Intuition: an essential but sometimes elusive skill

What gives some business leaders the uncanny ability to make the right decisions? Is it something that you can acquire or learn or is it just a feeling that you act on? What role does intuition play in your business?

Henry Cloud said: “Intuition is knowing without knowing how you know. Intuition is your “gut response.” The most successful and high calibre leaders listen to their intuition.” and Alexis Carrel said: “All great men are gifted with intuition. They know without reasoning or analysis, what they need to know.”

In my opinion, intuition is an extraordinary skill which is based on our value systems combined with our experiences which is constructed over a period of time. In other words, your intuition is continually developing if you allow it to. It is not an intellectual thing per se, but rather a heart feeling. This “feeling” allows you to see what others may have missed and also helps you make decisions that are best for your business. Of course, decisions should never be made on feelings alone, but using your intuition as a part of evaluating your next course of action can help you make better decisions.

I believe everyone has intuition, but we often ignore our intuition as we are distracted by the many things going on around us. Some people might also scoff that which they don’t understand or cannot explain in a purely rational way.

If you believe that intuition is important in your business and life, how can you focus on it or refine it?

  1. Evaluate your value system.

What are you values based on? How were they shaped? Do you need to re-evaluate your values?

  1. Evaluate your previous experiences.

What worked? What didn’t work? How did you intuitively feel about each experience as you were going through them? Did you know in advance whether or not they would work (or not work?)

  1. Take a step back.

When you face a situation, don’t only focus on facts. Don’t focus on all the distractions or how you think you should respond. Rather think how you feel about the whole situation, person you meet with, or decision at that moment.

  1. Keep a journal.

Take time (once a day is great) in which you reflect on what you have encountered during the day and how you feel about things. Writing things down helps you solidify and clarify- your thoughts.

  1. Practice intuition.

Just like any skill, intuition is refined with practice. The more you listen to your intuition, the easier it becomes to be aware of it and to use it.

Systems: 3 Excuses for not setting them up

Creating systems in your business are crucial for survival and success, yet so many of us never get down to getting these into place.  We spin our wheels and get distracted and remain super busy, exhausting ourselves in the process. We are overwhelmed and our businesses suffer for it. Are you guilty of holding yourself back with any of the following excuses?

I read a while back that an excuse is just a lie we tell ourselves in order to feel better about not achieving as we should.

Excuse 1: Setting up a system is an overwhelming, hopeless chore

Reality: Setting up a system creates an ordered process. Once you have mastered a system, it becomes an exhilarating way of freeing yourself up and maintaining a steady course in a complex world. You may even consider it fun because it produces a gratifying sense of clarity, focus and accomplishment.

Excuse 2: It is impossible to stick to a system

Reality:  This could be true. It is impossible to stick to a system if…. your system is a poor fit for you and maintaining it is a difficult chore.

However, a well thought out system is sustainable. If you build your system around the way you think and design it to grow and adapt around your changing needs it will serve you for years to come.

Excuse 3: Creating systems is a non-productive use of time

Reality: You may feel that it would be more productive to call on customers, attend meetings, to write a proposal or even to catch up on your sleep.

In our fast-paced environment with more and more demands on our time and ability to make choices, those who have systems will thrive.  Those without systems will be disorganised and overwhelmed, unsure of which way to turn.  Eventually, they will flounder.

You cannot afford not to have business systems.  They are indispensable tools to keep you on track and to help you automatically execute tasks or outsource them so that you can focus on the more interesting aspects of your business.

How to Get the Best Out of Your Relationship with Your Virtual Assistant

Previously we look at the 3 Essential Steps to follow before hiring a VA as well as How to ensure you hire the best VA for your business.  This week focuses on starting your working relationship with your virtual assistant.

Once you have appointed your Virtual Assistant, it is important to have realistic expectations.  You both need to adjust to working together.  Plan for a trial period and gradually inch your way into outsourcing.

Learn when to outsource to a virtual assistant and when it’s faster to do it yourself

It’s almost always faster to do it yourself if it is a one-time thing.  If it’s a repetitive task, it’s probably worth training the VA to do it.

Communicate clearly with your virtual assistant

Clear communication cannot be emphasised too strongly.

No one knows your business as you do. Communicate clearly and often with your VA and make adjustments as you go.

At the start, let your VA know what your goals for your business are and how you intend to use their services to best support your needs.

