Davis Virtual Assistants

So, I’m reading a thread of e-mail messages on one of the VA Forums, and the Topic Du Jour is motivation. How do home-based business owners maintain a high-level of motivation, day after day after day? Here are my responses to that question:

• My ultimate motivator is my 30-second commute. I love it, I need it, I don’t want to lose it. I refuse to spend valuable money-making time on a train traveling into the city.
• I want certain things, such as:
  • This book about Muhammad Ali.
  • A nused motorcycle - after we move upstate. Painted, of course; I don’t like the stock colors.
  • A tablet PC. Hubba hubba.

Today’s Advice: Proofreading. Take the time to proofread everything you create: e-mail messages, blog entries, correspondence, newsletters, articles … EVERYTHING. Here’s what I do:

1. I create the rough draft of the project, save my work and walk away from my laptop. This allows me the opportunity to rest my eyes and collect my thoughts.

2. After a 10 minute break, I read through the project solely for content. I want to ensure I’ve expressed myself in a clear and concise manner. If I haven’t, I make revisions and then take another break.
3. I return from the second break and proof my project for spelling and grammar errors. My trick? I read the copy backwards, starting from the bottom of the copy and work my way backwards. This may sound crazy, but trust me it works. By reading the copy backwards, it forces my eyes to focus on every single word, spotting any problems throughout the copy.
4. Next, I walk away from the project — for the day. I put the project to bed and DO NOT look at the copy I’ve written until the next day.
5. On the next day, I proof the copy for content, spelling and grammar and also have an assistant proofread my work. The project is then released.

Lance Armstrong announces he’ll retire after the 2005 Tour. Folks, I’ve followed the Tour de France for years on television, in print, at sports bars — you name it, I’m there. For those not in the know, Lance is the all time winningest (is that a word?) rider in The Tour. In 2004, he nailed his 6TH CONSECUTIVE Tour de France. That in itself is an amazing feat. The kicker? This is a young man who survived testicular cancer, which had spread to his lungs and brain.

Anyone who’s followed Lance’s career knew he had to retire at some point. The human body, no matter how finely tuned and cared for, is still a human body and as we all know, human bodies begin to break down over time. Lance has only 33 years on this planet and he’s lived it hardcore, by his terms.

I’d really love to have my friend Pete hook me up — the man has crazy skills.

Sad but true: I spoke with a potential client about two weeks ago — she told me that 9 out of 10 responses she submitted to a very popular online search site went unanswered. That off-the-cuff statistic floored me.

Business 2.0 has a kickin’ article on what they anticipate is in the works from Apple.