Archive for the ‘Work at Home’ Category

The Sick Day

Friday, November 13th, 2009

This has all the makings of a classic home movie:

✔ pj’s,
✔ bad hair,
✔ a stuffed elephant,
✔ and nose picking all in 3 minutes.

LOL, enjoy. ♥

Video diary from: October 30, 2009.

This is the first video I edited with Microsoft Movie Maker. It was pretty easy to use, but I got quite generic amateur results with it. :) I’ll try something new next time.

This excerpt is from the new virtualitassistants youtube channel:

Even when you are a work at home parent, you will probably have to work when you’re a little under the weather. However, when your kid is sick, you don’t have to send them to preschool sick. Bubba only had a small fever, but it got up to 101.8 the day before. The beauty of working out my own hours is, he could stay home and get better. And don’t worry, he did get to go trick or treating the next day after 24 hours of being fever free. :)

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Reflect and Move On

Saturday, October 3rd, 2009

The September Work Smart Challenge at Work at Home Parents on facebook was:

Before the holidays creep up on you, your challenge is to FIND ONE TASK (or more if you’d like) that you are responsible for completing and find a way to AUTOMATE that task. Whether it be activating that free automated bill pay service that your bank provides with your checking account, or taking advantage of that appointment application that has always been on your cell phone to keep track of your dentist and hair appointments. Just find something that will make your life easier and do it. Working smart is all about forming good habits.

Discoveries that will hopefully to make life easier:

Researching Voice Recognition Software: Get voice recordings transcribed into text versions.

  • YouMail.com – subscription for the first 10-15 seconds per voicemail is 3.99 per month, and if you want the entirety of each voicemail transcribed it’s 6.99 per month. Each subscription is limited to 50 voicemails
  • Jott.com offers 40 full voicemail transcriptions to text for 9.95 per month.
  • MessageSling vs. YouMail – An older post at lifehacker.com compares these 2.

What is so cool about this exactly? My thoughts are: brainstorming. When I have a great idea for a blog post or even hear about something that I want to research, I either have to write it down on a piece of scrap paper (and then probably lose it), call myself and leave myself a voicemail or text myself and my cellphone is kinda past it’s prime and txting isn’t exactly easy. So inevitably I have to type it out later anyways right? Not if I have a good service that will do the typing and the saving for me! – So, that was my answer to the worksmart challenge. :)

September is over. Happy October!

Misc Work Smart Side Note: Learn Keyboard Shortcuts:
Microsoft Windows
Mac OS X
Linux

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Make Cents of Adsense

Sunday, July 26th, 2009

Piggy Banks
What is Google adsense? Adsense is Google’s affiliate program that allows you to advertise for related site products and services. You have probably seen the people who have the scanned picture of the BIG paychecks they have received from Google. Well, I’ll tell you one thing is for sure. I don’t have one.  But in my research, I have learned more and more about the best practices for earning money from Google. And it’s working! Here are 7 of the best sites I have found to help me work on my adsense etiquette.
1. http://itstechsense.blogspot.com/search/label/adsense

2. http://infodigest-infodigest.blogspot.com/2009/05/make-easy-money-with-adsense-niche-blog.html

3. http://onlinemoneywithgoogleadsense.blogspot.com/2009/01/make-money-from-your-blog.html 

4. http://myearningtips.blogspot.com/2009/05/can-i-earn-from-adsense.html

5. http://pakearngoogle.blogspot.com/

6. http://googleadsensebigearnings.blogspot.com/

7. http://smart-life-tips.blogspot.com/ - This last page is not for google adsense alone, but it has some really informative reviews for many many other alternatives to google adsense for money-making online.

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101 Reasons to Work at Home

Saturday, July 18th, 2009

A special dedication to stay at home moms and stay at home dads.

