A global, novel virus that has kept us contained in our homes.
Moments of crisis also present an opportunity: more sophisticated and flexible use of technology, a revived appreciation for the outdoors, and life’s other simple pleasures.
No one knows exactly what the outcome will be but we are aware that there will be changes; changes in society as we know it, healthcare, the economy, our lifestyles, mental well-being, and much more—many things will have to change.
The COVID-19 crisis has radically changed the way people live and work. Most studies have focused on the prevailing negative consequences, at the same time potential positive shifts in everyday life have received less attention.
About 30% of employees said their work and personal lives had deteriorated, while 10% said their work had improved and 13% said their personal lives had improved.
Mandatory short-term employment was strongly linked to a bad impact on work-life, it affected the young, those living alone, our association, and leisure time, these were all highly linked to a negative impact perception.
At the same time, living with a spouse or family, having a part-time job, and increased leisure time and care responsibilities, were all linked to a favorable impact on private life.
Working from home, especially when done for the first time, was substantially linked to a favorable effect on work life.
Covid-19 has changed things. Some of us have gone back to our usual work routine. Some of us have had our hours reduced. Some have no work or are finding it difficult to get back into the swing of things. Some of us have been at home so long we do not know which way is up or down. One thing is for certain, the bills will not wait and they usually arrive on time.
We could turn the Covid-19 negative into a positive. We could work from home. No boring commute every day, you can actually pick the hours that you want to work, etc. The only thing that needs to be highlighted is that you really need a lot of self-discipline to work from home. Work time is work time and should be treated with respect if you want to succeed. The more professional you are, the more work you will receive.
How Can I Do That?
Video conferencing has been widely available for years if not decades. However, only after the pandemic started has it become adopted en masse.
Why? One possibility is that during this incredibly stressful time, employees flocked to video conferencing to help fulfill their need for belonging to one of their most important sources of their identity, their workgroups.
The pandemic has already dramatically changed the workplace landscape. Lockdowns and self-isolation have affected how people across the world are connected and work together.
Employees had to learn to cope with these changes quickly. Teleworking, balancing work-life, and dealing with new technology.
Nonetheless, video conferencing was quickly adopted by many employees, students, and social groups when they could no longer meet face-to-face.
The pandemic, COVID-19, has rendered a large proportion of the workforce unable to commute to work, in order to stop the spread of the virus.
This has resulted in both employers and employees seeking alternative work arrangements.
Due to the pandemic, most workers experienced working from home.
This has become a policy priority for most governments.
Policies had to be made keeping in mind practicality for both employers and employees.
YouTube:
This current situation provides unique insight into how well working from home actually works and may play a vital role in future policies that reshape the current structure of working hours, possibly allowing for more flexibility.
The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has resulted in changes to the working arrangements of millions of employees who are now based at home and may continue to work at home, in some capacity, for the foreseeable future.
The emergence of new technologies has revolutionized working patterns, enabling work from anywhere for many employees.
The concept of telework has existed since the 1970s but in a more limited scope than is currently possible.
The extensive availability of technology has enabled the location and timing of work to be undertaken with significant flexibility, offering benefits to employers and employees.
The International Labor Organization defines telework as the use of information and communications technologies including smartphones, tablets, laptops, or desktop computers for work that is performed outside the employer’s premises.
A range of positive benefits are associated with teleworking, including improved family and work integration, reductions in fatigue, and improved productivity.
The vast majority of businesses have an online presence, they must have a website, and a blog and they must be represented on social media, Facebook, Instagram, Tumblr, Pinterest, YouTube, Twitter, and Tok-Tok, just to name a few.
If your competitors have a presence on these platforms, you will also need to be represented.
This opens the door for more and more people to work from home. The chances are that you already use one of these platforms so you may already be familiar with the way they work.
If not, it does not take too long to become familiar with them.
There are a variety of Jobs available for working online, for example, Home Based Virtual Assistant Work, Virtual Jobs from Home.
What Facilities Do I Need To Be Able To Work From Home?
Just like any other remote job, you'll need to have a dedicated home office in order to work as a virtual assistant.
In addition to a computer with a high-speed Internet connection, you'll also need a printer, copier/scanner, and fax.
Most likely, you will need a dedicated landline as well.
Virtual assistant jobs are a fairly well-known and highly coveted type of remote work.
If you’ve been wondering how to become a virtual assistant, or where to find virtual assistant jobs, read on!
What Is a Virtual Assistant?
Every virtual assistant job is a little bit different, but there are some general components to expect.
