Archive for the ‘Living Your Best Life’ Category

Blog Home

Dear Danielle: How Do You Stay in Shape in this Business?

By Danielle Keister |
4 Comments

In this week’s episode of What Would Danielle Say?, a new business owner writes:

Dear Danielle:

I have a crazy question for you. I’ve just started my business and am also a part-time college student. I find that I’m spending a lot of time sitting on my butt. How do you keep in shape while working this kind of business? —DRF

Not a crazy question at all! It’s a real challenge in our kind of work because we are sitting at the computer for long stretches of time.

I love this question because at its foundation, it’s also really a business question, and I’ll tell you why in a bit.

First, let me address the practical question on its surface.

As with anything, we’re going to find a way or make the time for those things we want most.

And I’m no fitness poster child. I’m working on losing a few pounds that I’ve put on over the years of my business myself. So I can only tell you what I did.

I was confronted one year with the fact that I was no longer in  my 20s or 30s, able to eat whatever I wanted and never gain an ounce. What?! When did that happen? lol

On top of that, as we enter our 40s (and I just turned 49 this year), unless you are one of those blessed women with miracle genes, it’s just not as easy anymore to stay in shape and keep the pounds off. It’s not impossible, but you DO have to work harder and be more conscious about your eating and lifestyle.

That’s when I had my awakening and began to get conscious about what I needed to do to be healthier and lose some weight.

I began learning about nutrition and healthier living and eating.

Luckily, I’ve never had any food addictions or bad eating habits like sweets and junk food. I’ve always eaten pretty healthy foods in a mostly raw, local, whole, organic diet. Where I learned to get clear was in portion sizes and knowing my numbers: the amount of calories I needed to both lose and maintain weight and keep within those daily numbers.

Somehow or another I got turned onto Jillian Michaels. To this day, I’ve never seen a video or watched her on TV. But I came across her book Winning by Losing and it really was the turning point for me. And the reason is because she provides the simple math you need to know in order to lose weight and have more control over your weight.

Since I’ve always been a proponent of local and organic, her message also really resonated with me because she’s a huge advocate of that as well.

I don’t deprive myself of all of life’s pleasures and I’m still able to indulge once in awhile BECAUSE I know my numbers.

So I highly recommend you get Jillian’s book if youi want to become more knowledgeable and in control of this area of your life.

She walks you through crunching your numbers, understanding calories and how to count them, and figuring out your metabolic type (whether you are a balanced, fast or slow oxidizer, which is important to know because it tells you what kind of protein/carb/fat ratios you should be eating in every meal and the kinds of foods that are best for your particular type).

I believe her website also has some free online tools to help you do these calculations as well.

The other thing I do in living healthy and staying in shape run/hike/walk at least 3 miles day and do an exercise routine (another thing Jillian Michaels can give you direction with), 5 days a week.

Now, here’s why this is such a great business question.

Because why do we start our businesses? For most of us, our reasons go far beyond merely helping others and making a living. There are other things that are important to us, often having to do with loftier ambitions, having a more fulfilling life, a higher quality life and lifestyle, being able to be more present in the lives of our children and loved ones. All kinds of reasons.

And one of my biggest philosophies is that your business should support your life, not suck the life out of it.

And so this brings us back to the foundations of our business, how we set it up to be able to live life the way we want, to engineer our work so that we have time for those pursuits, interests and pleasures that are important to us.

I would venture to say that for most people, they are going about their business as if it was a job. They work with that first client or two as if they were an employee, never realizing the future implications and unsustainability of that dynamic.

Eventually, they find that because of the way they are working with clients (as well as some of the work they are doing), they have no room to take on others, their income is drastically limited, they have hardly any time for life…. it just goes on and on.

This is why we have to be intentional about the set-up of our business. to be knowledgeable and have foresight in how our foundations (i.e., our standard, policies, procedures, etc.) affect our ability to live the way we want to live.

So, like me, for example, it’s important for me to be able to have time for my run and exercise every day. It’s important to me that I have space around the work and have a methodical and well-intentioned system for how I handle it so that I am not stressed out every day about deadlines. It’s important to me that I don’t have to leap out of bed every day because I’ve got a pile of work that if I don’t get done in an instant will overwhelm and bury me.