First, assign the tasks including all the relevant information and clear and concise instructions that will contribute towards the success of the project.  Be sure to indicate your deadlines – most Virtual Assistants need a 24 – 48-hour time frame to complete assignments, so plan accordingly.

Provide your contact information and indicate the best way to contact you.

Provide training where necessary for your virtual assistant

Although your VA is a professional business person, it is a good idea to schedule some one-on-one training to help him/her to understand how you like things done.  This also gives the VA a chance to ask questions

Create a manual of key processes for your virtual assistant

This works especially well with repetitive tasks.  It will speed up the training process as well as provide a benchmark for a job well done.

Expect an accounting of the time spent on your business

You don’t have to micromanage your VA, but it is reasonable to expect a summary of the week’s accomplishments or tasks completed, as well as any problems the VA may be experiencing.

Make use of online collaboration tools

Dropbox

This is an awesome tool with allows for online backup, syncing, and file sharing.  It is super easy to share important documents like marketing materials, digital signature files, contracts, and more.

Google Docs

Google Docs provides a free online word processor, spreadsheet, presentation, and form service that makes collaboration a cinch.

Jing

It allows you to quickly create training videos (including screen captures) on various things you need your VA to do.

Skype

Skype allows you to have quick chats, phone calls, and video calls with ease. If you need to record your Skype conversation, there are free tools like MP3 Skype Recorder.

Asana

Asana is a great online productivity and organisation tool.  It allows you to create projects and tasks for your VA, and to track progress in real-time.

TimeTrade

This is an online appointment scheduler with automatic reminder and Outlook and Google Calendar integration.  You can simply provide people with your own personal URL so that they can set up an appointment based on your calendar availability.

Before long, the work will now get done that you didn’t have time to do before. It feels great when you actually have time for yourself.  Maybe with the extra time you have created by working with a VA, you can plan for that much-needed vacation – No, wait.  Your VA can do that for you too!

3 Essential Steps to Follow Before Hiring a Virtual Assistant

Last week I spoke to several small business owners who were interested in hiring a virtual assistant for their businesses but did not know how to go about it.  I decided to write a short 3 part series to help them to make the best decisions and to find the best virtual assistant for their needs.

A virtual assistant can help your company in ways you probably haven’t imagined along with freeing up a great deal of your time.  You never have to worry about holidays, sick days, payroll taxes, etc. as they are independent business owners and you will only pay for the time spent on your tasks.

However, hiring a VA can be a big boon to your business, or a flop.

What can you do to ensure a greater success rate in hiring a VA?

There are all types of virtual assistants.  They come from a variety of different backgrounds and offer a variety of different services.  Some are freelancers who call themselves virtual assistants because they work remotely from their home-based office, some are business owners who operate as a business and provide high-level support based on their background and experience.  Sometimes VA business owners operate a multi-virtual assistant business where they have a team of virtual assistants who specialize in different areas, so you may work with two or three VA’s through that one company.

When looking for a Virtual Assistant, these options can seem daunting. Below are some steps you can take to make the task easier. 

1. Determine what you really want in your business

You definitely need to know what your needs and budget are, as well as what you expect in return.  When you think about what you expect in return, think not only about what you need/want them to do for you, but what you want the financial return to be.

For the money you spend:

  • Will your business make more money, because their efforts garner more leads, prospects and, eventually, customers, and/or
  • Will the business make more money because of what you can do with the freed up time, assuming you earn more “per hour” than you spend to hire them – and you use that time accordingly?
  • If they are technical people, will the product or service they (help) create turn into a worthwhile profit centre?

2. Determine what a Virtual Assistant can do for you

Do research to find out what a VA can do for you.  Some places to look at include 101 Ways to Use a VA and VA Networking.

Develop a to-do list of what needs to be done for your business to run successfully.  What items are on your to-do list that you never have time to get to?  What repetitive tasks can easily be accomplished by someone else?

Decide what you’re willing to delegate.  With good instructions, your VA can complete virtually any task with minimal guidance.  Based on your list, estimate how much time you will need your VA each month and what you are willing to pay for their services. Some VA’s require the purchase of a monthly retainer plan.  They typically charge $15 – $55 per hour and give discounts if you require their assistance for more than 10 hours per month.

Also, think about how you will use the extra time if these tasks are taken off your plate.

With your plan on what to outsource you can now start looking for the perfect Virtual Assistant.

3. Create a Virtual Assistant advertisement

Once your research is done, you can create a plan based on your business needs and what options are available to ensure the best return on your investment.