Being a virtual assistant, also called a VA, means that you’re generally a self-employed person that does administrative, technical, and sometimes sales or marketing tasks for a business.
The “virtual” part means all of your activities can be completed online, allowing you to work from anywhere with a good internet connection.
Most virtual assistants provide support for their employer/clients.
What Does a Virtual Assistant Actually Do?
Virtual assistants can work as Executive Assistants, Administrative Assistants, Personal Assistants, and in other related positions, depending on the client and amount of experience.
Virtual Assistant Tasks May Be Any Combination Of The Following:
Working From Home Options:
a) General Admin Work: Administrative tasks such as managing a calendar, sorting emails, answering phone calls, making appointments, and other tasks that on-site assistants do.
b) Project Management: Some VAs run projects for business owners. This means you will hold meetings, ask for updates from team members, and create reports on the progress of a project. You may also have some responsibility for projects staying on time or on budget.
c) Bookkeeping: Financial support is vital to every business. Smaller companies and those using VAs often need to help with processing payments, checking expenses verifying payroll, and creating regular budget statements. If you’re good with numbers and business, this can be a suitable place to start.
d) Billing and Invoicing: Companies often need help invoicing their clients. In these roles, a VA will create the invoices using the company’s software platform, verify each invoice, send them out, and help to process payments and record them when a payment is completed.
e) Content Research: Here you’ll learn about the company, its products, and its customers. Then, your job is to generate ideas and research assigned topics to provide relevant information.
f) Blogging and Writing: Sometimes, you’ll also write the content you research. This is commonly in the form of blog posts, but VAs can also be tapped to write web pages and other content.
g) Customer Research: Growing businesses often need to understand who their customers are. In this case, VAs will be given tasks related to tracking and analyzing the data provided by a company’s research tools.
h) Customer Support: Answering frequent questions, looking up customer details, taking messages, and generally helping are tasks that most freelance virtual assistants handle regularly.
i) Data Entry: Data entry generally is clerical work where you organize and type information. Sometimes it can be general recording or typing of information and in other cases, you might have more detailed tasks where you need to analyze the information you’re reading.
j) E-Commerce Order Management: Generally, a specialized form of customer support, many e-commerce companies use virtual assistants to help them understand current orders, find tracking numbers for customers and even restock products.
k) Email Marketing: You may need to send emails to customers or manage email sequences in email marketing programs. Sometimes, a virtual assistant will write the email or respond to it, especially if customer responses include things like setting up a meeting.
l) Social Media Management: Posting on social, answering questions, and ensuring that a brand looks good online are all part of social media management.
m) Social Media Marketing: VAs can specialize in the marketing that happens on social media, too. Here you may create campaigns and set spending, define ad targets, or take ad campaign reports and pull the pertinent details together for your boss.
n) Website Management: Virtual assistants are often tasked with making basic updates to websites, posting content, proofreading, and more. You might need WordPress or other skills to shine here.
o) Transcription: A final task that is common for VAs is to listen to meetings or recordings and transcribe what’s been said. Some jobs may also ask you to take notes and create reports on what was discussed.
Because so much of a virtual assistant’s job is done through a computer, excellent typing skills and being highly comfortable using different computer programs are a must.
The good news for anyone hoping to work remotely as a virtual assistant is that virtual administration is one of the fastest-growing remote career fields.
How To Become A Virtual Assistant?
If you have no direct experience or are looking for virtual assistant jobs for beginners, here are some ways to get started.
Have You Ever: booked appointments, made travel arrangements, managed a calendar or email, Blogged, or Promoted something on social media?
All of these tasks can fall under the responsibilities of a virtual assistant.
Even if you believe you have no experience, you may have transferable skills that can set your resume apart.
You may already have some of these skills without realizing how valuable they are.
To put them in the proper context, these should be detailed in your Virtual Assistant Resume Cover Letter.
How To Set Up A Virtual Assistant Business
As a virtual assistant, you can work directly for employers, for an agency that provides admin services to other companies, or offer your own services on a contract basis. You could be a VA for local businesses or browse the online freelance job sites. You can work full time or part-time, it’s up to you.
If you wish to go into business on your own, determine ahead of time which services you’ll offer, perfect your resume, and start networking.
If you offer social media operations, web design, or content production services, consider maintaining an online portfolio with examples of your work.
After working for your first clients, be sure to collect positive testimonials that can be used to impress new clients.
How Do I Become A Virtual Assistant Even Though I Have No Experience?
