Listen, there is nobody more red-blooded, flag-waving or patriotic than me. Sure, thanks to the media and history and our endless calls to customer support - we automtically assume that 'OUTSOURCED' means "The Hills of Outer Mongolia".
Not true.
It can be frustrating to call and not speak to someone here - at home - the country we live in, work in, earn in, and (more than likely) CONSUME (read: PURCHASE) in. I mean, how can these call center reps know about us, good old Americans, right?
As the rise of outsourcing came into the lens in the early 2000s, the frustration was blatantly clear.
And I think some of us listened.
Now, more than ever, Virtual Assistantship is on the rise. Yes, you can find Virtual Assistants all over the world, but there's a large number of professional VAs right here at home! As businesses look to trim expenses, virtual office services help reduce overhead while keeping professionalism high(1). As businesses trend to a more “online” workplace, the notion of paying for space full-time becomes anachronistic(2). Traditional receptionists making $12-14/hour(3)can be replaced with remote receptionist services at a fraction of the traditional cost(4).
Recently, Entrepreneur Magazine mentioned Virtual Assistants were one of four home-based businesses in demand.
Special thanks to The Calendar Girls for pulling this great comparison from the Bureau of Labor Statistics:
Bureau of Labor Statistics: http://www.bls.gov/ncs/ebs/
Expenses are based on average $18 per hour rate
More than anything, you can't put a price on HASSLE. Do what you are good at, and outsource the rest. To get bogged down in the weeds of keeping on top of the red tape is a drag. FOR ME - as a 16-year-career Government employee, I led. I led people, led change, led briefings and led my peers. All the while, I knew my wheelhouse was administrative duties. I knew I was always good at putting together briefings, a robot at Excel and an obscenely fast typist. Secretly, I knew that NO ONE was going to ever do things like me. Sure, it's been called poor management to not train your people to do your admin work for you. And you know what? In 16 years, I never had an administrative assistant. Not once.
Now that I've moved into self-employment, I've discovered my niche, what I do well, is administrative duties.
So, I've left the leadership behind (but, let's be honest, LEO!), and am doing what I do best.
Keeping things in order.
If you're an entrepreneur, a small business, (or even a big business), corporate-employed, self-employed, busy Mom or over-tasked single Dad, call on me! I'd love to help you and take away some of that workload that bogs down all that creativity!
Need me? TASK ME!
Email me today!
“Surround yourself with the best people you can find, delegate authority, and don't interfere as long as the policy you've decided upon is being carried out.” --Ronald Reagan
REFERENCES
(1) Intelligent Office Turning Heads. Boulder Daily Camera. http://www.dailycamera.com/ci_13057607?IADID=Search-www.dailycamera.com-www.dailycamera.com
(2) ’Work, Entrepreneurship and Opportunity in the 21st Century’’. U.S. Chamber. http://www.uschamber.com/publications/reports/0604entrepreneurial_workforce.htm
(3) ’’Average Receptionist Salary’’. CNNMoney.com. http://swz.salary.com/salarywizard/layouthtmls/swzl_compresult_national_OF13000017.html.
(4) Jaramillo, Noreen. ‘’Intelligent Office Saves Businesses Money’’. KFOX14. http://www.kfoxtv.com/news/9383311/detail.html.
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