virtual office

  1. Because you don’t want to miss out on raising your kids.
  2. Because of all the resources available on this fabulous internet, you can really start for free.
  3. But you should have the option to stay on your career path.
  4. Have the control to live a healthy, balanced life.
  5. It’s good for business people to outsource work to brilliant people like you.You can add a few hours to their over-booked days.
  6. So you can work whenever you like.
  7. So you can work wherever you like.
  8. So you can stay connected to the “outside” world.
  9. Because you have to prove to your past & future employers that you can be a great parent, and still do a heck of a job.
  10. Because you already have a computer and an internet connection. (XP speed up tips)
  11. You already know where to get a free logo
  12. You know that you need to decide between setting up a website or a blog.
  13. You know how to get traffic to your website.
  14. You know where to setup a free email address for your business.
  15. You already know what type of jobs you can do online.
  16. You know where you can set up a free web site or blog.
  17. You don’t want to spend 260 hours a year (almost an entire 24 hr day per month) commuting.
  18. Your skills don’t have to get rusty.
  19. Your kids will appreciate it. As long as you can keep a balance of work and family.
  20. You know that you should NOT work longer than 2 hours a day!
  21. You want to go to college and finish that degree you planned on finishing before you had kids.
  22. You need more than 5 hours of sleep every night.
  23. You want to eat healthier than the take out food you always get with your coworkers (and you know you have to out with your coworkers when invited, otherwise you are viewed as either stuck up or just boring! hehehe)
  24. You can sit down and write out a business plan for yourself.
  25. You have to come first in your life, even if you’re a parent.
  26. You know that if you aren’t happy, you aren’t going to be the best parent you can be.
  27. Or the best spouse or partner.
  28. Have a better sex life. (Hey, when you aren’t so exhausted, great things happen!)
  29. You know why a social network is important.
  30. So you can help people
  31. So you can get paid for helping people.
  32. You know where to find work at home jobs.
  33.  You know NEVER to give out your credit card or bank account numbers to someone who is hiring you for work at home. (If they are asking for money from you, it’s a SCAM)
  34. A balanced life is the only way to live.
  35. So that you can live in the moment. . .
  36. Not live getting to the moment.
  37. You OWN twitter (not really but), you do have access to all the best twitter tools.
  38. You know better than to over promise your time.
  39. So you can fully appreciate the very high tech machines that roll up the toilet paper at the toilet paper factory, when your 2 year old unravels it almost every time he goes potty. You can never roll it back up as neatly as it was.
  40. You miss too many little things.
  41. First steps.
  42. First words.
  43. And too many other firsts to count.
  44. You know this is what life is all about.
  45. You are honest.
  46. Your goal is to stay on your career path.
  47. Business professionals need people like you to outsource your talents.
  48. You can stop and go to the park whenever you want to.
  49. So you can learn what it is to just be where you are.
  50. Watch Dr. Phil or Oprah and work on something tedious at the same time, when doing repetitive work, it can be helpful to add background noise in the room.
  51. You have one spot in your house that can be dedicated to your physical workspace.
  52. Listen to your favorite music.
  53. Make up your own rules.
  54. Do the work that you want to do.
  55. You can either Live to Work or Work to Live.
  56. You have access to some creative advertizing possibilities.
  57. Enjoy working with whomever you want to work with.
  58. Become an Expert.
  59. You can google free online training on almost any online job.
  60. Work in your pjs or a business suit, whatever you feel like putting on.
  61. Even if you are on disability, you can still share your values and experience with the business world.
  62. You will have increased productivity if you don’t have to worry about where your child is.
  63. And you know to keep all your work stuff on one computer and to back it up weekly at least.
  64. No more over paying for pop machine drinks.
  65. Keep your kids away from daily doses of the germs they’ll come in contact with at day care. Let’s be honest, they get enough virus and bacteria exposure at the park, library and grocery store.
  66. Keep your office at a temperature that is comfortable for you.
  67. You don’t have to work for hours on end. Everyone knows that your attention span is NOT 8 hours long.
  68. You don’t have to restrict yourself to one employer.
  69. Job security is difficult to measure in an economic recession.
  70. Stop paying thousands of dollars a year for daycare.
  71. Save the mileage on your vehicle.
  72. You shouldn’t have to choose career over kids.
  73. Find your mission in your professional life.
  74. Pay the bills.
  75. Take a vacation.
  76. You can stock your fridge with your favorite healthy snacks and drinks.
  77. As working parents, we never get to take sick days for ourselves. In fact we are used to working when we are sick, but now if you get the sniffles it’s not so miserable.
  78. You don’t have to send your kids to school or daycare when they are sick. (You know how it is, hearing them say they don’t feel good yet hoping you can get through a meeting before you get the call from school.)
  79. Have dinner ready on time.
  80. Have time for your friends, your parents, your in-laws and grandparents.
  81. So parenthood doesn’t have to be just your part time job.
  82. You can network with other stay at home parents. (In fact visit my profiles and add me!) You’ll never have to be lonely.
  83. I read somewhere “I am my best person when I don’t have too much on my plate.”
  84. Appreciate what it that feels like.
  85. Stop and play an online game until your afternoon caffeinated tea kicks in!
  86. Peace of mind that you have found a solution.
  87. No more cubicles – at least till your kids go to elementary school.
  88. It is more rewarding than you can imagine.
  89. You have the “know how”, you can setup the “how to”.
  90. Become free.
  91. Become strong and healthy.
  92. You only live once.
  93. You are the only one in control of your life.
  94. You are the only one to blame.
  95. You are the only one to esteem.
  96. Live your life to your fullest potential.
  97. Choose your hourly wages.
  98. You can decide when you are ready to rejoin the real business world. And since you have stayed connected to it virtually, it won’t be a difficult re-transition.
  99. Your kids will motivate you, and enrich your life more than you can understand as an 8-5er.
  100. So you can eat all the plastic food and drink as much tap water out of tiny teacups as you want. ;)
  101. And finally, among all the decisions you make in a lifetime, you won’t regret this one.
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Work at Home