And so I’m intentional in the fact that I am not a substitue employee. I provide strategic support, not daily support. I don’t (and never have) offered day-to-day assistance such as telling clients “I’ll manage your INbox everyday!” or receptionist work or managing calendars. I don’t do same day tasks (and I have a whole system for managing requests and turn-around times).

I’d never have a life or have the kind of freedom and flexibility that I do, if I did any of that kind of work or worked with clients in any of those ways. I’d be chained to my desk all day.

Figure out how you WANT your life to look like every day AND figure out what you DON’T want it to be like. These become the building blocks for your policies and procedures, your standards and the intentional way you choose clients, how you work with them and what work you do (and don’t do) for them.

As you go about that process, you also begin to realize that you need clarity about what you are in business and what you are in business to be/do for clients. (I’m pretty certain for most people, that’s NOT to be a beck-and-call employee.)

I now work what amounts to a 3-day week in my business (yes, you read that right) AND I’m able to provide vastly better care and support to my clients in the process. It’s crazy counter-intuitive, and I love showing people how they have a business like that, too.

If you need help in restructuring your business and laying foundations that will help you create a business and life you want, that supports those things that are important you, I’ve packaged up all my systems and knowledge in this area in my guide, Power Productivity & Biz Management for Administrative Consultants.

You Do Not Have to Take the “Good with the Bad”

By Danielle Keister |
1 Comment

I want to emphasize this:

You never, ever, ever have to settle for anything less than ideal in your business or “take the good with the bad.”

It saddens me to no end that anyone would have that defeatist, hostage mentality.

You will never live your best life believing that.

Business IS personal.

So I want you to know that you never have to do business with anyone you do not personally care for or who doesn’t treat you right.

You’re not a Walmart. And even they have the right to refuse service to anyone they choose.

You always, always have the right to choose who you work with, no matter what you do.

Your business success depends on you working with your most ideal clients. To work with anyone else is folly and will have you circling the drain faster than you can blink an eye.

And there’s this, too:

Be in integrity for your life and your needs as well as those who come to you.

You can not serve anyone well or honorably that you do not have good feelings toward and it is unethical to take their money.

How Your Biz Space Contributes to Your Success

By Danielle Keister |
4 Comments

As you may know, I’m doing a class this month on my unique systems for managing your business and work in ways that allow you to both take better care of clients AND still have a life (you are invited, too!).

One of my class attendees mentioned that one challenge she faces is a very small office space (roughly 8.5 x 6.5′). She explained that it’s very cramped and cluttered at the moment and that she intends to spend some time over the next month culling out materials, reorganizing and making room for new systems that work.

I think this a fabulous plan, because first and foremost, whenever you clear out the clutter and get rid of that which isn’t working for you, you make room for the new and better and more ideal to come into your life.

Plus, besides facilitating happier, more productive workflows and energies, the care and love you put into your space permeates your business overall and translates into the care and respect and love you give to your work and clients.

I love my business. It’s enriched my life so much. It’s what has allowed me to live the life I want to live, and it’s contributed to my personal growth and happiness in huge and unexpected ways.

And so besides creating a space that I enjoy being in, that nurtures my creativity and productivity (because let’s face it, we spend a large part of our lives engaged in our work), putting love and care into my workspace is a reflection of the love, care, seriousness, respect and gratitude I have for my business, my art (my work) and my clients.

Your space doesn’t need to be huge (mine is not much bigger than my attendee’s; only about 10 x 11′). No matter what space you have available, even if right now it’s just a corner or part of the kitchen table, the important thing… the thing that will contribute to your happiness and success… is to dedicate it to the business. Don’t make it share or compete with anyone or anything else. Carve out your little corner and do it up so that it makes your heart smile being in it. Organize it so that your movements can be fluid and flowing. Put as much care and love and respect into your space as you want your business and clients to give back to you.

Here’s a shot of my biz space. If you have a photo or video of your office, please do share in the comments. We’d love to see!

POLL: Would you like more free time in your business and life?

