virtual entrepreneur Archives

To become successful as a virtual entrepreneur takes more than just building a few niche sites and relying on Adsense (although we do enjoy it, don’t we VBL Niche Site Project peeps!?). I’ve taken a huge journey over the last couple of years, becoming more and more virtual as time has passed. And I’ve loved every minute of it.

So, today I thought it would be a good idea to create a small selection of tips and tactics for everyone to follow, if they are not ‘quite there’ in regards to ‘going virtual’. And even if you are already classing yourself as a virtual entrepreneur, I’m pretty sure that there are a gems below that you can still put into place.

Enjoy.

#1 – Quit Your Job!

If you’re working a regular job and you’re on this blog, the chances are that you hate what you’re doing! Stop doing that!!! In this day and age everyone has something to offer the world. Cash in on your passion and start changing the world! Obviously, moving on from ‘cubicle nation’ might be easier for some than others. However, if you find yourself counting the hours and minutes to 5pm each day, the chances are it’ll happen sooner or later. Do it now, stick it to the man, and start something awesome!

#2 – Remove Yourself from ‘Biz Operations’ as Much as Possible

This one is more for those of you who might be running a ‘brick n mortar’ business already. Last year I did everything I could to go as virtual as possible. I achieved it. And the icing on the cake came this year, when I hired a COO to come in and run the show for me on a day-to-day basis. He does a great job, we connect several times a week via phone and face-to-face once a week for a proper catch-up. Having other people looking over your company might seem a little daunting at first, but the bottom line is that if you want to ‘go virtual’, its the only way you’e truly going to achieve that freedom.

#3 – Purchase a Light-Weight, Portable Laptop

Being virtual means being mobile! I used to carry around a huge Acer laptop. I liked it as I wasn’t traveling that much and used it as a ‘main’ computer. But the weight and size of it made being mobile a massive chore. I upgraded to a MacBook Pro a couple of years ago and felt liberated. However, this year I craved for even more lightweight freedom and purchased the 11″ MacBook Air – enough said. Combine that with my iPad and I am about as virtual as I wanna be!

#4 – Purchase a ‘Skype-In’ Number

This thing literally changed my life, when it comes to communication. Getting your hands on a Skype-In online number basically means that anyone can call that number (pick one from a massive list of countries to best suit your needs) and it will ring on your Skype account no matter where you are in the world. If you’re not signed into Skype at the time the call comes through, it’ll just go to your voicemail. It’s been truly invaluable to my virtual-ness.

#5 – Get Smart With Your Phone

I recently read a report somewhere online that said only 35% of people that own smart phones (Blackberry, iPhone, etc.) actually use them to make phone calls. Mind-boggling, isn’t it! But, if you think about it a little more – not so much. I’ve had my iPhone4 for well over a year now, and I love it. Before that I was a Blackberry user for years and years. Being able to check email, etc., on the run is essential to doing business virtually. Not only that, but the App’s available nowadays make owning a smartphone as a business owner an absolute necessity! They make everything easier, lets face it! And, there are some cool games, too.

#6 – Get Going with Dropbox

This one little piece of software has revolutionized the way I share files and work with my various virtual assistants and even my team in my company facility. It’s quick, reliable, has lots of storage space available, and is a breeze to use. Not only that, but Dropbox is one of those cool software app’s that allows you to sync it across multiple devices. I have my account hooked up to my iPhone4, iPad, MacBook Air and my iMac at home. Wicked! Get Dropbox now, seriously!

#7 – Take Your Inbox & Calendar to the Cloud

Whether you use Google’s suit of app’s, such as Gmail and GCal, or Apple’s ‘MobileMe’, or a combo of the two, like I do – taking your email and calendar (along with your contacts should you so desire) is probably one of the biggest jumps to make in going virtual, but also one of the most important. Not having your email and calendar handcuffed to just one computer is paramount in turning yourself into an all-living, all-breathing virtual entrepreneur!

#8 – Start Creating Passive Income Streams

This is as important as anything else on this list… Working hard to create passive income streams NOW, will benefit you (if you’ve done it properly) over and over again, with very little involvement in the future. Everything from niche sites and eBook’s, to membership sites and coaching programs. Like I said, we’ve all got something to offer the world. Just be sure that you create your passive income products with long-term in mind and avoid looking for a quick buck. It just doesn’t work that way anymore!