Monday, July 13th, 2009

Where to find it.

craigslistcraigslist

Start with finding your country, state, then the city located closest to you. Look under jobs, and you’ll find lots of great virtual job choices under “Gigs”. If you don’t see anything you are qualified to do, then look in other cities in the state or surrounding states. After all, working from home doesn’t require looking for work within commuting distance. Right? When you find your niche or your groove, you will be capable of having clients all over the world!

elance

Freelance writing and coding jobs galore!

guru

If you have a specialty, go post a profile.

If you need someone with a specialty, go post your project.

odesk

This has really earned a sort of bad rep from established professional online consultants, virtual assistants and freelancers. The reason is because it is known as the “online clearance section” for people who want to offer their services at something like $3.00 an hour! Which is really too low for anyone to do work for considering basically half our income goes to taxes so that’s really $1.50 an hour. The only thing I have to say is that this may be a good place to start. But after you get your first client’s work completed, make sure you ask for a reference and don’t sell yourself short anymore.  Your time is worth so much more than $1.50 an hour.

And on a side note, thanks to Virtual Assistant Forums, I also learned that oDesk offers Free Testing here to see where to qualify you for certain jobs. And if you pass these tests, then you can become “certified” through their site and prove you are qualified to employers. I am planning on looking into it further to see if it is (quality or not) something I may want to blog more about.

My Advice:

1. Be honest.

2. Work hard.

3. And keep track of everything.

4. Listen to your client, they’re always right.

If you have any information to add to this site, leave a comment and let me know! Your comments add value to this site, you will get the credit for it and a live link will be added to your website or blog post as long as it is relevant to the material in this site.


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Lived to Work

Monday, June 29th, 2009
Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcett, ♫ Michael Jackson, & Billy Mays

The purpose of life is a great mystery. We all think about, even when we try not too. And we all somehow manage to make our own mark on this tiny world that we live in. This month, June 2009, the world suffered the loss of 4 fantastically unique souls. Each one reminding us of equally important values that make this short span of time we spend here on earth a little more tolerable.

Ed reminds that life taken too seriously is a terrible waste of time.

Laugh more.

Ed McMahon

Ed McMahon, America’s Comedian
1923 – 2009

In this early photo of her career, Farrah reminds us that beauty is fleeting;

but the magic of new beginnings can never really fade.

No matter what you know now, that you didn’t know then.

Farrah_Fawcett

Farrah Fawcett, America’s “Girl Next Door” Actress
1947 – 2009

Michael reminds us that no matter how high in the sky a star is,

there will always be someone or something just waiting to watch it fall.

Shine on, Michael, shine on.

ebony17

Michael Jackson, The King of Pop
1958 – 2009

Billy reminds us to find what we are best at, and just go for it until someone hears your voice.

225px-Billy_Mays_headshot

Billy Mays, America’s Salesman.
1958-2009

The timing of these great losses are very unfortunate. These kinds of people inspire us to do our best professionally. They raise the bar when it comes to working hard. And they humanize the reality of our mortality. So for one brief moment we can reflect, and maybe walk away just a little more thankful. And also, what we want out of our own lives can be shown to us in a new and clearer perspective. Don’t take life for granted.

Sending you a little reminder to live life to the fullest of your potential.

Work to live and live to work, find the balance that brings you happiness.

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My Mission in Life

Sunday, June 28th, 2009
The Issue:
Corporations and Small Businesses of America have fallen short of efficiently utilizing the opportunities and immeasurable benefits that come with the option of working at home. Telecommuting efforts have been blemished due to employees who have worked from home and been inadequately managed by “technically challenged” superiors. The shortage of procedures and tracking systems, and even employees with a poor work ethic have closed the door for managers or coworkers altogether. Many different scenarios have all contributed to the prevention of work at home program success.