Write up a detailed advertisement or request for proposal of what you need done, and what you are looking for in your Virtual Assistant.  The more specific you are, the greater the chances are that you will attract your ideal candidate.

Where to advertise for a VA

There are many places where Virtual Assistants hang out online.  You can do a Google search to find them.  There are also many job sites such as Guru, People Per Hour, and Upwork.  However, I would recommend looking for a quality Virtual Assistant here:

Twitter

You can tweet about it.  You can instantaneously receive messages from VA businesses and people who can recommend a VA.

Upwork

You need to register to advertise.  Upwork provides nifty tools such as a tracking tool, as well as the ability to search for your ideal VA.  You can also set your budget and ask for people to bid within a fixed budget or per hour for a certain number of hours a week.

Linkedin

You can do a search to find a VA.  Those you are connected to will appear first in your search.  You can also hang around in various VA groups to get an idea of who is available and who is active.

Look out next week for the next step in the VA hiring process: How to make sure you hire the best virtual assistant for your business

5 Ways to Streamline your Business

Streamlining your business saves money. It saves time. It saves manpower. All it takes is a little time to think about how you are currently doing business and how you can improve on what you are doing. For business owners who are too busy to reinvent the wheel, here are some proven ways to ensure a more streamlined business.

1. Change direction if you need to

Streamlining isn’t limited to cutting back and dropping activities. You need to start by consolidating or changing the work you do to align it with your goals. It may feel scary now to change direction, but it becomes scarier later when you don’t reach your goals.

2. Reduce time

A task will expand to fill the number of hours given to it. Usually if you give an employee 3 days to finish a task, they will take 3 days to do it, yet if you give them half a day for the same task, they will also finish it. I have found that being results focused and specific will help save time. If you give a person an exact deadline to complete important tasks (eg. Wednesday at 14:15), they will become more productive.

3. Motivate your staff and offer incentives

In my chicken farming days (many moons ago) I had to slaughter a certain number of broilers a day. I realised that my staff’s priorities were not necessarily my priorities and that I would not get the result I needed if I simply paid them for a day’s work. I put myself in their shoes and thought about what would motivate me. I had excellent results when I told my staff at the beginning of each day what the target was and that they could leave once the target had been met. Sometimes they worked so well that they finished a day’s work at noon! There was no compromise on quality either, because the work was not deemed done until I was completely satisfied with the quality.

4. Systemize your processes

Think of how you can make things easier, faster and cheaper. Create template emails, template forms and documents, auto responders, automatic payments, a “roles and responsibilities” chart, digital timesheets, etc. Solve your problems once. If a task has to be repeated, create a system for doing that task. This will also ensure that you have a standardized way of doing business.

5. Use remote workers

Only pay for what you use. See my post on the 8 Ways small business owners can benefit by outsourcing. You have an incredibly diverse talent pool at your fingertips and can choose the best for your business. Your overhead costs are less. Your business becomes more productive and streamlined.

Be more productive: Improve! Improve! Improve!

I love challenging the status quo – not just for the sake of changing things – but because there are always ways to do things better.  Here are some suggestions to improve your business productivity.

  • Start with yourself

Take some time away from slaving at your small business.  Step back.  Read. Ponder. Analyze. Plan.

Understand where productivity takes place and what influences it.  Understand the input, processes, output model.

How do you plan to improve your own personal performance?  Your company will improve at the rate you improve.  Lead by example.

  • Involve everyone 

The people who work for you have fantastic ideas.  Your challenge is to create an environment where they feel free to share those ideas and where they get acknowledged or rewarded for their ideas.  People who are not directly involved in a process may be able to offer more objective solutions than those who are struggling with it.  Involve everyone.  Leave no one out.

  • Confront old ideas and traditions

Some traditions are good.  Really good.  Perhaps excellent. But are they the best?  People get emotionally attached to the way things have always been done.  Try to move from the emotional to the rational by focusing on your goals.  Once you have established a new best way of doing something, stick with it until someone finds a better way.

  • Keep it simple

Think of the critical results you want to improve.  What will give your business the competitive edge? Work back and think of ways to change the system so that these improvements can become reality.  This does not need to be complicated or expensive.  The people working with a particular process often come up with great ideas to improve.

  • Focus on the right things

What core business systems enable you to earn more money or to find and keep customers?  Remove any obstacles or bottlenecks in these systems so you can achieve your objectives.

