ComHacker.org

by Patricia Mayo

Ever wish you had the time to do X, Y, and Z… and Z-1, Z-2, and Z-300? At any given time, you have a zillion ideas and not a second to spare for you to actually put them to action.

Don’t let all those great ideas go to waste anymore - get yourself a virtual clone!

Photo by Andrew Walsh

I don’t know exactly why 500+ people follow me on Twitter (thank you!), but whenever I talk about my virtual assistant, anywhere between 10 and 25 people chime in all at once.

“What does your virtual assistant do for you?”
More than you think a virtual assistant could do - it’s only limited by your imagination!

“How much does it cost to keep a virtual assistant?”
Per month - less than you earn in one working day. Not kidding!

“How can I impart my knowledge so a virtual assistant can help -me-?”
That… is just a bit more complicated.

Working with a virtual assistant really is simpler and easier than most people want to make it. The key to having great cheap help is, quite simply, superb communication and the right tools.

What Can a Virtual Assistant Do For Me?

You know that thing you have to do all the time that, while you’re doing it, all you can think is “gawd I hate doing this” - stop wasting your time!

Even if you love sifting through an email account with bankrupt written all over it (761 times in fact… and counting), you can be doing much better things with your time.
.

Photo by Gregor Varl

If you ever wondered how I can write 4 blog posts in one day, and edit upwards of 15 images for those blog posts, and Twitter, and write for ComHacker, and work on projects for clients, and answer questions on Linkedin, and do podcast interviews, and obsess about my blog stats - all in one day… my virtual assistant is how.

Here’s a short list of a few things my virtual assistant is doing for me, just to give you an idea:

• Research on blog topics - I give him a little nudge in the right direction, maybe even with a few trusted sources, and I get what I want in about 24 hours. If I want pictures and links like a blog post and additional references, he takes care of that too (and like a pro!).

  This gives me time to just write. I don’t have to waste any time finding the information, and instead get to spend every second coming up with more great ideas, and turning the research provided into provocative eye and brain candy.

• Organizes my online files - As most marketer netizen types these days, I have an absolutely massive collection of ebooks, audio books, programs, PLR packs and articles. One of these days I’m going to compile all that information plus everything I have learned into a few ecourses - but I have to know what I have first!
• Handles almost all my email - I probably read more in a day than a professional editor does in a lifetime… or at least it would seem that way with all the newsletters I get every single day, all with great tips, free (or practically free) downloads, invites to conferences, or the typical “buy me” questionable could-be-spam stuff.

  Not only does my virtual assistant help me stay up to date on what’s going on and learn all kinds of new skills with pithy summaries (”pithy” is my word of the week, can you tell?), but he also takes care of all the downloading and uploading to my online database - and organizes them. The only emails I get now are from potential clients and my network.

• Research on writing markets - There are thousands of magazines out there, but my time is much better spent writing as opposed to finding where I can get paid for doing so. Once a week I get a full report on 7 to 10 potential markets, with past issue samples, editorial calendar, submission guidelines, contact information… everything I need to write something, submit, and get paid. It’s the way it should be
• Research on speaking gigs - Yep, I’m trying to get out there and talk too - as if I wasn’t annoying enough in print. I have to start small though, and again, why waste my time looking for small time gigs when I could be developing the presentation that pays for my plane ticket?
• Research on associations - You’re only as good as your network, but I would rather spend my time being a friend than looking for bigger numbers. Starting to see a theme yet?
• Research on conferences - Before you can lead, you have to follow. I want to know what is going on, and my virtual assistant helps me find the best opportunities to learn within my budget.

The list goes on, but in the end I get to do what I love and have tons of fun in the process.

Photo by Mike Defiant

Plus - you know that thing they call stress? Yeah. When you find some, keep it to yourself, because I’ve heard about it and don’t like the idea.

Cool! So How Do I Get a Virtual Assistant?

Well, you could go to eLance and hope to find a good one - that’s what I did, and I absolutely lucked out - but you don’t have to.

It’s no secret my virtual assistant is in India (why waste money donating to foreign aid when you can just hire them?), and I’m sure you already know full well just how… consistently spectacular their English ability is - typically.

My virtual assistant, on the other hand - and these are his own words - “fancies reading a lot.” He’s actually pretty interesting to chat with once you get past his immaculate professionalism (read: all you typically hear from him is “noted” “will do” and “yes I can”).

And as it happens, my virtual assistant has a dream, and he has been so good to me (not to mention the fact he is one smart cookie), I want to help him out. Vipul wants to start a virtual assistant business. He already has a few people waiting for your tasks - it doesn’t get easier than that!

Yeah, But I Still Don’t Know What to Say

I really what to help you out with this too - but I am already seeing white space over to the right of this post, which means I have reached my blathering governor.

If you want to make absolutely certain you get the most bang for your buck (because improper instructions will send even the best native English speaker on a wild goose chase), use that little comment form thingie down below to let me know and I’ll send you a special cookie (not just the digital kind, but the yummy digital kind that you can use).

I’m working on an ebook about communicating with foreign-based virtual assistants with all the details on not just what to say, but what tools to use, and tons of creative ways they can help you be more productive.

If you comment on this post with your special situation and questions, I will send you a free copy. It would be great if you gave me a review when you’re done reading it too, like, really great - but I won’t force you.

However, if you can’t wait and you’re willing to chance wasting some time and money to figure out how to get it right, use the contact form to give us a general idea of what you’re looking for, and Vipul will be in touch.

Rates start at around $3 per hour, but it is fairly common for virtual assistants to charge more if it seems like you will be a PITA (i.e. picky but can’t communicate that beforehand so they have to revise and edit and work around you instead of with you).

Just keep in mind I can’t keep the free ebook offer open forever. However - please do spread the word, tell your friends, Sphinn it, Digg it, kill my server. I’ve been dying to see what that looks like

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed so you never miss the next great communication tip. Thanks for stopping by, I hope to see you often!

Trisha, @mayobrains on Twitter