If you need to brush up on some areas, skills and certifications can be obtained through self-study or taking online courses to learn best practices.
TAKE TRAINING COURSES.
You've got to prepare for working as a VA and running your online business.
For Those Who Are Just Starting Up and Want To Know How To Become A Virtual Assistant, Start A Virtual Assistant Business From Home.
You can start part-time whilst still in your full-time job and gradually increase as you progress.
https://sites.google.com/view/plt-virtualassistant/home
Being a VIRTUAL ASSISTANT is obviously not for everyone. You do get well paid, so expect that, at times you may have to go the extra mile.
After a while, you may become really good at what you do and decide to put the 9-5 on the back burner and settle for a better work-life balance.
Just Thought That I Should Mention:
Increased Productivity and Performance
Working from home often results in a higher level of productivity because there are fewer distractions, and you spend less time getting to work, giving you the ability to work for longer each day.
Improved Work-life Balance
One of the primary benefits of working from home is the freedom to do the things that make you happy. Whether that means being able to spend more time with the ones you love, attending a yoga class, or taking your dog on a walk, you can create a work schedule that fits your life and priorities instead of the other way around.
The Ability to Stay Connected
Even though working remotely means that you are out of the office, you can remain connected with co-workers through applications and video conferences.
Custom Work Environment
When you work from home, you can choose the exact environment that fosters personal productivity. Your desk, chair, noise level, view, and even your location are all adaptable so you can create an environment that works with your life.
Healthier Choices and Lifestyle
When you work from home, you have more control over the food you eat. For example, instead of buying a bag of chips from the vending machine for an afternoon snack, you could eat the fruits or vegetables in your fridge.
In addition to a healthier diet, working from home allows you to take a break to exercise or stretch, activities that are less acceptable in a traditional office setting. In fact, some remote workers leave the house to go on a run or attend an exercise class in the middle of the day. Overall, working from home allows you the freedom and flexibility to create a healthier life.
Less Time Spent in Meetings
Video and audio conference calls allow workers to connect easily, regardless of location. Members of these meetings can easily share documents and comments through messaging or by turning their audio function on. Ultimately, these types of meetings are often shorter than in-person meetings because:
There are Fewer Interruptions
It minimizes idle chatter. Everything needed is easily accessible
More Environmentally Friendly
With the need for a daily commute eliminated, that means that you are using less gas and therefore decreasing your carbon footprint. Additionally, the energy needed to run an office's air conditioning and lighting is exponentially more than the energy it takes for your house.
Work from Anywhere
Working remotely usually means that you can also work from anywhere. Whether it's the coffee shop down the street or one on the other side of the globe, you will still have access to your work. This flexibility will allow you to travel or even move without affecting your employment.
Less Need for Sick Days
Working in an office while sick can be difficult, but it's much more manageable if you can work from home. If your company doesn't distinguish between paid time off (vacation vs. sick days), this will ultimately result in you having more time for a vacation.
Decreased Likelihood of Spreading Sickness
Another major benefit of working from home is the fact that getting sick will be far less common. In addition to avoiding the flu or cold that is getting passed around the office, you can prevent spreading your own germs when you get ill.
Save Money
When you work from home, you can save money in a lot of different ways, because it eliminates the need to: Buy lunch, purchase professional clothing, buy coffee, pay for commuting to and from work (with gas or a bus pass)
Flexible Schedule
Working remotely usually means that you can develop a routine that works best for you. For example, you can eat lunch whenever you feel like it, take a break at any point or call a family member in the middle of the day. Additionally, if you are more of a morning or night person, you can work during a time in which you are more focused and alert.
Increased Independence
When you work from home, you can develop skills that are unnecessary in an office. For example, aside from self-motivation and regulation, you may find that your writing skills improve because you have to do most of your work via email or chat.
Wear Comfortable Clothes
Most remote workers will agree that being able to wear comfortable clothing is a definite advantage of working from home. Whether you wear pajamas all day or put on exercise clothes to keep you active as you work, your outfit will be much more comfortable than the business casual clothing that you often need in an office.
Ability to do Chores While Working
You can also improve your work-life balance by eliminating the need to spend your free time doing certain tasks. If you're telecommuting, you could, for example, take a break to water the plants or do a load of laundry in the middle of your workday.
Option to Take Midday Breaks
While working from home, you have the ability to take breaks whenever you need them. Whether you take 30 minutes to go for a walk, meditate or take a power nap, you can return to work re-energized and more productive.
https://sites.google.com/view/plt-virtualassistant/home
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