To quote one of my favorite artists, Chris Daughtry … Be careful what you wish for, ’cause you just might get it all. You just might get it all, and then some you don’t want.
So, what am I talking about? Success. Or, at least what I thought was success. We all want to have a full slate of clients. Unfortunately, I didn’t anticipate getting so many clients in such a short amount of time. While my bank account and my husband appreciate the influx of clients, my organizational abilities are stretched to the limits. I have the best intentions at being organized, but alas, it is something I definitely struggle with on a daily basis.
I am being forced to re-examine my daily routine now that my client base has expanded so rapidly and the demand on my time has increased exponentially from not only my clients, but my family as well (my husband is currently in training at the state Criminal Justice Academy and is only home from Friday evening until Sunday evening…leaving me do deal with a 2nd grader, a 23 month old and our 110 pound Lab by myself until January 2nd).
Could this stress have been avoided? Probably. In hind sight I should have implemented a more stringent routine months ago, setting aside a specific period of time each day for certain clients. But, to be honest, I did try that once a few weeks ago. Unfortunately the day I tried to “map out my day” was a day that terribly wrong and a single client project ended up monopolizing my entire day even though I had alloted time for 4 different clients that day. I shouldn’t have abandoned the idea of scheduling … I should have gotten right back on that horse the next day.
So, what this all boils down to is it doesn’t matter if you’re a virtual assistant or some other type of entrepreneur, find a schedule that works for you. If it doesn’t work the first time, tweek it until it works. Don’t wait until your client load is completely full to try to get yourself organized. Trust me, the stress will take it’s toll. And, as any good entrepreneur knows, if you work hard enough and long enough, the success will come – just try to be prepared for it.
That’s how it always happens, one day you have a ton of time to get projects done, the next you’ve gotten 4 new clients in the same week. It’s really hard to anticipate (or imagine) what the workload will really be like until it happens.
Do as I say, not as I do! But, order does feel so good. Flex-time is a dangerous toy, but we love it so much! Remember the energy spent beating yourself up is WASTED!
Great website.