  • Provide training

Set performance standards for your business systems and continually improve these standards.  Empower your most important asset (your people)  by training them to do their jobs well.

  • Don’t stop improving

Stop immediately to fix quality or customer-related problems.  Implement systems to reflect on your progress weekly, get suggestions and train your people.

Other Be More Productive articles can be accessed here:

Be more productive:  Hit delete

Be more productive:  Leave your desk

Be more productive:  Avoid the tyranny of the urgent

Can Your Business Run Without You? Create Freedom by Creating Systems

Most of us use some type of systems on a day-to-day basis. Whether we use our cell phones, daily planners, or email inbox, we have most of our time and day organized.

Have you ever thought how valuable systems could be for your business? What if you were away for a week or two? Would you be okay? Would your business continue to thrive and give you the freedom you need to tend to what’s on hand?

Having the right systems in place with automated or structured processes will allow your business to run for a while without much thought or attention.  You can even delegate some systems to others, so that your business can continue to flourish even when you are not present.

Where to Start and What to Systematize

In most businesses there are numerous repetitive tasks that could easily be systematized. Look at the systems you have in place, or those you could put in place to make for a productive and powerful day. You can create systems for nearly everything in your business, whether it is automating your social media activities, scheduling appointments, e-zines, or marketing.  There is so much you can create systems for.

Having systems in place will truly liberate you and allow you to focus your energy on your business instead of feeling flustered and overwhelmed every time a repetitive task has to be done.  In addition, you can easily break away to tend to important family matters or a vacation knowing your business needs are taken care of.

Are you excited with what systems can do for you and your business? Are you feeling overwhelmed and not sure where to start? Would you like some support in setting up easy systems that will allow your business to thrive, even in your absence? Email Virtual Productivity Solutions and we’ll have a look at your situation and how systematizing your business can help you be more productive.

An Example of Why Standard Operating Procedures Should Be Simple

The weather is warming up here in South Africa, and I really feel spring fever approaching.  I love gardening, and decided that this year I’ll fertilize my lawn and garden beds with organic manure.

I contacted various places for prices on their sifted manure, and decided to buy from a company not too far from my house.  Their prices were reasonable, and their only requirement was that I fetch the manure myself.  I have a trailer, so this arrangement suited me, even though it meant several trips to get the amount of manure I wanted.

The procedure at this company is that I ride over a weighing bridge before and after loading the manure in order for them to calculate exactly how much cubic meters I was liable to pay for.

On the first day, I loaded 650 kilograms, and paid R260 for it.  The second day I went, I loaded 600 kilograms and paid R375 for it.  I was quite shocked at the price difference, but didn’t have my first invoice with me to query it.

The third consecutive day I went, I took the invoices with me and asked for an explanation, because I felt certain I was overcharged the second time.

The explanation was that on day 1, one cubic meter was equal to 400 kg.  On day 2, one cubic meter was equal to 500 kg.  The relationship between the cubic meter and kilograms all depends on the moisture level inside the manure.

I felt quite stupid and more than a little confused.  We have not had rain for months.  I’m loading from the same heap of manure each time.  What can cause the moisture level to differ so radically?  I also could not understand that I pay more when there are more kilograms in a cubic meter.

At the weighing bridge I again asked the attendant to explain how they calculate the moisture in the manure.  She launched into a lengthy confusing explanation which can be summarized this way:  Although she is very sweet, she does not exactly understand how it works either.  There seems to be no specific time or set method for determining the moisture level in the manure.  From what I can gather it occurs at the whim of the person responsible.  Other clients also complain, because it is too confusing for the average person to understand.  All I could understand is that on some days I get more manure for my money than on others, even if the capacity of my trailer stays the same.

This time I paid R225 for 600 kilograms. Although I’m delighted to have paid less, I feel cheated.   I don’t feel inclined to support this company again.  I certainly won’t recommend them to anyone.

I would have been a very happy client if I had been charged the same amount for each load.  I would also have been very happy if I had been given a quotation per kilogram, which would have made more sense to me.

What complicated procedures are turning your clients away from your company?  When last did you do an audit into your standard operating procedures to see whether they are meeting the demands of your day-to-day interactions with your clients?

4 Key questions to ask when you are planning

Every business needs a plan.  In fact, once you have set your goals, you cannot move forward without planning on how to reach those goals.  The better the planning process, the better your results will be.  It is crucial to have a written plan if you want your business to succeed in the long run.