By Danielle Keister |
3 Comments

I have a new class coming up in August on the topic of biz management and productivity. I’ve set up my business in a way that not only allows me to provide fantastic client support, but I always have time for my life. With rare exception, I’m never working like a slave everyday, I’m not scrambling to get things done or keep up with my workload, and I have a tremendous amount of time for my life, vastly more than I see most other people in our industry having. I make more money than 90% of those in our industry AND I’m not working with clients like a substitute employee to earn it.

So, this class is a way to share with others how I have things set up so that they, too, can have this kind of biz and lifestyle… so they are working to live rather than living to work.

As a follower of my blog, you know that I give a ton of information and mentoring away for free. So I’d like to ask you for a favor in return. Whether or not you plan to attend this class, I’d like to know if this class piques your interest or not and whether it’s a topic you are interested in.

This is a completely anonymous survey so I don’t know who answers what. However, if you wouldn’t mind sharing with me where the trouble spots are when it comes to productivity and managing your biz and client expectations and the like, it would be very helpful to me as well and I would very much appreciate your assistance (I won’t post your comments so you can share freely). :)

Dear Danielle: This Client Just Won’t Change

By Danielle Keister |
8 Comments

Dear Danielle:

I’m wondering if you have any ideas on how to work with clients who are resistant to the changes you want to implement. I have a great client (also my biggest client) who seems to want to stay on an hourly model where I feel like an employee (which we all know is not the ideal arrangement). I keep trying to implement systems to make billing more efficient so I don’t have to hunt down piecemeal information from him on a constant basis just to generate some client invoices for him. He just will not do it. Aside from that, we have a really great rapport so even though he’s getting to the stage where he will need to hire an in-office assistant, I’d like to keep our relationship for the bigger items that help him run his business efficiently. I just can’t seem to find a way to get him to see my point. —KI

Omigosh, I can so relate to your question. I’ve had clients like this myself. I think we all have at one time or another. The signs aren’t always obvious, no matter how well we conduct our consultations. Sometimes, it just takes working together a bit before this kind of issue becomes more clear.

This is an issue that really boils down to growth, fit and working with ideal/unideal clients.

If you will indulge me for moment, I’d like to muse just a bit.

When we’re new in business, we often take on any clients we can get.

As we grow in our business, we begin to learn and become more clear and conscious about what we like and what we don’t like, as well as who we like to work with (and work best with) and who is… uh… more challenging, shall we say, lol.

As a result, the clients we take on later in our business look very different from the clients we had back when we were just starting out.

Sometimes those early “starter” clients stay and grow right along with us through the years. This is always awesome!

And then there are some clients we outgrow for one reason or another. Sometimes it’s because we brought them on with unsustainable practices and expectations and as we improve upon our operations, policies, standards, boundaries and raise our rates to be in more alignment with our value and financial needs, those clients balk, resist and leave.

That’s perfectly fine. I like to call those “practice clients” and they really did help you learn more about yourself and your business and to grow. So bless them and let them be on their way (or, ahem, be proactive and politely show them the door) because when you hang on to clients who no longer fit, they take up double, even triple, the space and prevent your more ideal clients from coming into your life.

This client is sounding like someone who is no longer a fit, no longer ideal for you. I have had clients like this myself. They say they want and need the help and are open to your ideas, but then never want to implement any of them or refuse to make any necessary changes. This, of course, makes things more difficult and time-consuming (not to mention, frustrating!) when they abjectively refuse to use better or even proper technology tools or make shifts in how they do things.

As a consequence, they also just never seem to grow or evolve. It’s extremely difficult to be or stay energized with clients like that. They just keep doing the same old things and getting the same old results.

If you continue working with that kind of client, it really just becomes an exercise in treading water, going through the motions. You lose all motivation for looking out for improvements or contributing ideas for their business because they have shown that they just aren’t interested. Why should you keep wasting your time and energy, right? It’s de-energizing and demoralizing and you get no joy or satisfaction when you are deprived of being able to contribute in these ways.

It’s always a delicate dance we have with clients. We want to care and help our clients do amazing things or make amazing strides. We’re just wired like this. But you can’t care more about their business than they do themselves. We can offer ideas and make suggestions, but ultimately, it’s the client’s business, not ours, and they are the ones who get to decide what they want to do and what they don’t. If someone is just not interested in changing how they do things, there isn’t anything you can do to change their mind. And it’s just not worth the aggravation trying, trust me.