#9 – Hire a Virtual Assistant

Okay, so I’m a little biased when it comes to this one – for obvious reasons! However, having someone else (or a team of someone else’s!) help you run, support and grow your business is also very essential to enabling you to spread your entrepreneurial wings. I’ve spoken to thousands of people about working with virtual staff throughout my career and I can honestly say that it makes a lot more sense than most believe so, to begin with. Give it a go, and let me know how it all works out for you. I’m pretty sure you won’t be proving me wrong anytime soon!

#10 – ……………………..?

This is where I’d like the already-virtual VBLer’s out there to butt-in, and share their own pearls of wisdom when it comes to business on the move, setting up virtually and building virtual businesses in general. It doesn’t matter if you just have a quick resource to share, or a full-blown virtual business strategy! Most important thing is the share, my friends.

No topic is off limits, and please do feel free to post links below, too – just as long as they are relevant. I look forward to reading all your ‘injections’ to finish up the post!

When you’re done, I’d be very happy if you’d SHARE this post, below!

I write this post from one of the most beautiful places on earth – Boracay, Philippines. Where just a couple of weeks ago myself and my wife worked from, for a whole week, and enjoyed every second of being in the ‘office’ when we were there! You might have seen some of the Virtual Assistant Video Tips that I shot when I was there, if not, check ’em out.

However, today I wanted to discuss the one thing that seems to plague entrepreneurs more than anything else nowadays. Email. It’s a common fact that gradual loss of email productivity happens to everyone, virtual entrepreneurs included. Or should I say, especially to those running or keeping track of their business online. If you’re an “emailaholic” spending more than an hour reading and answering emails at any one time, then you’re seriously in big trouble as far as I’m concerned. I’d like to throw in these five no-brainer tips on email productivity to help you fight this bad habit.

So, lets dive straight in, as I did on many occasions over my week on the beach – into the beautiful clear ocean you see above you…!

Say no to email auto-check!

There’s a Firefox plug-in that automatically checks your email for updates every minute. It surely has its own positive attribute, but it’s an irresistible bait leading to frequent email monitoring. It’s one of those biggest email productivity myths that prevents you from sticking to your disciplined approach in managing emails. The problem is, it’s most likely that you’ll drop everything just to see what’s inside your inbox once you get that notification (same in Outlook, too, obviously!). There’s a better approach to not giving into temptation— don’t let it come near you. Knowing when to say no is smart way of increasing your email productivity.

Don’t sweat it. Write less!

It’s an email, not an epic literature or something. You can always pull off an email by writing less. That’s one way of boosting your email productivity. Try answering questions in bullet points. You can add a few extra details so long as it’s relevant; otherwise you not only bore your reader, but also get your message lost in the clutter. On top of that, writing a long reply slows down your response time, which is not good for business. A concise and well-written message can definitely help you upgrade your email productivity to the next level.

Use templates. Add a personal touch later!

You can increase your email productivity by using templates that help you manage answers to frequent email subjects. Be careful in using templates though. Use them as drafts, not the email per se. Don’t forget to customize those boilerplate responses for clients. They’re smart enough to distinguish a personalized email, a decided plus for your business, from a generalized one. After all, your goal is not just to increase your email productivity, but add more value to your business simply by responding to an email.

Just delete it… Seriously!

Even if it’s not spam and you know in your heart that the email is not worth your time, just delete it. Listen to your instincts. Get rid of emails that add no value to you or your business. If more than half of what you receive from a particular sender are “almost spam” emails, better archive and sort them later – if you really have to. The same strategy works for emails that don’t need your urgent response. That’s one powerful way of increasing your email productivity almost immediately.

Make it a habit!

Are there any email productivity habits that you aim for? It can be any of those mentioned above. It can be all of them. Or it can be other email productivity habits introduced to you by other websites or authors such as David Allen of Getting Things Done. The key to achieving these habits is by acquiring them one by one— not all at once. Focus on a habit, let’s say for month or two, and once completed you can move on to the next. Time to get serious with your email productivity!

So, there you go – a quick round-up of tips I put into place – sometimes all the time, sometimes just when I need them – but, the bottom line is that they ALL work. Are there any tips that you’d like to share with the readers? If so, please leave them in the comments section below.