A written plan also helps you achieve the following:

  • It keeps you focused
  • It allows you to make better business decisions
  • It eliminates the feeling of overwhelm
  • It ensures you’re working on the right activities
  • It saves you time by cutting out the time-wasters
  • It gives you a tool to convey to others where your business is headed

When planning for your small business, ask yourself the following questions:

1. Is it affordable?

Finances play a big part in many strategies.  Consider the costs of advertising, transportation, resources, postage, and any other resources you will need for your plan.

2. Is it achievable?

Are the set goals realistically achievable?  Do you really have the money, time, support, facilities, and personnel to achieve the planned outcomes?  It is better to start small and build into a larger project as others join the team and key support is given in other important areas.

3. Is it sustainable?

If your business plan is successful, it is certainly worth repeating.  It may also be the case that your plan is part of an ongoing strategy, in which case you will need to keep looking ahead in order to organise what is needed to sustain your business.

4. Can it be evaluated?

All aspects of your business plan should be able to be evaluated (eg. finances, training, personnel, etc).  For ongoing business activities, definite and regular evaluation times must be set and adhered to.  Also be sure to examine how this venture contributed towards your overall business strategic plan.

What is Really Important in Life? A Look at Real and Imagined Priorities

The other day I read a statement made by Benjamin Franklin:  “Drive your business.  Let not your business drive you.”  That got me thinking.

Business people, more than any other group, tend to lack balance in their lives.  Their businesses frequently become all-important, crowding out other priorities such as family, friends, hobbies, and leisure time.  However, keeping our lives in balance is one of the keys to avoiding burnout.  It is also the key to real success in life.

Many business people know how to manage millions of dollars and hundreds of people at work, but fail when it comes to their families, friends, hobbies, and leisure time.  They have let their businesses run them instead of learning to run their businesses.

A typical entrepreneur will tell you the following:  “I always wanted to own my own business because I wanted to be in control of my time.  I wanted to be able to take time off without having to get someone else’s approval.  I wanted to make my own decisions and be my own boss.

“Now I own a successful business.  I have the money to travel anywhere I want to go, but I am so tied down with this business I can’t get away.  I haven’t had a vacation in three years, and it doesn’t look like I’ll be able to take on this year.  I think I work for the business instead of it working for me.”

This statement reflects a life that is out of balance.  He is devoting all his time and effort to the business and making money, and in the process he does not have any time left for himself.

Most business people don’t want to admit their lives are out of balance;  but when a person spends ten to twelve hours a day, six days in his business, his life is unbalanced in favour of business.

What is really important in life?

There are two kinds of priorities:  real and imagined.  We know our priorities are real because we give them our time.  On the other hand, things we talk about doing, plan to do, want to do, but don’t do, are imagined priorities.  Imagined priorities may be written down and discussed regularly, but if we never do them they aren’t actually priorities.

If you want to know what your real priorities are, look at where you spend your time – not what you say or how you spend your money!

Getting your life in balance

It isn’t always easy for business people to keep their lives in balance. Some tips are below:

  • Remove the garbage and insignificant rubble from your daily routine.  Identify the things that are really important and focus on them.
  • Make time for the right priorities.  Unproductive activity is robbing us of time that should be spent on important priorities.  Insignificant activities that take up time but contribute almost nothing to our success must be weeded out and thrown away.  Focus on the significant, letting the insignificant die from lack of attention.
  • Learn to say no to some worthwhile causes.  Most business people are high achievers.  They have a knack for getting things done quickly.  As a result, they are constantly bombarded by people who represent all kinds of good causes wanting “just a little”  of their time.  To have the best things in life, we must practice “selective involvement” – and learn to say no to most of the merely good things. If you don’t know what is most important in your life, you will always wind up doing the things most important to other people.

If you want to know a person’s values, look at his priorities.  If you want to know his priorities, look at how he spends his time.  Your own actions are a statement to others concerning the most important things in your life.

Priorities keep us on track.  They also keep us from getting bogged down in the mire of ineffectiveness.  How far and how fast you travel in life will depend on how faithful you are at developing and maintaining your priorities.

Next steps

  • Evaluate your priorities.  Are they real or imagined?
  • Write out your priorities.  Develop a plan of action for pursuing these goals.
  • Make a list of necessary tasks that you can delegate so that you can spend your time on what is most important to you.