And, to be clear, these aren’t awful people. Like you say, you two have a great rapport. It’s entirely possible to have a client with a great personality and with whom you get along great, beyond their stubborn inability to make improvements or do anything differently. I’ve had clients like that as well. What we didn’t have was a business relationship that energized me and made it a joy to work with them. It’s not all about the money, as we all know.

This is why it’s always a good idea to choose clients carefully through our consultation process and to let clients go if/when they are no longer a fit.

So, you have to let go of the idea that you are going to change this client. It just isn’t going to happen. And you need to decide if you are okay with that and working in your current “comfortably numb” going-through-the-motions kind of way. If it wasn’t bugging you, though, my guess is you wouldn’t be writing this question to me. My guess is you also need or are afraid of losing the income, which is why you haven’t nicely let this client go yet.

It’s all well and good to tell people to let go of clients who are no longer a fit. And that’s absolutely my best advice. But I know that it’s easier said than done. You have bills to pay and mouths to feed, after all. I get that. So here’s a practical way to grow toward that conclusion if that’s the direction you want to take.

  1. Continue to formally document and get conscious about your standards, policies, boundaries and ideal/unideal clients. Put those things in writing. Keep honing and adding to them (this will be ongoing throughout the entire life of your business). AND be sure to INFORM clients what those rules, boundaries, policies and procedures are. This is where your New Client Welcome Guide comes in.
  2. As you grow, you can implement those new standards and policies incrementally. Send out a blanket email to all your clients, informing clients as soon a possible about any change. People do much better with change when they are kept informed. But do not overly explain or have belabored personal conversations with each individual client. Simply inform and let them know you look forward to continuing to work and grow together. The choice is theirs beyond that. When you take out the invitation to conversation, clients actually react better to these changes and accept them as a matter of course. It’s when we think we need to overly explain things that they (perhaps unconsciously) get the idea that your changes are open for debate.
  3. Whenever you up your game, elevate standards and make changes, expect that you will lose some clients. You will never grow if you stay stuck doing things or working with people who don’t energize you. What may surprise you is that many of your clients will congratulate you and wonder why you hadn’t done this sooner. ;)
  4. When it comes to things like pricing, give clients plenty of notice (30 to 60 days days minimum). This gives you time to gauge which clients might be considering leaving, and put additional effort in bringing on new clients to replace any outgoing ones. And, of course, bring on all new clients at your new fee levels, standards and policies.
  5. Fear-based decision making is never a good idea or good advice. But that doesn’t make it any less of a reality. So in a worst case scenario, when you absolutely can’t risk losing the income and you have the room, there is always the option to maintain the status quo with current clients and instead put all your focus and energy into bringing on new, ideal clients at your new standards and rates. This will put you in more of a position of financial choice. Then, for each new client you bring on, let go of an unideal client. Do this one by one until you have replaced your roster with more ideal, better-fitting clients.
  6. I also suggest you purchase my Value-Based Pricing & Packaging Toolkit. In the videos and the workbook, I show you how to talk about value-based fees and what to point out to clients so they see and understand the benefits to them of working this way.

And moving forward:

  • Stop calling yourself an assistant. Another of the benefits I’ve found since using the term Administrative Consultant is that there’s more of an immediate respect, openness and even an expectation for my ideas and directions. As a consultant, people inherently understand that you have expertise and therefore expect that your suggestions are valuable contributions to make their business better. It’s a completely different framing and context they have as opposed to how they view you when you call yourself an assistant. And as a business owner, you aren’t an assistant anyway. ;)
  • Along with being a business owner and not an assistant, understand that there are some things in your business that you get to tell clients. You can’t be in business to use old, ineffective, archaic methods and technology or do things in the most difficult, time-consuming, inefficient and complicated ways. That’s counter-productive to your business and the other clients you serve. So remember, that you always get to inform clients that, no, that’s not how you do things in your business or for clients. There are going to be some tools or ways of doing things that aren’t negotiable, that you get to direct. For example, does a client get to walk into a print shop and tell them what tools they are to use, how to do the work or what information they will supply? Of course not. Every business, including yours, has ways of doing things, has certain information they need from clients, certain current methods, systems and technology they use to be most productive, efficient and effective and so they can do their best work and achieve the best results. You can’t start working in the dark ages just because one client can’t adapt. Clients can either get on-board with progress or find someone else. ;)

Remember, too, that your growth in business is always a good thing for clients because ultimately it helps you help them better. And your positive growth in your standards, policies, systemization, etc., is actually a model and encouragement for those clients who are stuck themselves in their businesses.

