know this is a genuine person they feel they can trust.

Administrative Professionals 159

Administrative Professionals Networking Business Cards Goals 159

Office Organization Success

APRIL 12, 2012

Suzanne Evans shared so much valuable and wonderful information during her 3-day event … attendees walked away with a huge binder-full of information. So I thought I’d share with you my top five take-aways from the event. 1. The way you do anything is the way you do everything. Recognize how you show up in your life and your business, and how it plays out for you.

Credit Card 144

Credit Card Business Cards AT&T Networking 144

Speaker: Tim Buteyn

Let's set the scene: you’ve identified a critical performance gap in your organization and need to close that gap. A colleague suggests training, but you suspect there’s something going on that training can’t address. How can you determine if training is the right solution before you commit your budget and resources to a new training program? In this webinar, you will learn how to determine if training is the right solution using the Behavior Engineering Model.

Training