Purpose:
The purpose of darkbluesun is to pave the way for stay at home moms and stay at home dads to work from home part time in a position that is relevant to their chosen professional field. This organization is being built with the motivation to be the best resource for anyone planning to start an online business or start an online division of a corporation. The importance of staying on your career path while going to school, raising a family or even when you have fallen ill is becoming greater and greater as technology advances. There are so many business professionals who need more than 24 hours in a day to get everything done. Virtual Assistants have been the answer to this problem. Taking a few hours out of every week day to make sure skills are kept sharp yet the stresses of working long hours in a busy office building are not hindering your most important work: taking care of your family and/or yourself.

Mission:
To restore balance to the American family and work life, to prevent modern professionals to have to choose between their career and their family and to standardize the processes for employers and employees to enjoy the benefits of telecommuting.

Objectives:

  • Educate stay at home parents to be valuable work at home parents.
  • Keep parents who choose to stay home and raise their children and stay on their career paths.
  • Avert scams that take advantage of the oppressed professionals of this economic situation.

Strategies:
I plan to build a large network of verified and trained Virtual Assistants to execute large projects for online business branches of companies. And then use the same resources and training programs that prove effective to larger business to train large corporations and all types of business to implement telecommuting and job sharing opportunities.

Products:
To offer free resources including an online VA library, VA checklists, eBook How to’s, educational software and eventually a free virtual classroom for anyone who wants to join the effort or begin their own entrepreneurial venture.

Practice:
With honesty, integrity, innovation, and education we can change the world – one business at a time.

Profitability:
It can take years to get a new business off the ground. These resources are going to be driven to save time, money and relieve stress. These benefits are priceless.

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VA eBook

Monday, June 22nd, 2009

This is being updated @ abcsforworkathomeparents.blogspot.com – It’s 10 times better this time. :)

The ABC’s for Work At Home Parents

I just finished an eBook geared to help stay at home moms and stay at home dads work at home and tips to invest Zero dollars and 2 hours a day to begin a virtual business venture. This information is relevant to almost anyone wanting to become a Virtual Assistant or startup another type of e-business. This has been written and distributed with the intent of educating stay at home moms and dads with the facts and tools to become Virtual Assistants in the current job market. This is not a get rich quick how-to. (Sorry ; ) But it is totally Free. In fact, if anyone tries to charge you anything for it. Please, let me know.

eBook pix

The best things in life are free. Check it out.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/16651010/ABCs-For-Work-At-Home-Parents

Here you can:

    1. Download your copy: ABCs-For-Work-At-Home-Parents in PDF format

    2. Write a review for this at scribd.com: Click here. Let me know what you love, what you hate. This is my first eBook. I definitely could use any input for the revision projected in the Fall of 2009.

    3. Or just read this web version!

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Virtual Assistant Jobs

Monday, June 15th, 2009

Jobs that almost any starting out VA can do.

There are a number of odd Virtual Assistants end up doing, some are fun and some are kind of tedious. But these are the kind of jobs you can do until you find your specialty:

  • Appointment and meeting schedules
  • Blog writing (you should attempt to learn how to set one of these up for yourself.)
  • Bookkeeping Records
  • Concierge services (ordering services and deliveries for clients online)
  • Data Entry
  • Editing someone’s website, newsletter, or e-zine content
  • Gift orders and/or wish lists
  • Remote PC support
  • Research target markets for advertisers
  • Travel Arrangements
  • Setup business facebook profiles,
  • Writing articles, eBooks and freelance writing

Think of it this way, sometimes 24 hours in one day just isn’t enough,

To Do List

as a virtual assistant you work to help other professionals live a balanced life too.

This is what we are here for.

See? It all looks pretty simple right? Experience will teach you how to do these this in the most efficient ways possible. You’ll make your clients happy because they won’t have to do these jobs. Your goal should be to become efficient in a specific area to be able to market yourself and streamline your business.

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Free E-mail for Business

Sunday, June 14th, 2009

Email is the single most important tool that you will use in your new virtual office. You will use it for communication, record keeping and scheduling. The biggest and best free e-mail providers are yahoo, hotmail, and google’s gmail. Even if you already have an e-mail address, you really should set up a separate e-mail address account for your work at home. You are less likely to miss important messages from clients when they are not mixed in the same inbox as your friend’s forwards and your J Crew e-subscription right? You should look for e-mail that is free (at first of course, later if you have extra money you can spend whatever you want on e-mail. Heck, maybe you’ll be able to pay someone else to deal with your e-mail for you!) Ok, back to reality. Look for a service that gives you lots of space, and a free calendar to keep track of appointments and remind you to send your clients updates etc.

Email

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