Dear Danielle: Do You Turn Away Clients and Customers Who Object to Your Policies

By Danielle Keister |
10 Comments

Dear Danielle:

I’m curious. Do you ever make exceptions regarding payment of your administrative services, your educational services or products sales, allowing for advanced payment by bank check or money order? Or do you always turn away potential customers if they do not accept your payment policies? I find it hard to believe that I’m the only one you’ve come across that will not use PayPal. I have many clients that would be leery and put off if that was all I offered them for a payment method. I must admit, though, I’m curious if you just turn people away or if you ever make exceptions to your rule? —CS

To be clear, this wasn’t an actual Dear Danielle question, but rather an email conversation I had recently with someone who didn’t want to make a purchase from me through PayPal, which is my payment processing vendor of choice and the service I use exclusively for that purpose. This person reported that she’d had a really horrific experience years ago with PayPal and she is reluctant to go through them for anything since. Perfectly understandable.

She asked if I would contact her if I ever decided to use a more “reliable” payment service and wanted to know my experience with it. While I am very much honored by and appreciative of her interest, and very sorry to hear of her terrible experience, my reply was that PayPal has been a very convenient, reliable service for me (I’ve been using it since around 2000 or so with no problems) and that I didn’t have any plans to move to or utilize any other service.

This prompted her question above and I thought it made for a very relevant business topic for you here on the blog today. As incomprehensible as it is to her that I would turn away money and clients (!), such lack or fear-based thinking is as incomprehensible to me. Because my answer is this:

Yes, I absolutely turn away clients and business that don’t fit with how I’ve set things up in my practice.

You will never have an ideal life or business if you work with unideal clients or accept situations that are less ideal than you’d prefer.

Life is simply too short. I learned that at the ripe “old” age of 30 when my late husband died and left me a widow and young single mother. That kind of experience really makes you reflect on life, what you want for yourself and your children, and how you want to live. It’s what fueled my fire to go into business for myself and have the self-determination, independence and lifestyle that self-employment brings. And it’s why I’m so passionate about sharing and helping others achieve what I have.

You’ve heard the saying, you’ve got to take care of yourself first so that you can take care of others. That is exactly the principle in play here.

One of the most basic tenets for having a successful business AND quality of life is running things in a way that suits your needs first and then working with only those who are the best fit for that.

This is how I run my business and it’s why I have a much more freedom-filled, stress-free life than most other people do in our industry. It’s nothing personal, but I’m not going to upend all my systems and processes for one person (or even a few) when the way things work in my business suits me fine.

I would expect and encourage you to do likewise in your business. When you put your focus on the ideal, you open space and invite more of the same into your life and business.

I consciously engineered my life like this long before I’d ever heard of Seth Godin, but this quote from his book Tribes sums up my life and business philosophy perfectly:

“Instead of wondering when your next vacation is, maybe you should set up a life you don’t need to escape from.”

By focusing on the ideal, I don’t have to spend my time and energy dealing with the extra work, headaches and rabbit holes that making exceptions brings. And that gives me more time for life!

If you want to learn how you can engineer your business for more money, more life and less stress, I’m doing a class on a topic that directly affects your ability to do this:  pricing and packaging your retained support. The methods and principles I teach in this class can be implemented immediately for a simpler, easier business to run. I’d love to have you with us!

Are You Making Things Difficult?

By Danielle Keister |
5 Comments

I often see folks in our industry who think if their business and work isn’t hard, they haven’t “earned it.”

Consequently, I’ll see them making things (both consciously and subconsciously) much more difficult and complicated than need be.

This is a terribly self-sabotaging/self-defeating mindset to have.

There are lots of people in our industry who are working with 10 or more clients and yet are earning so poorly (less than $10,000 annually!) that they could actually make more money in a job.

It’s not difficult to get clients when you charge very little. The problem is that administratively supporting that many clients is a daily hardship that keeps them imprisoned at their desk and not making any money to boot.

The Case for Success

If you feel guilty about charging or things being easy in your business, here’s what I want you to understand: You can not be of consistent, reliable, top-quality service to your clients if you are struggling to keep up with the work, making it difficult and complicated, and not earning well on top of it.

If you have to work with more and more clients because you aren’t charging enough to earn what you need, you are doing them a disservice. Because the more you spread yourself thin, the less personal care, support and top quality work they get.

Building your business so that it is easy, profitable and financially successful is a BENEFIT to your clients.

When you make things easier in your business for you, you actually improve your service to clients. That is of tremendous value!

When you can easily take care of clients, you make your business more profitable (which means you will be able to stick around for them for the long-haul) and you create dramatically more time and space to give superior service and support. All of which allows you to charge a premium for your service so that you can make more money while working with fewer clients AND have more time and money for your own life.

How Working More Hours Can Mean Earning LESS Money

By Danielle Keister |
5 Comments

Continuing the conversation in this week’s Dear Danielle post, I’ve Lost All Boundaries–Is this Relationship Salvageable?, I wanted to illustrate how someone can be working 50 hours a week and still not be making “any” money to speak of. I use quotations marks because, sure, she’s getting paid something. But “something” doesn’t necessarily mean “enough.”

There are all kinds of people out there in our industry who fall into the “working poor” category. A lot of this is because a) they aren’t charging enough and b) they are looking at this as a telecommuting job instead of a business and so they keep working with clients as if they were still that employee, except that instead of working outside the boss’s door, they’re working virtually from home. That they might call themselves business owners means nothing, because for all intents and purposes, they’re not.

I see this thing all the time in our annual industry survey. While the report that goes out to participants shows the collective/aggregate totals of all responses as a single group, I get to see the results in individual context as an admin. What I mean is that when someone fills out our survey, their submission gets recorded as an individual number. When you click on the number (the number representing an individual, anonymous respondent), it shows you that particular number’s individual responses to all questions in the survey. In this way, you can see what an individual business looks like.

It’s a common theme to see respondents who are working with 11 or more clients and still only making maybe $30,000 a year. Sometimes it’s because they aren’t charging enough. Often it’s because those clients aren’t retained clients, they are only project clients. The ones faring the worst are the ones who are working with that many retained clients and still only making that little per year.

And they aren’t an anomaly. Many of those are making less than $10,000 a year! There’s something definitely wrong with that picture and it’s what fuels my passion to help Administrative Consultants start earning better.

But getting back to our example, to provide some illustration, I asked the person who originally submitted the question if she would mind sharing what she was making with this client so we could work with some actual figures.  She was really embarrassed (which I assured her she shouldn’t be; we’ve ALL done things in the initial stages of our businesses that we cringe at later). Still, she very graciously obliged my request (thank you!) knowing that I always keep these things confidential and never use anyone’s real name.

If you remember in the original post, the person stated that she “took less (money) to build the relationship.” Problem is that “less” amounted to less than the national minimum wage that an employee would make!

If you look carefully at the choice of words, “took” tellingly suggests that the client was calling the shots and dictating the terms and the Administrative Consultant merely accepted them.

To use a crude analogy, how often do we hear of one night stands turning into real relationships? Not that this situation here is a one-night stand (sort of the opposite, LOL), but it’s the same concept of devaluing and dishonoring ourselves that leads to clients (and one-night bootie calls) not having any respect. A relationship that is flawed from the beginning just isn’t going to grow into something better.

I point this out only because it’s so important to examine the underlying thinking and default modes that drive our actions because they are what allow us to accept things that aren’t always in our best interests. In this case, she had relinquished ownership of her business, took a subservient role in the relationship and let her personal needs and standards take a backseat to the client’s. In recognizing this, she knows that this will be an area of personal growth she will need to focus on and be conscious of as she continues to move forward with her business and interact with clients.

And what was this AC making? $350 a week.

So let’s pick this apart… At 50 hours a week, that amounts to $7 an hour—if I’m not mistaken, that’s less than the national minimum wage that an employee would make. And even an employee would really be making more than that if you figure in the Social Security, Medicare, vacation pay, sick leave and all the other myriad benefits that they don’t necessarily take home, but are there nonetheless.

At $350 a week and 52 weeks in a year, this person is only making $18,200 annually. And actually, she’s making even less than that after you subtract taxes, business expenses and operating costs. I don’t know about you, but I certainly couldn’t live on that little money all by myself, much less with any kind of family to take care.

So yeah, she’s making something. But that something is relatively “nothing.” It’s only enough to barely survive and exist on.

And in this particular case, the VA actually is a single mom with a high-school age child nearing the college years. She is barely making enough to keep them fed with a roof over their heads; forget about any kind of money for college.

Plus, at 50 hours a week, she doesn’t have any time left to do much of anything else, let alone work with other clients to increase her income.

There are other things we all have to do in life besides working in our business—things like taking care of kids, grocery shopping, helping with homework, spending time with our husbands or boyfriends, exercising… um, SLEEPING.

Again, I don’t know about you, but I am a mere mortal. I’m just not going to have a lot of time and energy left to do much of anything else in my business after a 50 hour work week. Even if technically there are more hours left in the day, I’ve still got a life to live, responsibilities to take care and simply a finite amount of energy with which to do it all.

As you can see, this isn’t a healthy situation in any way, shape or form. It’s certainly not a business situation as this AC recognizes.

I can hear some folks out there saying, “Well, she isn’t charging enough! If she would just raise her rates, all her problems would be solved!”

Not really. Because a) she’d still have all her eggs in one basket; b) she’d still be working in what amounts to basically a job; and c) there’s no room for any kind of growth.

Success is not success unless you are both making money (and by money, I mean MONEY!) and are profiting in terms of also having the extra time and freedom to enjoy it.

Maybe you’ve got the inside track, but I charge what amounts to roughly $75+ an hour and even I would be hard-pressed to find a client willing to pay $15,000 for 200 hours of administrative support a month.

And not that I would ever advocate this as an adequate, sustainable professional fee, but even if she was only charging as little as $20/hr, that’s still $4000 a month. While there are clients in the world who can afford that, how many of those kind of clients is this AC—or any AC—realistically going to find?

Even if she did, that still doesn’t resolve the problem of working that many hours, having time for a life and doing anything else in or with her business.

When you are operating a business, it shouldn’t be in what amounts to the role of an employee to your clients. And dammit, you have a right to want more, to want better, for yourself and for your kids and your family! You have a right to not settle for merely a meager, subsistence income that you have to work your ass off just to get! That’s never what business is about!

This is why, like I say, it’s infinitely easier to work with—and find—a handful of 20-hour a month clients. The work is more broken up. It’s easier to give superior attention to each relationship. AND you’ll have room to grow or take on other kinds of work and projects in your business if you so choose, not to mention a healthier amount of time left for the rest of your life and to simply BREATHE.

To put some numbers to this, let’s go with a nice middle of the road fee of $50/an hour. If you had 5 clients each on a 20-hour retainer of $1000/mo, that’s $5,000 a month.

Obviously, that’s before taxes, expenses and operating costs, but you get the idea. It’s still a very nice, healthy income, much more than what most of us ever made as employees. And that’s working what would amount to 25 hours a week (if my math is correct, LOL).

This is why you have to understand your role differently and redefine that role. You will never create the kind of circumstances I’m talking about here by working like an assistant to your clients.

AND, if you get away from selling hours entirely, your potential skyrockets for reaching a six-figure business that doesn’t have you working slave hours to earn it.

Robbing Peter to Pay Paul

By Danielle Keister |
1 Comment

Thinking along the lines of the last Dear Danielle question, I was reflecting on how often I hear colleagues talk about all the project work they do, but never getting ahead.

When I say project work, I’m talking about the one-off transactions done for transient clients on a one-time, sporadic or occasional basis as opposed to ongoing administrative support provided within the framework of continuous monthly relationship with clients.

The complaints I hear so often involving project work generally fall into the category of profitability and lifestyle.

For example, a colleague will come to me explaining she’s been advised that project work “pays the bills” when you gotta keep the lights on, feed the kids, pay the rent, etc.

The problem with that strategy is that it’s not a strategy at all. It’s more like robbing Peter to pay Paul.

It’s simply reacting to the immediate circumstances—the need for cash—rather than proactively planning, setting foundations and working in a way that’s going to build long-term sustainability and profitability and create a business that meets both your long-term financial AND emotional/happiness needs.

What does that mean?

Well, when a colleague comes to me with this kind of question, the first thing I ask her to think about is what she wants for life and and what kind of business would support that vision?

The answer is generally something to the effect of “I want to be self-employed; my business is as much about making an excellent living doing work I enjoy as it is affording me the time and freedom to live the way I want.”

Most are not interested in “creating an empire.”

When that’s the case, the next thing I get them to think about is how to go about their business so that they can achieve those things.

The answer lies being smart about the kind of work you take on, the kind of clients you work with, and the platform from which you deliver your services. It’s going to involve charging profitably and setting the kind of standards, boundaries, policies and procedures that allow you to work effectively, earn well and live well.

Profitability and being intentional in your business model are the two things that are going to give you choices in your business.

So, if you are on a constant treadmill of project work, with constant turnaround of consultations, proposals, contracts and deadlines to manage, when are you going to have time to do the things you enjoy?

How much harder do you have to work and market to keep those projects coming in?

When will you find time to work ON your business?

If you are working at the beck and call of clients, how much freedom does that give you to call the shots in your business?

How much more freedom and flexibility would you have if you started working with clients as an administrative expert and focused exclusively on that work instead of thinking of yourself and working with them as an assistant?

If you aren’t charging profitably, how is that going to help you build long-term financial gain?

If you decided to work in ongoing collaboration with clients (which is the definition of administrative support) instead of sporadic project work, how would your own administrative chores and processes decrease in your business?

Would your cashflow be improved?

How much better would your service be to clients because you are growing a meaningful shared body of knowledge of their business that in turn allows you to serve them better and improve their business?

How more value would they find in that?

Would that higher value allow you to charge more for your expertise?

And if you were making more money, can you imagine how that would enable you to work with fewer clients and thereby have more freedom in your business and your life?

What could you do with that increased time and freedom? Create new products for your clients that held passive income opportunities for you? Work in a more relaxed, less stressful manner? Take on choice projects as you see fit instead of having no choice about the projects you take on because you “need the money?” Take a vacation when you felt like it?!

Food for thought. ;)

Dear Danielle: When Should I Make the Leap?

By Danielle Keister |
0 Comments

Dear Danielle:

I am looking into starting my own Virtual Assistant business. I’m wanting a change so bad, but am quite nervous about giving up my full-time job. How do I move forward? —AT

You don’t mention where you are at in the process of starting a business or how much you’ve researched the industry. This can be a wonderful business and life to be in, but there is much hard work involved, especially in the preliminary stages.

Have you put together a business plan?

Have you decided on a target market? (This may change, often several times, throughout the life of your business, but you need to know who you are talking specifically to in order to create a compelling, irresistible marketing message and have some focus and direction for your marketing and networking efforts.)

Have you outlined a profile of your ideal and UN-ideal client? (This will help you get clear and conscious about who you most want to work with and how to recognize each when they show up at your door.)

How about the foundations in your business? What’s important to you in your life? What kind of pace do you want in your business? How much money do you want or need to make? Have you established standards in your business that are in alignment with those things that are important to you? What about policies that make your business run efficiently and cost-effectively? What will be the systems and processes you use to keep everything running smoothly and profitably (these will be ever-evolving during the life of your business, but you need to establish at least some basic level of these things to begin).

Have you developed any of the paper forms you will need in your business such as contracts and agreements? How will you handle payments from clients? Do you have operating capital or savings to live on until your business becomes self-sustaining?

It takes time to become established. Many Virtual Assistants don’t land their first client for many months, sometimes longer.

Now, while you are still employed and have money coming in, is a great time to work out these ideas, solidify them into tangible documentation and systems, and set up your business foundation.

By taking these steps now, before you finally take the leap, you’ll be setting yourself up for ease and success instead of hardship and failure.

Blog Home